This comprehensive tutorial explains the different ways to Invest in Cryptocurrency. Review the top platforms to invest in cryptocurrencies:
There are hundreds of ways to invest in cryptocurrencies today for those interested in exploring those opportunities. Venture capital investment is one of the most common, where a person/group/company invests in startups or other companies.
Other ways of investing include buying cryptocurrency stocks, OTC trusts, crypto mutual funds, exchange-traded funds, speculation, non-fungible tokens, decentralized exchanges, trading in spots or futures markets, and other products such as contracts for difference; crypto investment baskets and index funds; mining, staking; crypto futures; and, of course, holding.
What You Will Learn:
Invest in Cryptocurrencies – Learn How
This tutorial discusses how to invest in cryptocurrencies in various ways or methods, tips on choosing the best investments, steps for investing in cryptocurrencies on different platforms, and the most frequent concerns relating to crypto investments.
Market Trends:
- About 106 million people worldwide use cryptocurrency exchanges as of 2021, making trading one of the most common forms of investing in cryptocurrencies. The figure is expected to reach 1 billion people by 2022. However, there are multiple ways to do so if asked how to invest in cryptocurrency stocks.
- 59.1 million Americans have digital assets. The global blockchain market value will grow by $36.7 billion U.S. dollars by 2025.
- Roughly 59.1 million Americans own digital assets in some form. 29% of all millennial American parents have crypto. 89% of American adults have heard of Bitcoin. 66.7% of cryptocurrency investors own Bitcoin. If you are asking how to invest in cryptocurrency stock, this is the right time.
- Venture funding contributes $4.219 billion to crypto companies. This is also a dominant method for those asking how to invest in cryptocurrency in 2022.
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Expert Advice:
- Cryptocurrency stocks, ETFs, trust and mutual funds, index funds, futures, and venture funding are some of the more secure methods for investing in cryptocurrency. If searching for how to invest in cryptocurrency 2022, check trading, staking, mining, and other methods as well. Most of these methods allow you to invest in cryptocurrencies for as low as $10.
- There are regulated and non-regulated methods of investing in crypto. Cryptocurrency stocks, ETFs, futures, security tokens, and venture funding represent some of the best-regulated methods to invest in cryptocurrency.
- Investing in crypto stocks, index funds, security tokens, trusts, ETFs, futures, and trading does not have to be done via brokerages, although ETFs are a must. Crypto stocks can also be traded through brokerages but today, there are tokenized forms of stocks that can be bought with crypto without brokerages. The same applies to trusts, futures and index funds.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q #1) Which cryptocurrency is best to invest in for beginners?
Answer: Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Bitcoin Cash are some of the best cryptocurrencies to invest in for beginners. They have tried and tested cryptocurrencies that are hard to disappear from right now. Their better-priced prospects also can see the investor earning substantial profits if they invest wisely.
Q #2) Can I become rich with cryptocurrency?
Answer: Of course yes. Crypto has made many millionaires, especially those who invested in the early stages of Bitcoin development. Companies that have earned unicorn status and enriched their investors and owners are countless. Getting rich from crypto is still possible today depending on the investment plan, commitment, how much is invested, and what you invest in.
However, on the same note, it is critical to be aware of crypto investment risks. It is also very easy to fall for a get-rich-quick scheme with desperation to get rich quickly and lose all your investments. It is important to look at the medium-to-long-term and go cautious investing if targeting to amass wealth in cryptos.
Q #3) Is crypto a good investment?
Answer: Cryptocurrencies have in history generated huge for investors, sometimes even overnight. They have made many rich people especially if those people invested in the early stages of Bitcoin development.
Cryptos are, however, positive in prospectus depending on your investment goals and strategy. This tutorial discusses methods you can securely invest in cryptocurrency in 2021, 2022, and onwards.
Q #4) How much money do you need to invest in crypto?
Answer: There are no minimums for investing in cryptocurrency. People can put in as little as $1 when trading crypto and as much as millions of dollars. The real deal lies in the size of returns. You will need to invest a substantial amount to generate significant returns, but that also depends on what investment opportunity you are eyeing.
How much to invest in cryptocurrency also depends on your experience and risk profile. Beginners should be comfortable with $500 or more.
In terms of what products to invest in, for instance, in stocks, you might need to invest at least $1,000 to $10,000 to see substantive gains. The same applies to mining, buying crypto stocks, ETFs, futures, and staking. Venture funding may be to the tune of $100,000 or more.
