Quote:
Originally Posted by sarg
How?
I doubt I'm the only one here who wouldn't even know how or where to start
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There are hundreds of ways, but there are lots of scam sites and fake wallets too, so you do need to be careful.
PayPal actually introduced the ability to purchase Bitcoin from within your PayPal account very recently, but I believe it's only available for US customers presently:
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-54630283
Some of the 'neobanks', such as Revolut, also allow you to purchase and hold cryptocurrencies directly from their apps.
Buying from a well-established exchange (such as Coinbase or Kraken) is probably one of the simplest and most popular ways, since they provide you with an account and wallet(s) in which to store your Bitcoin, and you can use the exchange to buy and trade many other cryptocurrencies too. However, exchanges can and do get hacked, so it's best to transfer the funds to your own wallet.
Personally, I tend to use
Bittylicious to purchase Bitcoin, mainly because I've been using it for years and it's relatively quick and easy to use. The asking price on Bittylicious can vary however, so you might need to wait a while to get the best deal.
With Bittylicious, once you've set up your account, you just enter the amount you want to buy and click 'Get some coins'. You'll then be asked to enter a Bitcoin address to receive the funds. After that, you'll be given the amount to send and the seller's bank account details, to which you need to send an instant payment. You'll also be given a reference number. It's important that you enter this reference number when sending the funds from your bank account. DO NOT modify the reference number, or add any reference information (such as 'Bitcoin') to it. Some banks are still quite hostile towards cryptocurrencies and have been known to block Bitcoin purchases or even freeze customer's accounts. The Bitcoin funds will usually appear in your wallet a few minutes after your payment has been received. The whole transaction typically takes no more than 10 minutes (assuming your bank supports instant payments).
You can use any reputable wallet to hold your Bitcoin funds. If you have a lot of Bitcoin or you want it to be ultra-secure, you should ideally use 'cold storage' or invest in a 'hardware wallet' (such as Trezor or Ledger). However, if you're initially just dabbling and investing small amounts, a mobile wallet is probably the easiest to get started. There are a number of good mobile wallets reviewed here:
https://99bitcoins.com/bitcoin-wallet/apps/