That's it, you've decided to buy Bitcoin!
After reading about Bitcoin and the incredible monetary revolution it represents, you've decided to take action to change your future by taking back control of the fruits of your labor.
Once you've decided to take action and buy Bitcoin, you'll be faced with a seemingly simple question, but one that can quickly become complex in the world of Bitcoin for a beginner: where to buy Bitcoin safely?
The term “safely” seems to me to be even more important after the FTX fiasco of late 2022. While FTX was not hacked, as can happen with some exchange platforms, it appeared that Sam Bankman-Fried's cryptocurrency exchange platform was selling fake Bitcoin units to its customers.
These are now called paper Bitcoins:
Not Your Keys, Not Your Bitcoin – FTX Was Selling Fake BTC to Its Users
Since FTX customers were making the mistaken choice not to take responsibility for the security of their purchased BTC units themselves, they blindly trusted FTX. This is where the “Not your Keys, Not your Bitcoin” meme showed its relevance more than ever, since while FTX was telling you that you had X number of BTC units in your account, you had none.
After the FTX fiasco, many customers of other exchange platforms became aware of this danger again. There was an acceleration of BTC withdrawals from exchange platforms at the end of 2022.
What happened with FTX is not an isolated case, since the Celsius Network fiasco in June 2022 with a freeze on withdrawals blocked BTC units for several defrauded customers as well. Here the problem was a bit different with BTC units used as collateral for loans allowing the exchange platform to generate interest with your Bitcoin.
Again, you understand the danger of not owning the private keys associated with your Bitcoin. Without private keys, you own nothing except a promise on your BTC units. And if the platform goes bankrupt for any reason, you stand to lose everything.
You are not in control and are missing out on the Bitcoin revolution if you don't take this into account.
Your research will then probably lead you to COINBASE or Binance. These are the two biggest exchange platforms in the cryptocurrency world, and their names come up often. BINANCE might worry you because the company does not comply with US regulations, which sooner or later might cause a problem. Coinbase is a publicly traded company in America, which should put your mind at ease.
The problem with Coinbase is that the platform will push you to buy and sell Sh*tcoins constantly because that's how Coinbase generates profit. Coinbase has no interest in you being a Bitcoin HODLer who keeps his Bitcoin's private keys safe in his cold storage.
Coinbase will regularly introduce you to new Sh*tcoins by making you earn a few dollars in the tokens of those Sh*tcoins to tempt you more. Some people give in and end up selling some of their Bitcoin units only to regret it bitterly later.
Beyond Coinbase, you have the Kraken platform which I recommend more willingly than Coinbase because I find it more serious. Kraken was the first platform to push for the generalization of Proof-Of-Reserves at the platform level. I told you about it at the beginning of 2022:
All Bitcoin Trading Platforms Are Not Equal – Kraken Stands Out With Its Proof of Reserves
Long before Binance wanted to show its exemplarity (or tried to make believe it was exemplary...) after the FTX fiasco, Kraken already offered any user to perform the Proof-Of-Reserves themselves to verify that the platform possessed the BTC it promised to possess on behalf of the customer performing this Proof-Of-Reserves exercise.
What I've always liked about Kraken as well is that exchange founder Jesse Powell has always pushed his customers to store their Bitcoin private keys themselves. He has always been transparent in saying that this is the only way to protect you from potential censorship that governments might try on you by forcing Kraken to freeze your assets.
Despite this, Kraken also offers Sh*tcoins for purchase. It doesn't promote them like Coinbase, but it does tempt its customers with these Sh*tcoins. The SEC now has Kraken in its sights regarding its staking products. Kraken has just paid a fine to stop the possible prosecution by the SEC.
Not ideal in my opinion.
If you are interested in the issue of KYC policies of exchange platforms, you will not find any exchange platform based in America that will satisfy you. I discuss this in a chapter of my book “The Truth About Bitcoin” with the idea “Bitcoin is not private, but you can choose to make it private” which I explore in depth:
You can then approach a decentralized exchange platform like Bisq. Bisq is interesting, but for beginners, it's not necessarily the preferred option I think.
What I'm going to talk about today is an intermediate option before possibly moving to Bisq in the future.
This option is what I call a Bitcoin buying platform. You might be wondering what this is all about because you have never heard of such a term. However, I consider the solution I'm about to tell you about to be a Bitcoin buying platform. You read that correctly, I'm talking about a buying platform, not an exchange platform.
The platform I'm going to talk about is Swan Bitcoin.
I told you about it at the beginning of 2022 when I told you to focus on the number of BTC you own and not the valuation of those BTC units in weak money:
Focus on the Number of BTC You HODL, Not the Current Price of Bitcoin in Weak Money
I told you then that Swan Bitcoin was a perfect option for this. A little over a year later, my opinion hasn't changed.
