How to buy cryptocurrencies

This is a totally practical article, aimed at those people who are entering the world of cryptocurrencies and want to know which is the simplest and safest way to start.

If you want cryptocurrencies, the easiest thing is to buy them. And, for that, the best site is Coinbase. You've probably heard about them (if you've dived a bit on Google ...). Coinbase is an online wallet that, in addition to saving your digital currencies, allows you to buy and sell bitcoins, ethers, bitcoin cash (soon) and litecoins.

Steps to buy in Coinbase

1. Create a portfolio. To do this, go to the Coinbase page and register with your name, surname and email. In a moment you will have your portfolio ready.

Note: If you create your Coinbase portfolio by following any of the links in this article, you will receive $ 10 (€ 8) in the form of bitcoins when you have purchased the equivalent of $ 100. And in Mundo Satoshis we will get the same prize as you.

1. Add a mobile phone number to confirm your account. This increases security, since you will receive a message with a code every time you access the wallet. Later you can enable two-factor authentication (2FA) with the Google Authenticator application, if you wish. In case you activate the 2FA, remember to save the token or code provided by Coinbase to be inserted in the application, to be able to recover it later if you change your mobile or reinstall the Google Authenticator application.

1. Verify your identity with at least one of the following documents: National Identity Document (depending on the country in which you reside), Driving License or Passport.

This step can be completed using your computer's webcam (if you have one) or your mobile's camera. For this second option, Coinbase will send you a link to your mobile phone through an SMS, where you can upload photos of your documentation.

1. Enter the payment method with which you want to buy coins, it can be a credit / debit card or a bank account. The introduction of the payment data can be done from the link of the control panel ("Add a payment method") or in the section "Configuration> Linked accounts".

In the case of the card, the procedure is not more complicated than the one that you have surely followed at any time to buy anything through the Internet. Simply try to enter the card number and the other required data, and you will already have the card linked to your Coinbase account.
Keep in mind that the fastest method is the card, since the purchases will be immediate, but you will pay a slightly higher commission. However, with a bank account you will have to wait about 2-3 days for the operations to complete, although you will pay a little less commission. You can add both methods at the same time (card and bank account) to test them and decide for yourself which one you should use at any time.

1. To link a bank account, the process is a bit longer, since you will have to make a transfer from your bank to the account indicated when you add the payment method in the corresponding section ("Configuration> Linked accounts") . That will surely take 2-3 days, depending on the speed of your bank.

I recommend that the first bond transfer you make a very small amount of money (about $ 5 or € 5, for example), to check that everything works properly. In addition, it is very important that you do not forget to include the code indicated by Coinbase in the data of the transfer when you are going to make it.

1. You are ready to buy! Enter the buy and sell platform ("Buy / Sell"), select the currency you want and indicate the amount you wish to purchase.

When you click on the "Buy Bitcoins" button, you will be redirected to a secure page of your bank where you will have to enter the code that you will receive on your mobile (by SMS) to authorize the purchase. And, with this, you will have made your first safe purchase of cryptocurrencies.