Hello, I'm CryptoCiri. A few days ago few of my friends asked me about crypto since I have been interested and investing in it for quite a while. I'm no expert trader, I have no experience trading stocks and I'm no financial advisor, but I believe cryptocurrencies have great potential in the future and so far I somehow managed to make a profit. So I made a Facebook chat and wrote a quick guide for them in my native language. They really liked it and even shared with their family members and friends who liked too and most important of all understood it. So I decided to translate that quick guide in hopes it can help some else as well. This guide was written so anyone could understand it, so if you are looking for something more in depth, this sadly isn't it. It's a guide you can share with your dad, grandparents or non-tech savvy friends who have no idea what crypto even is. This first guide will be focusing on Bitcoin with other topics to come.

THE CORE

If you want to talk about Cryptocurrencies you cannot escape bitcoin. It is the largest, most known and the first cryptocurrency in the world.

It works like digital cash, but without a third party i.e. banks like in most current cases, when you send money over the internet or when you use your debit/credit card.

So when a person A wants to buy something using bitcoin from person B, he simply inputs the other person bitcoin address, which serves the same purpose as a bank account number, and pays the transfer fee. Bitcoin will appear in another person's wallet. But It's not there yet. The transaction has to be confirmed first.

To ensure the constant flow of transactions, Bitcoin transactions are processed by miners. Miners are people or companies who use computation power of their computers to secure the transactions made by people all over the world. For lending out their computing power they are rewarded with fractions of a bitcoin. They also get the transfer fees that the paying party pays to get the bitcoin to the receiving party.

When the transaction's been confirmed by miners, bitcoin will become accessible in the wallet of person B.

WHERE TO BUY

Buying bitcoin is quite simple, even though it might seem intimidating at first. You can buy Bitcoin at online exchanges or at a Bitcoin ATM, but I would avoid the ATMs since they usually are the more expensive method of buying Bitcoin.

The two best exchanges for a newcomer, in my opinion, are Coinbase and Bitstamp. Coinbase in available almost everywhere in the world while Bitstamp is available mostly only in Europe.

Personally, I like using Bitstamp for bank deposits and Coinbase for credit card purchases. Bank deposits may take a while but in the end, you end up paying fewer fees in contrast to credit card deposits where an additional fee is charged, but you receive your coin instantly.

But before you can buy your Bitcoin you need to register on the exchange website. This may take a while because you will need to submit at least two form of identification like your ID or a drivers license.

After getting your account verified, which usually takes from a day to a few weeks you can finally buy Bitcoin. Remember, you can buy a fraction of a Bitcoin, you don't need to purchase the whole thing.

If someone you know sent you this article and you're considering buying bitcoin or any other cryptocurrency from Coinbase I advise you to ask them for their referral link. With it, you will both get an extra 10$/8€ worth of Bitcoin after you purchase 100$/85€worth of any cryptocurrency from Coinbase.

HOW TO STORE

After buying your bitcoin you can keep it on the exchange where you bought it or you can send it to your own wallet. It is not recommended to keep your cryptocurrencies on an exchange since it is less secure than keeping it yourself. You store Bitcoin in a digital wallet. You can make a bitcoin wallet on your phone or on your computer.

For the phone wallet, I recommend Mycelium wallet that can be found in the app store. Or if you want to keep your Bitcoin on your computer I recommend Electrum wallet.

When you make a new wallet you will be given something called a private key. A private key is a combination of words that give you access to your wallet. So the first time you make a new wallet for any cryptocurrency make sure to write down those words and hide them in a secure place. Make sure you write down the correct words because if you make a mistake and want to restore your wallet on another device, you might lose your Bitcoin.

The private key you got can be used on all other Bitcoin wallets and on other devices. So if you make a Bitcoin wallet on your phone you can open that wallet on your PC with the use of those private keys you wrote down.

ADDITIONAL SECURITY

When you invest more and more money into Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, it is recommended to get an additional layer of security. That can be achieved with a hardware wallet. That is a wallet that has a physical form instead of digital. It stores cryptocurrencies in such a way that they cannot be accessed without the physical wallet itself.

In my personal opinion when the price of getting a hardware wallet becomes around 5-10% of your portfolio that is the time to get one. The one I personally recommend, since I use it myself, is the Ledger Nano S. It is simple to use, it supports many cryptocurrencies and didn't cost a lot of money. If you want to keep your crypto safe there is no better way than a hardware wallet.

KEEPING TRACK

If you want to keep track of the price of cryptocurrencies you own and your total investment into crypto, there are many useful applications on mobile and on the internet to utilize.

On mobile, there are two great apps that I recommend. One is Blockfolio and the other is Delta. Both can be found in the app store of your mobile device so check them out and pick the one you like best.
As for websites I recommend Altpocket or Cointracking.

WRAP UP
This has been my Quick guide to crypto #1 Bitcoin. I know I left out many things and topics, but the purpose of this article is to give a reader that first layer they need to start learning about Crypto. If it's not too much to ask for I would like to hear your thoughts on how could I improve my guide, what you liked and what you didn't like. Share your thoughts in the comments. I want to improve so I can give you an even better guide the next time when I continue with the Quick guide to crypto.

Have an excellent day.

~CC