About a month ago, I started dabbling into Cryptocurrency day trading. This was a frustrating experience and I ran into nearly every possible roadblock you could imagine. However, through a long and arduous process of trial and error I have found a way to be successful and profitable through the online trading of various cryptocurrencies. I would like to share my experiences with anyone who may be interested in learning more about day trading with Bitcoin, Ethereum, or other startup cryptocurrencies. Here is a brief overview of the different approaches to trading that I used, and results on what is reliable as well as (more importantly) what to avoid.
Obtaining Bitcoin
I struggled to finally acquire my first fraction of a bitcoin. Coinbase was having its fair share of issues including dealings with the IRS and lack of ability to confirm credit cards CVN for a week. Finally I found Paxful which took me for a ride. Paxful is a cryptocurrency exchange with a plethora of payment options for buying and selling. Desperate for my first fraction of bitcoin, I settled for sending an amazon gift card e-code to someone for less than half the value. Later, not wanting to pay Paxful prices or give coinbase too much information, I came into contact with a person who seemed legitimate, and even prematurely recommended him to some of my contacts, being my trusting self.
After he started blocking off connections to all of my contacts and my account, I decided it was time to take action. I was alright with losing money myself but was not about to let trusting individuals get ripped off under my belt. I performed a full dox, ended up with his parents phone numbers, Geo locations, fiances phone number. Needless to say, with struggle, I got everyone's money back.
After that scare, most would call it quits. However I'm a little persistent. Finally Coinbase fixed its CVN issue and I was able to buy legitimate bitcoin through their exchange.
Paxful Exchange and Struggles with Venmo
When I first began investing I was enticed by some HYIPs (high yield investment programs) that are essentially ponzi schemes. You get in and out quick. These are very risky and unsustainable. I lost about $100 worth of cryptocurrency from one in particular. Every HYIP started to crash.
To avoid losing more money, I finally decided to take trading into my own hands back to the Paxful exchange. People were willing to spend even double the value of bitcoin for the instant transaction and anonymity through PayPal services such as Venmo. I profited a few hundred until Venmo support decided to freeze and then permanently ban my account despite them having no means or evidence. Venmo would stop my bank transfers and steal any money that I had made. I learned that they can do anything within their discretion. I continued making burner venmo accounts and receiving transactions that I'd deliver to friends who would later return it to me. Some failed and some made it through. I ended up profiting a few hundred, but the stress made it difficult to justify while venmo extorted a couple thousand.
Moral of the story is don't be sheep and don't invest anything you aren't prepared to lose. Be able to recover information about anyone you do business with. Oh and fuck venmo.
To date, buying at low points and selling at hi points via Coinbase has been the most profitable for me. If you have any recommended exchanges, ICOs, Coins, or trading tips, feel free to leave a comment below!