Good reasons to buy Bitcoin

Depending on your financial situation, these could be sound reasons to put some money into Bitcoin.

1. You want to invest money you can afford to lose

Regardless of our budgets, we all have an amount of money in mind that we can afford to lose without it having a major impact on daily life or long-term financial goals.

If you’re risk-tolerant, you might put that money into investments for the chance to see it grow -- knowing you’re also OK if it shrinks. Crypto values are volatile, even for a mainstay like Bitcoin. That means there are periodic major upswings, but you also have to be able to weather losing money if the value swings down.

2. You want to use it to buy things

You might want to buy Bitcoin to use as currency (as opposed to investment). For example, you might make purchases through platforms that trade in crypto or offer better prices when you pay with crypto. If you need to make a purchase or send money internationally, you might find Bitcoin offers a more favorable exchange rate than USD.

3. You value decentralization of currency

Depending on where you live and your history with economies around the world, you might be wary of government-regulated currencies and central banks.

Because of its volatility, cryptocurrency isn’t the perfect solution to things like hyperinflation or government corruption that put citizens’ money at risk. But you might decide it’s a more fitting place for some of your assets than traditional financial institutions.