With the current interest and value of Bitcoin having surged this year, the requirement for safe and secure exchanges that facilitate the purchasing of cryptocurrencies in the United Kingdom has become increasingly important. One of the most popular exchanges that is currently available is called Coinbase.
Coinbase was launched in San Francisco back in 2012. Almost 6 years later Coinbase operates in 32 countries and has served over 12 million customers worldwide. This popular wallet has exchanged over $40 billion in digital currencies to date. By the year 2013, Coinbase had proven to be the highest funded Bitcoin startup, as well as the largest exchange of cryptocurrency in the world. Unlike other exchanges that require users to trade on a open market, Coinbase allows users to trade their cryptocurrency at a set price that is based on the Coinbase market value.
Coinbase and Fees
Coinbase does charge fees ranging from roughly 1.49% to 3.99%, depending on your chosen deposit method. For example... buying with a simple credit card transaction is the most convenient, however fees are at the higher end of the scale. Coinbase generally has a lower fee than other competitors who operate a similar business model. These would be Coinmama or CEX for example.
Coinbase allows users to buy Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, Ethereum and Litecoin instantly, and plan on adding more currencies to the platform in the near future. In respect of ‘hard forks’ such as Bitcoin Cash and Bitcoin Gold, Coinbase have stated that they will only offer trading specific "hard fork" currencies once there is guarantees in respect of security on the networks.
By following this step by step guide, you will be able to buy cryptocurrency through Coinbase. Although this post is intended for UK accounts, I am sure the process is very similar or the same in other parts of the world.
Getting Started
To create an account with Coinbase, all you need is to give your name, email address and create a password. To get started bookmark this page and follow this link to visit Coinbase
Choose a account type
Upon signup request, you will be asked to confirm your email address. Next, you will be redirected to the startup page and requested to confirm whether you want to create an individual or business account.
Verify your Phone Number
Why must I verify a phone number? The reason for this request is to create a form of 2-factor identification in order to ensure that your account remains safe and secure. Other 2-factor identification methods are also available, however I would recommend verifying a phone number first.
Verify your account by ID
To verify via ID will be the next step. Coinbase is big on security and legalities, by verifying your ID on Coinbase you are proving who you are. This allows for further identification allowing credit card and bank transfer deposits. Also protects your account against fraud.
Setting up your payment Method
Coinbase allows customers to choose from two payment methods, direct bank transfer and credit card. At this point I feel everything is self explanatory. Simply setup your preferred choice and buy some bitcoin!
It’s important to make sure that you are on the right tab of your account to purchase the correct currency. Before confirming the transaction, Coinbase provides you with details of the service fee and the amount of cryptocurrency being purchased in the transaction. Once confirmed, the amount of cryptocurrency that you have purchased will be credited to the relevant Coinbase wallet. If you decide to use a credit card you will be please to see the transaction is quick and your account will be credited almost instantly.
As you can see in the below picture I have first made a test deposit of £20 and then £100, everything went smoothly and my account was credited almost instantly.
Coinbase Shift Card
The Coinbase Shift Card is a VISA debit card that is available to its Coinbase users. The Shift Card is only currently available to users in certain US States and Territories to spend the Bitcoin in their account in any place where VISA is accepted. Shift Cards cost $10 but there are no transaction fees on domestic transaction, in fact there are no fees associated with the exchange of Bitcoin to USD.
Coinbase Supported Countries
Australia, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Canada, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Jersey, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Malta, Monaco, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, San Marino, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, United Kingdom and the United States.
Conclusion
Although it’s not perfect and lacks some features in specific countries, Coinbase offers investors (and especially newcomers to cryptocurrency) a easy-to-use service. Buying and selling cryptocurrency in the UK could not be easier.
Overall, it is a good introduction to the world of cryptocurrency and allows users to invest what they can affort into the world of cryptocurrency.
Thanks for reading I hope this article helped out. As always I am looking forward to all comments. If you landed here from a google search, maybe take a moment to look at this blog in detail. Introducing steemit, blogging here earns you a cryptocurrency called steem :-) :-) :-)
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