How To Buy Bitcoin with Debit Card?
The Complete Guide for 2022
In this day and age, if you don’t know what Bitcoin is, or you have never heard about it, you must be living under a rock. In the past 13 years, it has gone from being the world’s first recognized cryptocurrency, worth only a few cents, to the world’s most powerful asset, priced at a record high value of $68,000. It is also the reason why hundreds of people have become millionaires and billionaires, and hundreds more have lost millions of pounds.
What adds to the popularity and credibility of Bitcoin is that several companies and corporations all over the world have started accepting payments in the cryptocurrency, which is a giant leap forward. Moreover, some banks are eager to provide their customers with cryptocurrency services. Although the risks are still prevalent, no other investment is as lucrative and has massive gains like Bitcoin does.
With that said, you must be eager to learn how you can buy Bitcoin and start your investment journey. There are several easy ways through which you can do so but doing it with a debit card is one of the most convenient methods, and the process is incredibly smooth and rapid nowadays. This article covers everything you can do in order to buy Bitcoin using your debit card. Let’s dive right in and see what the fuss is all about.
Is Buying Bitcoin with a Debit Card Difficult?
When cryptocurrency exchanges were developed and started growing in number, buying Bitcoin with debit or credit cards was one of the options that you had, but it was considered to be quite complex since not many people had an idea of the process and weren’t ready to put their trust in something they hadn’t even heard about until a while ago.
Thanks to the decentralized nature of blockchain on which Bitcoin transactions are recorded, as well as the numerous security protocols in place, it has become much safer and more convenient to use your debit card on the exchange app or website without having to worry about losing your money or falling victim to a fraud or scam.
Plus, there are several cryptocurrency exchanges companies that have streamlined the process, making it smoother and faster for every individual. So, to answer the question, it isn’t difficult at all to buy your Bitcoin and pay through your debit card because the transactions are highly secure and recorded on the blockchain, which means they can’t be tampered with.
Where Can I Store My Bitcoin After Buying It?
Before we discuss how you can buy Bitcoin with your debit card, let’s take a moment to talk about how you can store your Bitcoins after you buy them. Most people think that the cryptocurrency exchange platform they use to buy the asset is the safest option to store it, but that isn’t always the case. Just like you have physical wallets to store your pounds and other physical currencies, Bitcoin can be stored in a digital wallet, which can be either be stored on physical or web-based storage.
How You Can Buy Bitcoin with Your Debit Card
Now that we have cleared several things out of the way, it is time to focus on the most important question: how do you actually use your debit card to buy Bitcoin? You must be familiar that you purchase cryptocurrencies through exchanges, which can be accessed through their respective apps or websites. Let’s check out the steps that you need to follow in order to buy Bitcoin with your debit card.
Choose the Exchange
If you are looking to use your debit card to fulfil the transactions that make you the owner of Bitcoin, then you will have to choose a cryptocurrency exchange that allows you to use debit cards. You might also some people mentioning that you should buy your Bitcoin from a broker, and it isn’t the same as a cryptocurrency exchange. A Bitcoin broker will be an individual or an organization that provides financial services to people looking to buy Bitcoin, and they also facilitate such people in managing the technical aspects of the transaction.
Make sure to choose your exchange or broker wisely, and you should always look for reviews, testimonials, and a list of satisfied clients before you decide to divulge your debit card details to them so that you have complete peace of mind. Most people have complained about fraudulent individuals or companies who con people into providing their financial information and stealing all their money.
Register on the Exchange
Once you have selected a suitable exchange or cryptocurrency broker, you will be required to create an online account before you can start buying Bitcoin, just like you do when you set up your internet banking, mobile banking, or any other financial system. By setting up your account, not only will you be able to buy cryptocurrency whenever you like, but you will also get access to your investments, as well as your financial and tax information.
Plus, the online account will be secured through several security and privacy protocols that are enforced by different cryptocurrency exchanges, so you won’t have to worry about your personally identifiable information or financial details being disclosed due to a hacking attempt or data breach. Through the exchange or crypto broker, you will also have the freedom to buy and sell Bitcoin whenever you want.
