What is bitcoins? That is a question most commonly asked by new and casual investors in the world of finance. To answer that question we need to have a better understanding of what constitutes a “coin”, especially when you consider that there is so much more going on than simply the price of a coin. To put it simply, in a nutshell, bitcoins are a virtual currency that is traded online using a peer-to-peer system. The value of a bitcoin is completely determined by how much someone else is willing to sell for it.
So what is this virtual currency that is causing all the hubbub? There seems to be quite a lot of confusion about this. Basically, bitcoins are simply a digital coin that works exactly like any other type of coin. It has a unique number assigned to it, which cannot be changed. This number is called a “blockchain”, and it is what keeps transactions going along. However, what makes bitcoins stand out from other currencies is that not only is there no physical coin that is actually issued, but no government actually mints it.
So what is going to make bitcoins worth something? Well, like any currency in general, the value of bitcoins will be determined by supply and demand. As you may have guessed, the supply is how many people can realistically afford to buy them, and the demand is how much someone would be willing to pay for them. But the problem with the traditional economy is that there are typically two types of buyers. There are rich people who can actually afford to pay large sums of money for dollars, and then there are poor people who are only able to get coins in small amounts.
Fortunately, the “Bitcoins Craze” offers an interesting solution to this problem. In fact, one of the most popular things right now on the Internet is a service known as the Coin Exchange. With this service, anyone can buy and sell not only bitcoins but also regular currency. Now, the key thing to note about this service is that it works by providing the buyer and seller a virtual “bookie” that they connect to through a specialized web site. This allows them to bet against each other, with one betting based on the value of what is being exchanged, and the other based on the current value of the bitcoins that are being exchanged.
The benefit to this exchange is that it allows the seller to “hedge” his risk a little bit. Since the value of what is being traded is controlled partially by the provider, the exchange is somewhat regulated. Also, since the value of bitcoins is set by market forces, they won’t fall to zero, which means that the business does not have to worry about bankruptcy. Finally, since the business must pay for the service of the two individuals, they can also cut down on costs.
The disadvantage to this is that this exchange doesn’t work very well when the value of bitcoins is low. Basically, since there is no physical product that is being sold, there is no real way for the buyer to know what the value of his bitcoins will be at any given time. As such, he’s forced to buy a large amount of bitcoins just so he can exchange it. This is known as “leverage” and should be avoided at all costs!
On the other hand, if you think you can make money by trading your bitcoins, then you’re mistaken. People who do this usually end up losing money instead of making it. The problem with this kind of business is that people think they can get rich just by trading their bitcoins. The truth is, no company will ever ask you to exchange a penny of your money for a single product. Therefore, people think that they can make money by spending a few dollars on services that will then allow them to make a bunch of money by trading those same bitcoins.
In short, bitcoins are not a good way to make money. The best way to do it is to keep your dollars in the bank and just use them for transactions in countries that accept bitcoins. That way, every transaction you make will be backed by the US dollar, giving you full security and freedom from the whims of the global economy.