RE: Dear Crypto Nerd - I Am a Brain Washed Corporate Girl and I Want To Buy Steem.
This is one of the problems with cryptocurrencies - and I suppose it's mostly unavoidable at the moment, particularly in the United States, where we have to deal with money/income/tax Nazis at every turn.
But this is what really hurts the wider adoption of cryptos in general, and likely STEEM/Steemit. It's hard enough to move people from their favorite social media sites. Yes, there is the "get paid to blog" element, but how you get paid is important. If that process is difficult to understand - and even more difficult to actually execute - it doesn't matter how much "money" you can make because adoption will feel like a hassle. And the process you just described about Coinbase is exactly why I haven't even attempted to sign up with them.
So, the question is - if we have to jump through hoops and even give up our anonymity in order to deal with cryptocurrencies, what's the point of the cryptos? I thought the intent was to make things easier (and at least somewhat anonymous).
The one thing that makes all of this a real problem, not just a theoretical one, is the fact that this digital "money" really can't be spent anywhere - and it's particularly true with STEEM and most of the "alt" coins. Even Bitcoin hasn't been that widely adopted yet (never mind that very few people actually spend their Bitcoin anyway). If you can't spend the money, then there's really not much use for the money. This is the problem that cryptos have to overcome.
At the very least, I would like to see a deal worked out where STEEM can be used to purchase a gift/debit card that can be recharged. Even if there was a 10% charge to use it, it would solve a lot of the adoption/spending problems that limit the growth of cryptos.
Gyft is a really convienient bridge between bitcoin and pretty much everything else, IMO.
As to buying anonymously, its pretty easy as long as youre nowhere terribly remote and willing to do f2f meetings. I was making around $50K/week in f2f purchases for all of 2015 and the beginning of 2016, and i don't think i ever gave my real name once.
I haven't tried it myself, but I heard you can use this:
https://steemit.com/steemit/@stan/remittio-offers-universal-off-ramps-for-bitshares-and-steemit
Thanks. That's good to know. Now that I think about it, I remember seeing you mention this before.
This was back in August. Is there still a ~20% haircut on transfers? That's brutal.
right now, there is no haircut, because SBD is trading close to $1
Also good to know. Thanks again!
Just wanted to say that I used @blocktrades services a couple of minutes ago and the current fee is approximately 4.5%. I can certainly live with that.
private jet level
The whole process is awkward, and makes me feel a little bit "criminal". :) I realize it isn't a problem directly caused in any way by Steem, I think we have so many innovative and intelligent minds around here, it sure would be great to see some brainstorming and discussion on reducing the "barriers of entry". Especially for those who want to invest.
Yeah - that's likely one of many reasons why we don't see more "investors." First, it's difficult to get into Bitcoin in order to get into STEEM. Then, you have to consider that the difficulty will be experienced by others, which could limit growth. And then, if you can make money buying STEEM or using the platform, you have to consider the expenses and difficulty of pulling that investment back out...and potentially getting screwed by existing tax laws and regulations.
So, yes - the process is not good. There ought to be a simpler way, but is it even possible with the governments regulating like they do? This is why I don't like to see these "coins" and exchanges/companies being created in or establishing themselves in the United States. Find a friendlier environment and find ways that don't involve transfers directly to individual bank accounts.
And you're right - they ought to use all of this brainpower they have to figure something out that's a little easier. They seem to be moving in the wrong direction. Complexity is not the answer. Simplicity is.