Q #5) How much is the minimum investment in crypto?
Answer: Investing in crypto can start for as little as $10 for beginner traders, but to see significant gains, you may need to put in the tunes of $1,000 and more. The minimum for investing in those inquiring about how to invest in cryptocurrency for beginners depends on what products, your risk profile, returns, risks involved, available slots, and many more factors.
Q #6) What is cryptocurrency?
Answer: Cryptocurrency is a peer-to-peer digital form of money based on cryptography and built upon a blockchain or digital ledger that allows people in a distributed network to share resources and confirm transactions.
We can use cryptocurrencies as a means to exchange monetary value, store value, and speculate on prices. Today, they can be traded on crypto exchanges and on a peer-to-peer basis.
Q #7) How to choose a cryptocurrency to invest in?
Answer: Choosing a cryptocurrency in which to invest requires the following steps:
Step #1: Research the viability of crypto and what it is all about. Cryptos derive their potential and value based on their utility, economic structure, and how they are formulated. Some are worthless and others with so much potential. There are thousands of cryptos from which to choose.
Research on other things like pricing, what affects crypto value, who are its founders, its utility, the community backing it, price prediction, and other things. Make sure you align your investment goals with the purpose of crypto.
Do you want to hold, buy crypto stock, or speculate on prices?
Research on where to buy cryptocurrency. Most can be bought on crypto exchanges. Understand how to buy it. Some exchanges require you to deposit USD or other fiat money or buy instantly using credit cards and other methods.
Research on investment and how to limit investment risks, especially in cryptocurrencies now that this is a high-risk investment method. Use proper risk-limiting methods when investing. Start small.
Step #2: Buy and invest in cryptocurrency . Monitor growth and if necessary reinvest or pull out.
Different Ways of Investing in Cryptocurrencies
Investing in cryptocurrencies has been very vibrant given that the industry is also vibrant. Below we explain some of the ways through which one can invest in cryptocurrencies.
#1) Cryptocurrency Stocks
Cryptocurrency stocks are issued by companies that invest, trade, or deal directly or indirectly in cryptocurrencies or cryptocurrency technologies such as blockchain. These companies can invest directly or indirectly in or utilize blockchain technologies, crypto wallets, crypto APIs, and dApps.
They can deal directly or indirectly in crypto/blockchain interoperation technologies, decentralized ledger technologies, mining, staking, cryptocurrency futures, and cryptocurrency exchanges, among other things.
Also Read =>> Comparing the top NFT stocks to invest in
The other way of investing in stocks is through fractionalized stocks on different crypto platforms like Vanguard, Interactive Brokers, Robinhood, TD Ameritrade, E-Trade, and Merrill Edge.
How to Invest in Listed Crypto Stocks
Crypto stocks are listed on Nasdaq and New York Stock Exchanges, where they are traded daily. This means you can buy and trade them through brokers (online or offline).
The process to follow is as below:
Step #1: Research the present and potential of the stock
Research on your own using simple to advanced research tools about the potential of the investment opportunity depending on what the company stock is dealing with. For instance, if it is a crypto exchange, research its potential. Look at technology prospects and risks as well.
Research the cost of the broker or the brokerage fees or commissions. Many investors also consider the different features supported on the brokerage platform. For instance, minimum investment, margin trading, the research tools on the platform, trading tools on the platform, and the possibility to invest in other stocks, bonds, mutual funds CFDs, etc.
Step #2: Open a brokerage account at a firm that allows crypto investments
Brokerages offering crypto stocks include Interactive Brokers, E*Trade, Ally Invest, TD AmeriTrade, TradeStation, Robinhood, WeBull, and Charles Schwab. Others include eToro, Fidelity, Merrill, SoFi, Moomoo, Public.com, and Tastyworks.
These platforms provide stock valuation, comparison, research tools, in-depth education, and account management tools that you should leverage when investing in crypto stocks. Some allow you to buy fractional shares, but most may not support buying with cryptocurrencies.
Step #3: Deposit money with the broker
Depositing money with the broker can be done through bank transfers, credit/debit cards, or electronic transaction methods like Western Union, Skrill, and PayPal.
Step #4: Search for and buy the stock
Search for the target stock from the list of supported stocks. Proceed to place an order with the broker and buy the stock. Enter the dollar amount or stock amount to buy and proceed to pay with deposited funds or external payment channels.