Link Your Debit Card to the Account
Now that you have found the perfect cryptocurrency exchange and also set up your online account, the platform would ask you to choose the method of payment through which you will make payments for buying cryptocurrencies. Since we are focusing on paying through debit cards in this article, you will select ‘Debit Card’ from the available options.
This action would prompt a form or pop-up to appear, where you will have to enter the cardholder’s name, card number, expiry date, and CVV number. Most cryptocurrency exchanges make it mandatory that you can only use a debit card that has your name on it, i.e., the name on the online account should match the cardholder name; otherwise, the card won’t be added. This is a way for these exchanges to ensure that users don’t add a stolen card and rob someone of their hard-earned money.
So, if you are looking to use a friend or family member’s card on your online account, you might not be able to do so. You can, however, ask them to set up an account with their name and use it to buy the Bitcoin for you. Once your debit card is successfully added, the cryptocurrency exchange will use it to take out funds against any Bitcoin you buy.
Consider Getting a Digital Wallet
In the previous section, we mentioned that you shouldn’t keep the Bitcoin you buy on the cryptocurrency exchange itself, as it can be insecure and more vulnerable to theft. Before you start buying Bitcoin, you should ponder upon the thought of getting a digital wallet, where you can store your Bitcoin separately and without any trouble or concern.
As mentioned above, digital wallets can be either hardware or web-based, and they are also called cold wallets and hot wallets. The former allows your Bitcoin to be stored offline, and they have no access to the internet. On the other hand, hot wallets are used to store your Bitcoin in an internet-enabled device such as a smartphone, tablet, or laptop.
You can choose between the two depending on the amount that you need to buy and store in the wallet. Generally, if you are going to spend a higher amount in order to buy Bitcoin, you should opt for the cold wallet, which contains the user’s address, their private key, and other key information as well. Since the cold wallet isn’t connected to the internet in any way, it is impossible to penetrate or steal from it.
Some examples of cold wallets include USB and flash drives, whereas hot wallets are in the form of mobile applications, software on your laptop, etc. Once you have decided on getting a digital wallet and the type of wallet you want, you can link it with your cryptocurrency exchange in a few easy steps.
Buy Your First-Ever Bitcoin
If you have followed all of the aforementioned steps to the letter, you would have an online account at a cryptocurrency exchange or broker, which is also verified through your personal information. Next, you will be asked to set up the payment method, with a debit card being the choice for the purposes of this article. Once the debit card is verified and added, and you have also decided whether you will opt for a cold or hot wallet, there is only one thing left for you to do.
That one thing is to buy Bitcoin for the first time in your life! It is quite an exciting feeling when you are on track to buy your very first cryptocurrency. You might be aware that the Bitcoin value is between £20,000 to £40,000, and it keeps rising and falling day after day. Sometimes, the price even falls several thousand pounds within an hour!
When you think you are ready to buy your first-ever Bitcoin, simply select Bitcoin from the list of cryptocurrencies that are shown in your exchange. It would show you the current value at which Bitcoin is being traded. If you think that this is the right rate at which you should buy the Bitcoin, then you have to select the amount you want to buy.
It is important to mention here that since 1 Bitcoin is equivalent to more than £25,000 right now, you should know that the minimum amount that you can buy isn’t 1 BTC. Rather, the smallest amount you can buy is 100 millionth of a Bitcoin or 0.00000001 BTC. Judging by the current Bitcoin price trends, an amount this small won’t cost you more than a few pennies.
Alternatively, if you have considered how many pounds you want to invest in Bitcoin, you can add that in the GBP field, which is located on the other side of the equal sign. Let’s suppose that the current Bitcoin value stands at £30,000, and you are looking to buy as many as you can get for £300. This would make you the owner of 0.01 BTC.
Once you complete the transaction, you should get a notification from your bank that your debit card has been credited for the specified amount, and your digital wallet will be debited with the Bitcoin that you have just bought. The entire transaction will be completed in mere seconds, and you will find it as fast as an ecommerce transaction.
How Much Bitcoin Should I Buy with My Debit Card?
It is very important to consider how much Bitcoin you should buy, especially if you are doing it for the very first time. Generally, there is no upper bound to the amount that you can buy, other than the transaction limits that your debit card might have. As mentioned above, you can even buy one-millionth of a Bitcoin, which is also called a ‘Satoshi,’ named after the Bitcoin founder Satoshi Nakamoto.
