Buying P2P is a great goal, and may be manageable if you're 1 to 1.
But honestly, only maybe 1 in 100 people that are interested in bitcoin will be able to buy P2P at the beginning, without a lot of help. There's way too many barriers.
In this step, you’ll actually purchase bitcoin, using whichever source you prefer from the options given below. In the exercise after this one, you’ll move some of that bitcoin to the wallet you created in Exercise 2.
How much will you buy? Choose an amount that you’re comfortable with, probably less than 50 to 100 USD, or the equivalent in other currencies.
This should be an amount small enough that you’re not worried about losing it, but large enough to be able to do all the exercises. You’ll pay transaction fees to move the bitcoin around to different wallets, but otherwise the bitcoin is yours to keep. And you’ll learn more about transaction fees as you go through the exercises.
A reminder—when you’re buying bitcoin in this step, you’re not buying it on an exchange traded fund (ETF), because then you wouldn’t be holding and managing your own bitcoin. Instead, you’re buying bitcoin that you can receive into your own wallet, in self custody.
Since there’s so many different sources to buy bitcoin from, I can’t walk you through the process of setting up an account and buying bitcoin, because it will be different everywhere. But I’ll give you some general thoughts about the best ways and sources to buy from.
Also, a note about keeping your bitcoin safe—at this point, you just need to take very basic security precautions. This is because:
• The amounts that you’re dealing with are small.
• The wallets you’re working with are temporary. Once you’ve finished the exercises, you’ll send the bitcoin to another wallet.
There are two main ways of buying bitcoin, KYC (“Know Your Customer”) and P2P (Peer To Peer).
KYC is what most people use, in countries where exchanges are available. It means using a centralized exchange, which follows government “Know Your Customer” laws. On a KYC exchange, you need to open an account, linked to your government ID, to purchase bitcoin. You will need to go through an identity verification process. This usually includes submitting photos of government-issued ID, as well as facial scans.
P2P means you’re not going through a regular exchange. Instead, you’re buying from a peer—someone who owns bitcoin and wants to sell it.
If you’re lucky enough to have a friend or family member who’s willing to sell you a small amount of bitcoin, then the transaction can be very simple. You hand the friend or family member some cash, and give them a bitcoin address from your wallet. Then they send you the bitcoin (minus the transaction fee).
But often, P2P trades will be done online, via one of the secure, private services mentioned below.
One of the main benefits of buying P2P is increased privacy. If you’re buying peer to peer, the only other person that knows about the purchase is the seller. However, if you’re buying from a KYC exchange, your personal information is available to both the exchange, and the government. And considering how often companies have been hacked and their customer database stolen—it’s not just the government who could get your data. Criminal gangs could get it as well.
The problem for people just starting to buy bitcoin is that for these P2P services, you need to already own at least a small amount of bitcoin. This is because usually a bitcoin bond or escrow needs to be set up.
KYC Exchanges
If you’ve decided that for now, you’ll use a KYC exchange, you have many options.
It’s important to purchase from a bitcoin-only exchange. An exchange that is bitcoin-only will have fewer points of failure. And more importantly, they won’t try to sell you other, inferior cryptocurrencies, that they make more commission on. Companies that sell anything other than bitcoin (exchanges such as Coinbase, Kraken, Robinhood, Binance) are not recommended.
There’s a saying among bitcoiners that expresses a core belief—that Bitcoin stands alone, and is fundamentally superior to other cryptocurrencies.
Bitcoin, not crypto.
Here’s some KYC exchanges that are Bitcoin-only. This is not an exhaustive list, and this information can change quickly, so do your own research. Also, the exchange should make it very clear that they will actually allow you to withdraw your bitcoin, to your own wallet.
P2P exchanges
In general, using a P2P exchange can be a little more challenging. Also, even more so than with KYC exchanges, you’ll need to stay informed because the P2P markets can change quickly. But on the plus side, you get the best possible privacy, and that’s worth a lot.
Below are some of the more common P2P exchanges. For more options, take a look at this site: https://kycnot.me/.
Robosats requires a Bitcoin Lightning wallet in order to use it (see the Resources section at the end of this book for more information on Lightning), but it’s one of the most popular and easiest P2P exchanges.
In the next exercise, you will need to have already completed the purchase of bitcoin. It needs to be ready to send, from the exchange to your own receive address.
Exercise 3: Buy Bitcoin
Where should you buy bitcoin? KYC or P2P