6 Reasons to adopt Swan Bitcoin for your Bitcoin purchases
The first thing I like about Swan Bitcoin is that the platform doesn't offer a way to sell your Bitcoin. With Swan Bitcoin, everything is done to push you to be a Bitcoin HODLer. And the reason Swan Bitcoin does this is that time has proven that being a Bitcoin HODLer is the best way to take full advantage of this incredible monetary revolution:
The second thing that's perfect about a Bitcoin buying platform like Swan Bitcoin is that you won't find any cryptocurrencies to buy. Swan Bitcoin does not list any Sh*tcoin:
Swan sells only Bitcoin (BTC) to its customers. No risk of you being misled and referred to Sh*tcoins. You will save time with Swan Bitcoin. You will be able to focus all your energy, time, and money in the only direction that matters for the future: the direction of the Bitcoin revolution.
The third thing I like about Swan Bitcoin is that the platform pushes you to take responsibility for the security of your Bitcoin yourself. The platform's FAQ has an article listing the best Bitcoin Wallets to take control:
The fourth positive point for me is that Swan Bitcoin adapts to your goals. You can either make instant unit purchases or plan recurring Bitcoin purchases as part of a Bitcoin Savings Plan (to set up a Bitcoin DCA purchase strategy). This fits in well with the Bitcoiners' philosophy I told you about earlier this year:
Investing in Bitcoin Is a Mistake. Saving in Bitcoin Is the Way to Follow to Change Your Life for the Better
Even better, you can couple this with the automatic withdrawal feature of your Bitcoin purchased on the Swan Bitcoin platform. You can specify the trigger for the withdrawal threshold:
The fifth point that makes Swan Bitcoin different is that you cannot buy Bitcoin by placing limit orders or stop-limit orders. Some people will see this as limiting, but these people probably don't understand the philosophy behind a Bitcoin buying platform like Swan Bitcoin.
Swan Bitcoin seeks to educate you to make the most of the Bitcoin revolution. Swan Bitcoin does not seek to make you a trader. Your interest in Bitcoin is to be a Bitcoin HODLer, not a Bitcoin Trader as I have told you in the past.
So there's no need to bother with limit orders or stop-limit orders. Want to buy Bitcoin now at a certain price? Do it via an instant buy on Swan Bitcoin:
Swan Bitcoin is the best ally for those who have understood the why of Bitcoin.
The sixth good thing about Swan Bitcoin is that the platform is available beyond American borders. Usually, this type of platform is reserved for Americans in its infancy. Not Swan Bitcoin, which is available to you in a large number of countries around the world:
Many emerging countries have not supported each other, that's a fact, but unfortunately, this is the case with many exchange platforms for reasons specific to the governments of those countries who often try to prevent their citizens from accessing the freedom that Bitcoin can provide.
The only negative point with Swan Bitcoin is the one I mentioned above, which is that you will have to comply with the KYC policy that is imposed by the US authorities on all companies like Swan Bitcoin. But this negative point applies to all the serious platforms you will choose. So it's not a differentiating factor anymore.
To do without it, you'll have to switch to a decentralized solution like Bisq. But as I said, I don't think that's ideal for users new to the Bitcoin world, or even for the majority of the general public. Therefore, Swan Bitcoin is a solution that you should consider if you understand the why of Bitcoin.
After reading all of this, you must be thinking, how do I go to the Swan Bitcoin platform to find out about this unique service for Bitcoiners that is offered globally?
You can use my affiliate link for that:
https://www.swanbitcoin.com/ssaurel/
This affiliate link will allow you to immediately get $10 of free Bitcoin in your account while supporting my daily work to help you keep your focus on the real signal: the Bitcoin revolution.
In the future, I also plan to present a tutorial on how to use Bisq. This will come in the next few months to teach you how to buy Bitcoin in no-KYC mode.
Stay strong, Stay Bitcoin HODLers.
If You’re Worried That Bitcoin Hasn’t Reached Its Bottom and This Is Holding You Back, Read This.
Stop looking down with fear. Instead, look up with hope.
https://inbitcoinwetrust.substack.com/p/if-youre-worried-that-bitcoin-hasnt
Don't take for granted the word of Bitcoiners who tell you that Bitcoin is an incredible monetary revolution, but verify it for yourself by developing the knowledge to build your truth about Bitcoin.
That's what I suggest you do in the book “The Truth About Bitcoin: Everything you need to build your truth about Bitcoin and stop trusting others without verifying
The book is available on various platforms:
On Amazon in print format: 630 pages
On Amazon in Kindle format: 543 pages
On Gumroad in PDF format: 475 pages
In P2P mode in PDF format or EPUB format with payment in BTC (-20% if you buy in Bitcoin): contact me by email at [email protected]
