One of the most practical and economic ways in the long term is to buy “directly” the Bitcoin. Buying them indirectly or through certain platforms exposes us to the custody commissions that many companies charge. Unless we want to trade, where then small costs are understandable and understandable for the transactions. But here what we are looking for is to acquire the Bitcoins.
We are going to detail next, how to acquire Bitcoins through Paypal. We will analyze the past relationships Paypal had with the cryptocurrencies, and the current regulations with which the company is now moving. And of course, the different ways that transactions allow us. Some with less risk, others with something else. From here, let’s evaluate!
Why Paypal?
For those who do not have an account, it is essential to open it with Paypal if we go to work with it. It is a company with which you can make payments, collections, and different online transactions, in almost every country in the world. If something has rewarded Paypal, it has been its security systems.
Since its inception, almost 20 years ago, it quickly became an option for many people. It had a meteoric growth thanks to the incentives it offered to make its way into a market that, at that time, was beginning to emerge. Paypal is not a bank, and does not charge commissions to maintain the account, but is governed by the rules of the United States Department of the Treasury.
Creating the account with Paypal
At the beginning of the registration, Paypal offers two types of account, one Personal and another Business – Business. Unless we want to issue invoices, to sell products as a company, the usual thing is to create a Personal account. Next, we begin to put all our data that are name, surnames, mail, country where we are, etc, etc.
And here! Once we have done this first step, we must know something. Paypal does not allow the direct purchase of Bitcoins. Yes it was in the beginning, it is true, but the controversy in which the criptomonedas were involved caused the company not to allow the direct purchase.
What they do allow is the purchase through portals and / or platforms. There are not many, but among the most reliable and safe, we have compiled a list of those that we consider most appropriate.
Platforms for the purchase of Bitcoins
Among the different exchanges (exchange houses) that we will expose next, there is not one that is clearly the best. Each one has its pros and cons, and therefore, we will talk about how each site is.
LocalBitcoins
This Startup based in Helsinki, Finland, allows you to buy cryptocurrencies from other users. LocalBitcoins is one of the best platforms to acquire Bitcoins. It was founded in June 20102. In it, we can see in advance the price that each seller requests for their coins. When inquiring on their website, the most striking are the large price fluctuations between sellers.
Each user is free to put their price, but usually the one that offers a better offer usually claims confidence from the buyer. For example, that you identify yourself, that you already have the money in your Paypal account, depending on how long you have the account, etc. On the contrary, who more expensive offers, usually ask for less guarantees.
Then there is the reputation or history, how you want to call it, that each user can have. In parentheses they indicate the number of exchanges confirmed, and in percentage, the ratings from the comments. Like the accepted limits, they also appear to the leftmost column. And for whom it interests, other means of payment are accepted. Between cards, banks, and even cash!
There is no commission to buy or sell, except if you put an ad, where you charge 1% of the amount. To register simply put your email. It is very agile.
Paxful
Very similar to LocalBitcoins. Paxful put it in second place partly because it is also more recent, from the year 2015. In this platform we put ourselves in direct contact with the seller. You can buy the Bitcoins by paying with PayPal. In addition, it incorporates a large number of payment methods, which makes it easier for the seller and buyer to reach an agreement.
The operation is simple. Paxful acts as an intermediary, and when we place the order, the seller must deposit the amount requested in it. Once the Bitcoins are retained by the platform, we can make the payment in a secure way. There are times when users ask for high commissions for transactions, something that must be monitored. We do not want to overpay.
Cryptonit
It emerged in 2012 in the United Kingdom, and we put it in last place not because of its functioning, which is very good, but because of the high commissions. Cryptonit stands out for its agility, it allows us to change our Paypal money (which we have previously deposited in its website) in Bitcoins very fast.
However, transactions between PayPal and Cryptonit take about 4 days on average. Like the other houses, they also have other currencies and forms of payment.
It is supervised by the Financial Services Authority of the United Kingdom (FCA). Personally, this type of regulations and records under the legal parameters of a State, have always added a plus of confidence.
Conclusions
We have already seen that obtaining Bitcoins through our PayPal balance is feasible. It is possible that some reader asks, if only these 3 places exist, and the answer is no. Although there are not many other places, but among our preferences, these are the ones that stand out the most.
Something that must be taken into account, is that all of them are directed to the direct purchase of Bitcoins or other cryptocurrencies. What is abundant are platforms that offer to operate with the oscillations of the price of cryptocurrencies. Unless we want to operate, how we initially stressed and that would be perfectly plausible, we have discarded this option. Because it is not the same to own bitcoins, to work with them as an underlying asset, where they do not end up being ours.
We hope you have been helpful, choose which method you prefer, it’s your choice!
Also published on Medium.