How to buy Bitcoin and crypto currency in Trinidad & Tobago [May 2021]

If you are like me and would have heard of the term "Bitcoin" and wondered how can you purchase it in Trinidad & Tobago or the Caribbean, this article is for you. According to Coindesk.com, "Bitcoin is a form of digital currency, created and held electronically. No one controls it. Bitcoins aren’t printed, like dollars or euros – they’re produced by people, and increasingly businesses, running computers all around the world, using software that solves mathematical problems."
When searching for "how to purchase bitcoins", usually the infamous Coinbase is the first exchange that appears in the search engine as it allows one to purchase cryptocurrency using a credit card with ease. Unfortunately, at the time of writing this article, Coinbase isn't available for Trinidad & Tobago residents. This is the reason I'm writing this article.

Below are the steps for purchasing bitcoin from Trinidad & Tobago using a credit card.

STEP 1:
Ensure that you own a bitcoin wallet. You can download a digital wallet for free to your computer, or purchase a hardware wallet such as a Ledger Nano (Hardware wallets are more secure)
Hardware Wallet: https://shop.ledger.com?r=bf45a297f125
Desktop/Mobile Wallet: http://www.exodus.io
Desktop/Mobile Wallet: https://trustwallet.com

STEP 2:
Visit and sign up for an account on one of these online exchanges.
Exchange 1: https://www.binance.com/?ref=11350200 (Highly Recommended)
Exchange 2: https://paxful.com/?r=AZ3Y3r3pGdb (Highly Recommended)
Exchange 3: https://www.coinmama.com/?ref=bagosatoshi
Exchange 4: https://cex.io/r/0/up109669612/0/
Echange 5: https://localbitcoins.com/?ch=10tmb

[UPDATE MAY 2021] BINANCE NOW accepts Republic Bank and Scotiabank credit cards. So it has been added to the list of where you can purchase cryptocurrency.

Coinmama and Cex.io only works if you have an older TT credit card linked to your account. It no longer works with newly added credit cards.

STEP 3: (optional)
Verify your identity by uploading the required identification documents if you would like to remove low purchase limit on your exchange account. (This is required to prevent fraud).

Please note that you may have to download the Binance Mobile app and log into your account there to have a successful verification as the web browser is currently experiencing some overload. However, you are free to sign up for your finance account using a web browser.

Coinmama Verification Guidelines http://bit.ly/2DKSlPn
Cex.io Card Verification Guidelines http://bit.ly/2DbtYcb

STEP 4.1: (THIS STEP IS FOR BINANCE ONLY)
Select the "Buy Crypto" tab

STEP 4.2: (THIS STEP IS FOR BINANCE ONLY)
Select your payment method. You can Select "Bank Deposit (SWIFT)" or "Credit Card".

STEP 4.3: (THIS STEP IS FOR BINANCE ONLY)
Select the cryptocurrency you want to purchase and the amount you want to purchase.

STEP 4.4: THIS STEP IS FOR BINANCE ONLY)
Your purchase would go directly to you exchange wallet where you can then withdraw the crypto to your personal software or hardware wallet.

STEP 5.1 : (THIS STEP IS FOR COINMAMA ONLY)
Select the fiat currency and the amount of bitcoins you wish to purchase. Then enter your credit card info.

STEP 5.2 : (THIS STEP IS FOR COINMAMA ONLY)
Enter your personal Bitcoin address in which you would like the cryptocurrency sent to. (Please ensure that it is a Bitcoin wallet address and not one of a different cryptocurrency such as Ethereum, Litecoin or Bitcoin Cash)

STEP 5.3 : (THIS STEP IS FOR COINMAMA ONLY)
Confirm the transaction. An email would also be sent to you confirming that you entered the correct Bitcoin address.

STEP 6.1 : (For Cex.io)
Add a credit card to your account and deposit funds to your account.

STEP 6.2 : (For Cex.io)
Select how much bitcoin you would like to purchase using the funds from your account.

STEP 6.3 : (For Cex.io)
The Purchased bitcoin would immediately be in your Cex.io online bitcoin wallet. It is​ recommended​ that you withdraw it to your personal Desktop (Exodus) or hardware (Ledger or Trezor) wallet using your personal address.

Paxful and Localbitcoins are straightforward to purchase but you may get a better price on Coinmama or Cex. (It varies)

There you go! You now own bitcoin!

You can now sign up for Binance to trade you Bitcoins for many altcoins such as Ethereum and Litecoin.
LINK: https://www.binance.com/?ref=11350200 (Highly Recommended)

Points to note!

• If you are using an exodus wallet, make sure to backup your wallet after your first deposit to the wallet

• If your purchases are declined on any of the websites, you may have to contact the bank for them to authorize the purchase. After confirmation with the bank, it'll be smooth sailing. (It happened to me with Coinmama)

• Bitcoins may take up to a few hours to show up in your personal wallet.

• It is not recommended​ to leave bitcoins in online wallets such as Cex.io. Transfer them to your personal wallet asap

• Only share your PUBLIC ADDRESS to receive payments with bitcoin.

• There is something called your PRIVATE KEY. Its called that for a reason. It is suggested that you access your PRIVATE KEYS and keep it in a safe place (Preferably not on your computer because computers​ can get hacked).
  If you use a hardware wallet such as the Ledger, the private keys are stored on the device and you are given a passphrase.

For more info and accessing your private keys on an exodus wallet, click here http://bit.ly/2yJfqSj

• Don't share your passphrase with anyone

I hope this article helped! If it did, feel free to support me and use the referral links I provided in this article - BagoSatoshi