This is a guest blog post, originally posted at the below:

How to Buy and Sell Bitcoin in Australia with Coinspot

 

Why are you reading this?

• You’ve read all the news stories about the success of Bitcoin and how Bitcoin has hit recent highs of $US8,000, $US9,000 and now $US10,000
• You’re Australian and can’t figure out how to buy Bitcoin, or just haven’t started yet

What is Bitcoin?

Bitcoin is the original blockchain technology which started the crypto-currency era, which uses peer-to-peer networking technology (like BitTorrent) to create a network of nodes which synchronise every transaction on the network. Transactions between “accounts” are recorded on the blockchain, which keeps record of every single transaction on the network, on every single node – this means that transactions are highly secure, and cannot be reversed. This high security is provided by a process called “mining”, which requires the transactions to be “hashed”, a process of computing large amounts of random jibberish to a certain specification (let’s call if difficulty) such that when the specification is met, transactions which are used to compute that jibberish, are committed to the network and through a process of synchronising and voting, are rendered permanent.

Why is Getting Started with Cryptocurrencies so hard?!

Good question. The financial world is full of regulation. As Bitcoin is a digital currency, you can’t just go to the bank and exchange your money. To buy Bitcoin, you need to have an account with an intermediary, who will take your “real” money in the form of AUD or USD, and exchange this for BTC (bitcoin) or any other of a whole long list of cryptocurrencies. The problem for Australian’s, is we have limited choices here; there’s only a small handful of services which allow you to purchase Bitcoin, and even fewer which allow Australian’s to sell it!

How to Buy Bitcoins in Australia with CoinSpot

CoinSpot is one of the best websites for Australians to get started with buying and selling Bitcoin, Ethereum and all sorts of other cryptocurrency; the process is quite simple too.

1. Signup to CoinSpot
2. Verify your identity (most sites require a copy of your drivers license / passport)
3. Buy Bitcoin by securely transferring funds instantly with your bank account (using Polipay, a service which appears to be created by Australia Post)

Simple!

EDIT: Since sharing this post, I’ve been pointed to a few other exchanges which support buying/selling for Australian users; these are listed at the bottom of the post.

Bitcoin Security

What’s different with crypto-currency, is that you are even more responsible for securing your new found money. If your CoinSpot account is hacked, it’s easy for someone to send the Bitcoin in your account to their own account, and at that point, it’s gone forever.

You MUST secure your account, your computer, and any other devices you use to login!

• Add Two-Factor Authentication to your account – CoinSpot uses the Google Authenticator to verify that it’s you; if you’re prone to losing your phone, you need to be a little bit more responsible…
• Never disclose your wallet/account addresses to anyone on social media – if someone has your address, they can easily query the balance of your account, and target you
• Once you have funds in your CoinSpot account, transfer them to a new account which is not held on CoinSpot or any web based account!

Great, now what?

Now you do whatever you want to do with your Bitcoin. Watch the price soar, hoping it will net you millions of dollars, or write some DAPPs. The beautiful thing about CoinSpot, is that Australians can easily buy and sell Bitcoin and transfer it to other parties with ease. Want to pay your bills with Bitcoin? Just buy some Bitcoin on Coinspot, and use Living Room of Satoshi to pay any bill in Australia!

If this guide has helped you at all, feel free to send any amount of Bitcoin to 16LqsShf4r9N3bdNKvLMAQN7k4V1L9s7xQ

 

Relevant Bitcoin Links

•  Exchanges
  • CoinSpot – quickest and easiest site to buy and sell Ethereum and Bitcoin
  • BTCMarkets – this site also lets you buy/sell Ethereum with AUD
  • CoinBase – Coinbase doesn’t currently allow selling for Australian accounts, but you can now buy Bitcoins, Bitcoin Cash and Ethereum from Coinbase
  • Independent Reserve
• Books
  • Blockchain Revolution: How the Technology Behind Bitcoin Is Changing Money, Business, and the World ($20.40 on Amazon)
  • Ethereum: Blockchains, Digital Assets, Smart Contracts, Decentralized Autonomous Organizations ($19.00 on Amazon)
• Australian Crypto Currency community that runs a Slack channel and provides a number of great guides and blog posts
• Living Room of Satoshi – pay any bill in Australia!
• Where to buy/use Bitcoin in Australia