Moving on to the topic at hand, there is no upper limit to how much Bitcoin you can buy, but you have to understand that this is a highly volatile cryptocurrency that can go down just as easily as it goes up. Therefore, you have to be smart about it. First and foremost, you should only use funds that you have no need for, at least for the next 3-4 months.
Some people use up their emergency fund or savings to buy Bitcoin without looking at the rise and fall of its price in the recent past. As a consequence, they encounter heavy losses, and it sets them back thousands of pounds. You might also hear some Bitcoin “experts” say that you should buy at least 1 BTC if you want any real profit, but that is a reckless strategy.
If you ask us, the best way to go about it is to start off with a small amount, ideally a few hundred pounds that you can afford to lose. The next thing to do is to look at the graph of the Bitcoin price against the British Pound or Euro, whichever currency you prefer to deal in. This would give you a general idea of where its price will go in the near future or whether it will stay constant.
Once you have reviewed the price trends and reached a conclusion, you can use the money you have earmarked for Bitcoin. Last but not least, don’t run after quick or instant profits when you buy Bitcoin because it can cause you to make rash financial decisions. A sound investment strategy is to buy a substantial amount and hold on to it, monitoring the price regularly. Then, if the price goes down by a few thousand pounds and you think you can afford to buy more, you can invest a little more money and wait it out.
However, if the price goes up by a few thousand pounds, you can choose whether to sell your Bitcoin for a small profit or wait it out to see if the price will go up further.
Where Can You Buy Bitcoin with a Debit Card?
There are several cryptocurrency exchanges out there, and nearly all of them offer you the opportunity to add your debit card and use it to buy Bitcoin. However, some exchanges are more credible and popular than others, which is why we have listed them here. Let’s have a look at some of the best cryptocurrency exchanges that you can use to buy Bitcoin.
Coinbase
Coinbase is one of the most well-known Bitcoin exchanges out there, and it features a user-friendly interface that makes it very easy for you to set up your account, link your digital wallet, and add your debit card as well. However, you might have to check out its fee structure for debit cards, which can be different from other forms of payment. You will need to upload a government-issued ID in order to get your online account verified at Coinbase. Generally, its fees are lower than other cryptocurrency exchanges, but its support services leave much to be desired.
eToro
If you have been researching cryptocurrency exchanges, you must have come across eToro as well. It is perfect for beginners who are just starting out their Bitcoin investment journey, and its transaction fees are also quite affordable, so you shouldn’t have any trouble purchasing your Bitcoin. eToro also provides you with a cryptocurrency mobile wallet, which is highly secure. However, you will have to go through an extensive verification process and also complete several steps before you can withdraw your Bitcoin.
CEX.io
CEX.io is a well-known cryptocurrency exchange, and it comes from a reputable company as well. It provides trading and brokerage services, and if you are a novice in the world of Bitcoins and need help, you can make use of their brokerage services to buy your first Bitcoin. However, the brokerage fees are much higher than their transaction fees, and its exchange rates are also higher than other exchanges that you can find out there. Nevertheless, it is also one of the most secure platforms for buying Bitcoin.
Bitpanda
If you are looking for a cryptocurrency exchange that specifically deals in Bitcoin, then Bitpanda is what you need. It is considered to be better suited for customers in the European Union and is preferred by people looking for lower transaction fees, a user-friendly and intuitive interface, and multiple payment options to choose from. You can easily get your account verified in a few easy steps, and your debit card is also added to the platform swiftly. However, it has a daily limit for transactions, which amounts to roughly £2,000.
This brings us to the end of our guide on how to buy Bitcoin with a debit card. Whether you are well versed in cryptocurrency and how they work, or you know nothing and still want to invest in Bitcoin, you will be able to use this guide and easily choose a cryptocurrency exchange, add your debit card, and make your first-ever investment in no time.
BWCEvent aspires to share balanced and credible details on cryptocurrency, finance, trading, and stocks. Yet, we refrain from giving financial suggestions, urging users to engage in personal research and meticulous verification.
