This content represents the writer’s opinions and research and is not intended to be taken as financial advice. The information presented is general in nature and may not meet the specific needs of any individual or entity. It is not intended to be relied upon as a professional or financial decision-making tool.
If the name RealCoin rings any bell to you, then you are looking at another iteration of it. Based on its performance, it seems to have found its identity and footing in the form of Tether. In 2019, it even managed to exceed Bitcoin’s trading volume.
Tether is what you call a stablecoin, which means that it is bound to an underlying asset. In this case, the binding exists with the US dollar, so there is USD 1 held in reserve for every Tether token there is.
Naturally, this creates a level of stability that investors are more than happy about. One established use is as an intermediary coin. So, an investor may do a day trade of other cryptos and wish for a stablecoin to help with storage in between trading sessions. The knowledge that the value of Tether is not going up or down allows for a great holding place.
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Tether Purchase Platform Recommendation
Understand what you are trying to achieve by purchasing Tether and let that guide your platform choice. For example, if you’ve been in the trading space for a long time, you may be better able to capitalize on advanced features, dashboards, analytical tools, etc.
A newer trader is looking for something more easily digestible. Beyond the feature set, you also want to know that the platform you are using offers security. Never put your money into anything that makes you even marginally uncomfortable.
Going the Broker Route
Many people who purchased Tether online do so through an online cryptocurrency broker. It allows for a tremendous level of convenience, and even eliminates quite a bit of the complexity from the equation.
TOP Cryptocurrencies Trading Service
If you’re new to the idea of cryptocurrency, then it may be best for you to go through a broker. Beyond helping you to make your purchases, you get to ease yourself into understanding the various nuances that go into the market.
Registration
The first step is to choose your broker and register to use its services. Online brokerage options are a dime a dozen, so you must take great care in making your choice. Thankfully, reputable brokers tend to fall under regulatory agencies.
A good approach would be to do some research on the regulators, then look at their listings of approved brokers, after which you can make your choice from there. Use existing reviews to cement your decision.
The registration process requires a few personal details, such as a name, address, and email address. Since this is a financial platform, not only does it mean you require a password, but it also means you should do your best to choose the strongest one possible to prevent malicious entities from getting access to your account.
You must also agree to the broker’s terms and conditions, which you are encouraged to read. Note that some brokers require more or offer features such as sign-in integrations with existing social media platforms.
Funding
The funding step is exactly what it sounds like. You must deposit funds on the brokerage platform that are going to be used for your Tether purchases. Of course, it means checking all the accepted payment methods and ensuring that you can use one of them.
While these vary by broker, you find that credit and debit cards are almost universally accepted. Note that your purchase cannot be made before the funds reflect on the platform, so even if you have the means to use multiple supported payment methods, it may be in your best interest to opt for the fastest ones available.
Identity Verification
Provided you chose a reputable broker, it would be impossible to continue without first having to verify your identity. This is often called “know your customer” (KYC) verification. A regulated broker must be able to say who all its users are.
This helps to eliminate bot attempts at signing up and limits the possibility of malicious entities gaining access. Note that it’s not just a requirement of the website. Instead, it’s a legal requirement for such a nature of business.
If nothing else, it raises the credibility of the brokerage platform. The process tends to require the provision of a government-issued ID, as well as a recent utility bill that bears the address you entered during the registration phase.
Trade
Tether is a bit different from other cryptocurrencies. At this point, you would typically take a long or short position as you trade. The idea behind doing so would be to use speculative techniques to try to trade as beneficially as possible.
However, as indicated before, Tether falls under the stablecoin umbrella. Therefore, the analysis techniques that you would typically use are likely all going to tell you that the price is not moving from where it has been throughout history and where it likely is at the time you read this.
Therefore, you may just find yourself using Tether as a secure store for the future or as a resting place for your assets between day trades.
Going the Exchange Route
If you want to be more involved with the purchase and trading processes, then you may wish to use an exchange to buy your Tether. Though not as streamlined and convenient as using a broker, exchanges are progressively becoming more friendly to novice users.
As was the case with the other method, you want to choose a reputable exchange for your transactions. Pay attention to reviews, reputation, and security, as using a scheme exchange can be a costly mistake that you may never recover from.
Your first step here is setting up your Tether wallet. It is optional to do so, but you may want to consider it for heightened security. You have your choice of several hardware and software wallet providers.
Choose a hardware wallet if you want something tangible that allows you to store your tokens offline. Mostly, these are akin to USB flash drives. If you want more convenience at the expense of the reduced security synonymous with a constant internet connection, then you can go for a software wallet instead.
Whichever one you opt for, there is a unique identifier given to you that works as an address. Providing this to the exchange indicates where purchased tokens should go for storage.
Payment method selection is not much different here than it was in the broker section. Even with exchanges, you find that credit and debit cards are almost universally supported. Still, it doesn’t hurt for you to verify what you can use in your location.
You may find that PayPal, checks, and even Bitcoin are accepted payment methods for those looking to purchase tether tokens.
Provided you got yourself a Tether wallet during the first step, this is the part where it comes into play. After your purchase is complete, your tokens become available via the exchange’s withdrawal option. When you choose to withdraw, their platform requires a recipient address. You can then copy and paste yours in, allowing the tokens to be securely transferred and stored.
The security portion of the selection was alluded to above. Beyond that, support for Tether is your main concern. Exchanges make it very easy to check what kind of cryptocurrencies they deal in, so this part should be no challenge. A couple of stellar options that allow you to partake in Tether purchases include Binance, Coinbase, and CEX.
It’s worth checking out and comparing a few, especially since the features and the fees you must deal with can be significantly different.
With your payment method selected, simply identify how much Tether you are looking to buy and ensure that you have the funds available. Tether’s stablecoin orientation makes it very easy to calculate your final price, particularly if you are using U.S. dollars to make your purchase.
For example, if you want to buy 1,000 tether tokens, your bill is not going to be too far off from USD 1,000.
Is a Tether a Recommended Investment?
Should you account for inflation, you may find that you have even less in the future, since the value of USD 1 may fall.
However, if your investment identity means just wanting a secure store of value or a replacement for the US dollar, then Tether is perfect for you.
Final Remarks
Tether is an incredibly popular cryptocurrency that’s classified as a stablecoin. It has a variety of uses, particularly as an intermediate form of currency. The information above walks you through purchasing with the tokens either through a broker or on an exchange.
WeInvests is a financial portal-based research agency. We do our utmost best to offer reliable and unbiased information about crypto, finance, trading and stocks. However, we do not offer financial advice and users should always carry out their own research.
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