You can then sell the stock later on. Some brokers allow you to place orders through their agents either online or offline.
#2) Investing in Tokenized Stocks Directly With Crypto
Different cryptocurrency platforms also allow investors to directly invest in traditional stocks in tokenized forms and for as little as under $10 using cryptocurrency, without having to go through a brokerage. For instance, a tokenized version of the NYSE stock could be called $NYSE token and backed by an equal amount of the NYSE stock.
Examples of platforms that allow investors to buy tokenized versions of traditional stocks (including the S&P 100) with crypto are FTX and Cash.app, Abra, Robinhood, Bittrex, and Bitpanda, among others.
These platforms offer tokenized versions of traditional stocks where a crypto token is backed by the underlying traditional stock in question. Customers will buy the crypto token or fractions of them using other cryptocurrencies or USD/EURO on the platform and sell them on an active market on the same platform or simply hold them to sell later as they wish.
There is little regulatory backing for these investment types, but they are suitable for retail markets. They allow a customer to afford a stock with very little. They also provide exposure to the crypto market.
How to Invest in Tokenized Stocks with Crypto
Step #1: Research the stock to buy and its prospects based on your investment goals. It may be for holding expecting a price pump or for active trading on the platform.
Step #2: Sign up. You need to sign up with the said platforms above to invest in tokenized stocks in fractions using crypto.
Step #3: Deposit money in the form of crypto or fiat. The said platform will allow you to buy tokenized stocks using crypto, USD, and other currencies. Deposits may be done using real-world money transfer methods like bank accounts or credit/debit cards.
You may also need to exchange these for crypto once the deposit is complete to buy the tokenized stock. This depends on the pair against which the token is traded.
Step #4: Buy the tokenized stock. Placing a trade can be done from the dashboard, markets page, or specific buy buttons on any page on the site, depending on the platform. Enter the amount of crypto/fiat spent or the amount of stock tokens to buy and proceed to pay.
These are held in wallets, sold in platform active markets, or may even be withdrawable to external wallets that support their storage.
- Needless to say, you can invest in tokenized stock platforms and exchanges as an owner or in companies providing these products as VC funds.
#3) Angel Funding
Venture capital funding is providing target crypto or other companies/startups with part or entire capital in a funding round in return for ownership (called private equity stakes) (in the form of shares and other benefits) of that company. It is the most common method for funding crypto firms.
The initial public offering is the method through which companies invite a few people/companies (also known as closed IPO funding round) to invest in the company in exchange for share ownership.
Venture capital can be provided as seed funds to a startup during an early stage of development or as growth funds in the later stages of the company’s development. Owners of the company usually specify the minimum investment for any venture capital willing to participate in the funding round.
Since there are companies specializing in venture capital funding, it is one of the best options for a crypto startup looking for a huge sum of capital.
Venture capital funding in the crypto space stands at $4.219 billion as of May 2022 up 97.8% from $2.233 billion a year ago. The crypto space is full of venture capital firms. See our list of top venture capital firms for cryptocurrencies.
How to Invest in Crypto through Venture Funding
Cryptocurrency startups and FinTech usually call for IPO investors either through their online platforms, representatives, or investment meetups. These companies are on the lookout for venture capital investors and angel investors.
These announcements could happen when or before the company launches a public token offering to sell tokens to the public through an initial coin offering, security token offering, initial DEX offering, initial exchange offering, or other methods through which they sell tokens.
An angel investor can invest in a startup by buying a huge amount of shares or tokens in expectation for the tokens to increase in price at IPO or ICO/IEO. These investors usually buy at a discounted price per token compared to the public offering price so they can discharge the bought tokens at a profit when the token starts trading publicly after the public sale.
These investors can also profit from the sale of the firm at a later stage. These investments are high-risk but will usually generate high returns.
Venture funds can be categorized as early-stage financing, expansion, and acquisition financing.
In terms of development stages, they can be classed as pre-seed or low-level financing used for proving and fructifying a new idea, seed funding to test idea viability, startup financing for product development or other expenses like marketing, early-stage funding for sales and marketing, expansion funding or pre-IPO funding or other funding rounds for ongoing activities.
The steps of venture capital financing in the crypto market are no different from ordinary VC funding.
Step #1: Deal origination. Deals may arise from referrals where investors are referred by friends, business partners, parent organizations, or simply the investors finding them through venture capital deals platforms online or through business and investment meetups.
