The first rule of trading cryptocurrencies is simple:
Don't do it.
Bitcoin is a fantastic censorship-resistant, anti-fragile store of value. Buy an amount you could afford to lose or, at least, don't need for the first few years. Store it in a secure wallet and forget about it.
Master the art of the HODL.
Most people lose money trading. Unless you are an experienced trader in other assets and/or have been in bitcoin for a long time; most likely you will be most people and, eventually, lose.
Lots of our clients at bitcoincambodia.co react to this information with something like; "Cool, so where can I get --insert random shitcoin here-- ? 'Cause that one's going to the moon for sure."
So, by popular request, here's an overview of the crypto exchanges we use. Always remember; the only safe place to store bitcoin is in a secure wallet where you control the private keys. Exchanges do get hacked or exit scam or the shitcoins your holding there get delisted or go to zero. Proceed with caution.
Binance
Binance is a new, Hong Kong-based exchange, launched last summer. It's the most popular exchange at the time of writing. Mostly because it offers the lowest trading fees available: 0.1% and if you use their native BNB token you can even cut that price in half. Binance provides a wide variety of crypto markets and should be your go-to exchange if you want to trade shitcoins with the lowest possible fees. As an added bonus, there are no KYC requirements for withdrawals up to 2 BTC/day.
Bittrex
Bittrex has been around for ages (well, since December 2014, pretty impressive for an altcoin exchange) and is based in Las Vegas, USA. Fees are a whole lot higher than Binance: 0.25%, but it's a decent exchange platform with a huge variety of currency pairs. Basically, if Binance doesn't have to coin you are looking for, Bittrex is the place to go.
ShapeShift
If you prefer convenience over price; ShapeShift is your top choice. There's no account required. Directly send one cryptocurrency to ShapeShift, give them the receiving address of the other cryptocurrency you want and just wait for for the magic to happen. It's the easiest way to go from one shitcoin to another, but it's, by far, the most expensive way of trading alts.
BitMEX
BitMEX is our personal favorite. It's an advanced margin trading service with up to 100x leverage and very low fees. It's a bitcoin-only platform, but they offer tradeable contracts for some selected altcoins as well. If you are new to trading, you probably want to spend some time reading their references section before jumping in.
A few tips to get you started on BitMEX:
- Be careful with that leverage slider. There's no fun in getting liquidated. Start at 2X and try to not go over 5X.
- Practice patients. You will do a lot better if you only enter trades very occasionally when there's a perfect set-up. Forcing trades because you feel like it will not end well.
- Have a plan. Know where your stop-loss is and at what point you will take profit before opening a position.
Good luck and happy trading!
If you like to look at charts; make sure to check out our Coinigy review.
Picture credits: 1. Andre Francois, 2. Redbubble, 3. Binance, 4. Bittrex, 5. ShapeShift, 6. BitMEX
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