It is not the same as any other currency, but it does have a limited supply and can potentially grow in value. Bitcoin is a cryptocurrency and it has been increasing in popularity ever since 2008 when Satoshi Nakamoto mined the first Bitcoin. It can be invested in like stocks and bonds, traded like gold, or used to purchase items anonymously.
The actual process of buying bitcoin varies on that specific bitcoin exchange; there are sites where you use your credit card to buy bitcoins, some require bank transfers and verified accounts while others offer lower limits and no verification for cash payments.
Bitcoin functions like any other currency in that you can spend it to buy things. However, unlike most currencies, bitcoin is not managed by a centralized agency (for example the Federal Reserve), instead it is managed without any form of government or central authority at all. This means that if miners stop mining or depositors stop depositing money into their accounts, bitcoin will not be worth anything.
The more popular the use of bitcoin is, the greater its value becomes. The same thing happens if many people decide to stop using it or convert their bitcoins back into traditional currencies; the bitcoin’s value drops as well. This means that you do not have to invest in bitcoins for them to appreciate in value, but rather the more popular bitcoin becomes and the more people start using it, the more its value will be.
Since bitcoin is not regulated by a central agency, one of the biggest advantages is that you can spend your money across borders without having to pay large fees. For example if you live in China but want to buy something online in the United States, you can simply buy bitcoins with yuan (the Chinese currency) and then use that money to buy your desired product.
Since most banks or other institutions do not accept bitcoin, it is also very difficult to steal any of the virtual coins since they don’t actually exist anywhere but on a ledger. Unlike online banking passwords which are stolen every day, no one can access your private keys or even know that you have bitcoins without knowing your bitcoin wallet’s password.
Bitcoin is not anonymous but pseudo-anonymous; any transactions recorded in the public ledger (blockchain) cannot be directly linked to a specific individual unless that person reveals their identity. Only the transaction and the amount of the transaction is known, not who sent or received them.
So this is how to buy bitcoin.
