If you're reading this page, you're most probably familiar with the Bitcoin craze going mainstream and seeing that more people have started investing with the hope of riding it's monstrous growth. As of this writing, 1 BTC = Php 553,000 ($11,015).
While BTC is now widely accepted, there are fewer options to buy and invest in Ethereum in the Philippines.
I get a lot of queries as to how to get started buying Ether (Ethereum's digital currency), so I'm putting a how to guide in making your very first investment in Ethereum.
There are 2 ways to purchase Ether in PH (for now), one is using Coins.ph and the other one using your credit card via CEX.io. This tutorial will focus on buying Ether using Coins.ph, but if you'd like to know how to use CEX.io, I'll put a separate tutorial soon.
So here are the steps to purchase your Ether using Coins.ph:
- Download Coins.ph mobile app or sign up using www.coins.ph website. If you already have a Coins.ph account and have funds ready to convert to Ether, go to step # 3.
Follow the verification process to increase the daily limit of funding your account and making withdrawals. I personally have tried funding my wallet using Mlhuiller.
Once you have enough funds, you can now convert your fiat money (Peso) to Bitcoin.
Go to www.changelly.com, this where you will convert your Bitcoin to Ether. But to proceed, you will need to have another coin wallet that supports Ether. Only reason why we're doing this, because Coins.ph only allows you to buy, store and sell Bitcoin.
- Download Coinbase mobile app or sign up using www.coinbase.com, once your account has been set up, copy your Ethereum wallet address in Coinbase.
Mobile App Version:
Web Version:
- Go back to changelly.com, and indicate how much BTC you want to convert to Ether. In this example below, 0.04566583 Bitcoin will convert to 1.07659 Ether.
- Click Next, and enter your Ethereum wallet address from Coinbase.
You will now be asked to confirm the transfer. Once you do, you'll be given the address where you will send your Bitcoin from Coins.ph. Copy the address below. Please careful in double-checking the addess given:
Go back to Coins.ph, switch to Bitcoin tab, and click on Send, and enter the amount you will send, and paste the address from changelly:
Note: Coins.ph collects fees (in small BTC amount) when doing the conversion, so you will need to make a few adjustments with the amount of BTC you will send to cover the fees. Last time I've checked, fees were amounting to Php 150 to Php 250.
- Once you've sent the BTC to the address generated by Changelly, check the history tab in Coins.ph, and it should tell you once payment has been received.
Don't panic if it seems delayed, as transactions may take a few minutes. I remember getting worried on my very first transaction, but soon enough, you'll see in changelly.com that transfer and exchange has been completed.
- Once completed, you should see in your Ethereum wallet in Coinbase that you've received your Ethers!
It should look like this:
And there, you've just made your very first investment in Ethereum!
I suggest keeping track of your investments but if you're in for mid to longterm, just note your initial investment in PHP or USD so you'll know how much your investments have grown.
I personally intend to keep my Ethers for at least 6 to 12 months before cashing in my investments and won't have to worry about the daily fluctuations in the market.
So have you made your investment in cryptocurrencies already? Feel free to share your experiences and your investment strategies.
Happy investing!