Now that the Bitcoin fork has been completed, next comes the question of where and how to buy the bitcoin cash and how to use it?
Currently, not all brokers provide the opportunity to trade Bitcoin cash, however, Plus500 allows traders and investors to buy and sell Bitcoin cash via CFDs. Basically, deposit funds via bank transfer or credit card and you can trade Bitcoin cash via CFDs either from your desktop or mobile app.
*82% of retail CFD accounts lose money
*Availability subject to regulation
Another reliable provider to buy and sell Bitcoin Cash is the regulated company FXTM.
For those who are looking to take advantage of Bitcoin cash and other cryptocurrencies price fluctuations, Plus500 provide traders with instant access to trade Bitcoin cash, bitcoin, Ethereum and other cryptocurrencies. The process is fast and easy with convenient and advanced trading platform (desktop and mobile), low spreads and instant execution.
In the beginning of August, the Bitcoin industry underwent a major change in what came to be known as the Bitcoin fork. Rather than going into too much of the technical stuff involved, which has proved to be a challenge to even the best of the technical mind going around, what is essentially meant for the traders was that the bitcoins got divided into two, one of which continued to be called as Bitcoin while the other part was called as the Bitcoin cash. This split had caused a lot of tension for traders and the technologists alike on how exactly this split would happen and what would be the impact of this split in the bitcoin market, in terms of prices, technology, numbers etc.
The good news is that so far, the split has been managed pretty well and no major problems have been reported in the bitcoin network so far. This has led to the creation of a new cryptocurrency called Bitcoin cash. It began with a total volume of around 20% to that of Bitcoin and also with a price that was roughly 20% to that of bitcoin but it has since fallen to a large extent in terms of price and market cap as well.
This split also saw many miners shifting from bitcoin to bitcoin cash and it is this exodus that was the major concern of the bitcoin industry but so far, the exodus towards Bitcoin cash has been pretty minimal and has not raised much concern as yet. The idea behind the split was to make the number of transactions possible in the Bitcoin market and this has been more or less largely achieved.
Now that the fork is complete, next comes the question of where and how to buy the bitcoin cash. The simplest method, especially if you had held some bitcoin in your wallet at the time of the split, is that you would have received an equivalent amount of Bitcoin cash in your wallet. If this is not the case, then you have to request your broker or exchange for the same and get the Bitcoin cash into your wallet. Some exchanges give an equivalent number of Bitcoin cash while some give slightly less for a variety of reasons but this is something that you have to clarify with your exchange.
Buying Bitcoin can be done quickly and easily with 2 steps. Below is a step-by-step guide to buying Bitcoin cash:
Same as other cryptocurrencies, you have to open a bitcoin cash wallet in order to store the coin safely. There are many Bitcoin cash wallets providers that allow you to hold Bitcoin Cash as it is, usually, a similar wallet to Bitcoin. One of the most recommended wallet for Bitcoin Cash is BTC.com. Software wallets include JAXX and Exodus. For hardware wallets that provide the most secure method to hold cryptocurrencies, you can use Trezor or Ledger.
As Bitcoin Cash is one of the most popular and used cryptocurrencies, there are many exchanges that support Bitcoin Cash:
Coinbase – One of the biggest cryptocurrencies exchanges that provide Bitcoin cash trading with US dollars. In addition, You can store your Bitcoin cash coins in Coinbase platform.
Binance – Currently, the biggest cryptocurrency exchange by volume allows traders and investors to purchase Bitcoin cash with other cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin or Ethereum. For those who own Bitcoin or Ethereum, the process is easier as all is needed is to register and open an account at Binance.
For those that do not own Bitcoin or Ethereum and prefer to trade via Binance as it has a wide selection of cryptocurrencies, we would advise you to acquire Bitcoin or Ethereum through Coinbase.
