How To Buy Bitcoin in Canada: Investor's Guide
Cryptocurrencies have been on the radar of many investors in the last few years, with Bitcoin emerging as the most well-known and successful digital currency to date.
Investing in Bitcoin can be complex and stressful, but it doesn’t have to be. This guide will show you how to buy the currency, and some tips for ensuring your transactions go smoothly.
Best Exchanges for Buying BTC in Canada
Coinbase is one of the world’s first and most popular cryptocurrency exchanges, available in more than 100 countries. It was one of the first exchanges that enabled users to purchase Bitcoin and Ethereum from Canada.
Bitbuy is a cryptocurrency exchange that has been available to Canadians since 2016. The platform has processed millions of transactions and served over 400,000 users.
Uphold, one of the oldest and most popular cryptocurrency exchanges, was launched in 2015. The platform has more than 10 million users across the globe and supports more than 250 digital currencies and other assets.
Bitget is a global cryptocurrency exchange with over two million users in around 50 countries. Users can trade with hundreds of cryptocurrencies besides Bitcoin and enjoy some of the lowest trading fees.
Reasons To Buy Bitcoin
Bitcoin is more than just an investment opportunity. While it’s one asset that had exponential growth in value and made many people wealthy, it also has other multiple use cases that make it a technology worth investing in, namely:
Diversifying Your Investment Portfolio
While you can make many different investments, putting some of your money into Bitcoin can offer you a way to diversify. This is because Bitcoin is not correlated with other asset classes, meaning its price movements are not directly affected by the stock market or other traditional investments.
Remember that it’s still a volatile market, and you should only invest what you can afford to lose and expect long-term profits.
Hedging Against Inflation
Inflation happens when the prices of goods and services in an economy increase over time. This is usually caused by the government printing more money, which leads to a decrease in the purchasing power of each unit of currency.
While there are many ways to protect your finances from inflation, such as investing in real estate or precious metals, Bitcoin can also provide you with a great alternative.
This is because Bitcoin is a deflationary asset, and there will only ever be 21 million BTC in existence. The supply will decrease over time as more BTC is lost through forgotten or lost wallets.
Making Cross-Border Payments
Bitcoin can be used to send money to anyone in the world quickly and easily. BTC transactions are not subject to traditional banking fees or restrictions, making them much cheaper and faster than conventional methods.
Store of Value
Bitcoin is often compared to gold because it is not subject to the same volatility as other cryptocurrencies. This makes it a great asset to store your wealth.
Steps Needed Before a Purchase
You need to adopt a few simple principles to make the best of your Bitcoin investments.
Choose a Cryptocurrency Exchange
Make sure that you are using a reputable cryptocurrency exchange. This is important because some have been hacked and lost customers’ funds. The best way to ensure safety is to check if a government body regulates the company and whether it operates legitimately in Canada. It needs to be registered as an MSB with FINTRAC.
You should also check if the exchange has favourable fees and if it takes security precautions to protect users’ funds, such as cold storage and insurance.
Decide What Payment Method To Use
Most crypto exchanges accept credit and debit cards, bank transfers, and Interac e-transfer. Each of these has its own rates and fees that depend on the exchange.
Assess How Much Do You Want to Buy
Before starting the process, you need to know how much Bitcoin you want to buy. Investing more than you can afford might not be the best idea, as Bitcoin is a volatile asset, and its price can rapidly change. You don’t want to overspend on your investment or buy at the moment when the price peaks.
Decide on a Bitcoin Wallet
A Bitcoin wallet is a digital storage space where you can hold your BTC. It’s generally better to use it for storing crypto than on cryptocurrency exchanges.
There are many types, such as software, hardware, and paper wallets. We have several recommendations for storing and using Bitcoin if you don’t already have a preferred storage solution.
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