The next method, if you don’t hold Bitcoin cash, is to go to an exchange and buy it. Some of the major Bitcoin exchanges like CEO.IX, Kraken, and Bittrex have already started trading in Bitcoin cash and are witnessing surging volumes in them. So, all that you need to do is to visit these exchange sites, take a look at demand and supply and the price and go and get them. Though Kraken had begun trading in Bitcoin cash in the last few days, it is only today that they started accepting deposits and withdrawals in Bitcoin cash, which is a sign of the growing use of this cryptocurrency in the recent days.
Once you have received your Bitcoin cash, either from the exchange or by buying it from the exchange, you can use it any way you want, just like how you would spend any other altcoin for that matter. You could also convert it into Bitcoin again and use the bitcoins as well. It’s as simple as that.
But there are a few things to keep in mind though. The addresses are identical for both bitcoin and bitcoin cash and hence, if you reveal one, it means that you automatically reveal the other as well and this is quite risky in terms of security and privacy.
Also, you reveal your public key and not your private key which would, in turn, mean that you are losing out on a specific layer of security that is inbuilt into the cryptocurrency industry. These are just a couple of things that you need to keep in mind before you start using Bitcoin cash. One of the ideas to overcome this problem would be to move the bitcoin or bitcoin cash to an entirely new address so that you can ensure the safety and security of the other part.
The start of the Bitcoin cash market has been bright as it started off with a large market cap and it also started with a large price tag. Due to the split, Bitcoin cash is no longer associated in any manner with Bitcoin and has to survive on its own. How it survives will be known in the coming days as we wait for more and more miners to jump into the Bitcoin cash market and begin mining.
Just like any other cryptocurrency, it is very important that Bitcoin cash gets enough processing power (hashrate) from the miners to keep building the blockchain, else it will slowly wither away and die. It is important for the Bitcoin cash industry to build itself a good ecosystem around it so that it would be able to keep those who invest in it satisfies. Those will be important parameters for such instruments to succeed.
Bitcoin cash has to develop its own market and show itself to be different and more useful than Bitcoin. So far, the pickup in Bitcoin cash, in the transactions market, has been slow but it is expected to pick up speed and strength in the coming days as more and more traders and investors begin to realize that it is here to stay. One of the major advantages it already has is the fact that anyone who owned Bitcoin on August 1 will automatically get an equal number of Bitcoin cash and with the proliferation of wallets and with exchanges accepting them, bitcoin cash is likely to do well.
Another major advantage of Bitcoin cash is its larger block limit. This was one of the major drawbacks of the Bitcoin market and this was the reason why the supporters of Bitcoin cash wanted a split in the first place. Now, with the higher limit, they would be able to perform a much larger number of transactions which would help the Bitcoin cash to propel the next stage of this technology.
What this means for the Bitcoin network is to set up the stage for the growth of technology and also a stance that the technology would keep everyone in mind as it grows. What this split has done is that it has shown the market that the technology is willing to listen to the market and its needs and adapt itself accordingly. Once the Bitcoin cash market begins to thrive, it will also show that this technology split does not necessarily mean one is better than the other or that one has to die to make the other survive but rather that both can survive and help in the growth of the network and the technology.
This could also result in lower transaction fees for both bitcoin and bitcoin cash which would, in turn, mean that investors and traders are more likely to pick up more bitcoins and bitcoin cash. This reduction in fees can be achieved due to the fact that Bitcoin cash has helped to expand the size of the network which would mean that there is less congestion now.
Such advantages are likely to drive more and more of Bitcoin’s traders and miners towards Bitcoin cash and this would help this market to thrive, grow technologically and also mature to be an example for other cryptocurrencies. The recent split phenomenon will boost confidence in such instruments which would, in turn, lead to more countries beginning to adopt such technology.
Already, the Bitcoin market has begun to show its approval as the demand has grown and prices have shot through the $7000 mark as of this writing. This shows that the Bitcoin network is alive and thriving as well, which is likely to help Bitcoin cash achieve the same effect.
Colin specializes in developing trading strategies and analyze financial instruments both technically and fundamentally. Colin holds a Bachelor of Engineering From Milwaukee University.