Step #2: Screening. The venture capitalist must screen and scrutinize the projects they hope to invest in. They categorize them into products, geographical location, market scope, investment size, financing stage, etc. Capitalists can also be scrutinized by company owners, e.g., invited for face-to-face discussions, asked for their investment profiles, or asked to provide certain clarifications.
Step #3: Evaluation. The capitalist does a detailed study of the investment, including future turnover, entrepreneur profile, project capacity, risks, market, etc.
Step #4: Deal negotiation
Step #5: Post-investment activity. The capitalist takes certain duties and rights after the deal is finalized.
Step #6: Exit plan. Exit may be imperative to reduce losses or to close in profit.
- As a developer, you can engage in developing crypto and then offer tokens for sale to your fans or the public. Developers can also call for VC investors.
- Founders of crypto companies can also call for VC investors and float tokens for sale through ICOs, IEOs, IDOs, and STOs. They can also sell these companies or offer them for acquisitions at later stages of development.
#4) Investing Directly in ICOs, IEOs, STOs, and IDOs
- Many buyers do not invest in venture capital. They simply wait for a crypto project or developer to offer tokens for sale to individual investors through initial coin offerings, initial exchange offerings, security token offerings, or initial Dex offerings. This happens before the token is listed on any exchange for public trading on secondary markets.
- Some of these tokens are bought to represent a share and a dividend right in the company, e.g., the security tokens.
- Most crypto projects will directly offer to sell tokens to these individual investors at a specified price lower than the one the tokens start selling at in a secondary market. Hence, individual investors in these public sales can still make a quick profit when the token starts selling in the secondary market.
- To invest in tokens through ICOs, IEOs, STOs, and IDOs, watch the ICOs, IEOs, STOs, and IDOs listing platforms that announce these projects, the sale dates, and the prices.
- You can place a purchase order directly with the company by sending crypto (to buy the tokens) to the contract address or fiat money to specified accounts. You can buy a specified amount of tokens for a set purchase price. After this, you would wait for the date of distribution of your tokens to the wallet address you specified at the time of purchase. You can then trade tokens when they are listed on cryptocurrency exchanges that act as secondary markets for the tokens.
- With a proper investment strategy, you can reap huge profits when the tokens are listed in secondary markets because they sell at higher prices than ICO prices.
- Buying tokens directly and holding them is one of the most sought after methods for how to invest in cryptocurrency for beginners.
#5) Crypto ETFs and Mutual Funds
Cryptocurrency exchange-traded funds are regulated products that are listed and tradable on stock markets either directly or via brokers. Crypto ETFs are exchange-traded funds that provide investments with exposure to digital asset futures contracts.
Their prices derive from or track the price of the underlying spot cryptocurrency, but the investor does not need to buy the actual spot digital assets when investing in them.
First of all, some trade raw crypto futures contracts which provide crypto exposure. Futures track the price of underlying crypto like Bitcoin. But these ETF funds provide exposure to futures contracts. ETFs track the price of crypto futures contracts for underlying crypto. They invest in crypto futures contracts or stocks of companies with exposure to crypto and related tech.
In trading futures contracts, two investors enter into a contract where they agree to buy or sell a specified amount of the underlying crypto at a particular price on a future date. They do not buy or sell the actual cryptocurrency, so there are no technicalities of storage, securing, sending, receiving, or management in a crypto wallet.
When that agreed date reaches, the product settles by the investors or traders, losing or gaining the difference between the buy or sell amount agreed and the actual spot crypto price.
So if you agreed to sell Bitcoin at $70,000 per coin in five days and after the five days at settlement time, the price is $65,000, you lose $5,000. Buyers may gain that difference as well, but no Bitcoin will change hands. Futures are traded on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange and cryptocurrency exchanges that offer these products.
Crypto futures, of which Bitcoin futures are most common, are in most cases trading instruments rather than investment products for retailers. However, many companies invest in crypto futures.
Examples of crypto ETFs and mutual funds include ProShares Bitcoin ETF, Valkyrie Bitcoin Strategy ETF, VanEck Bitcoin Strategy ETF (invests in Bitcoin futures), Simplify US Equity Plus GBTC ETF, and Valkyrie Balance Sheet Opportunities ETF, among others. Different companies create these ETFs and as a regular trader, you can trade their shares through brokers.
Therefore, it is also possible to buy stocks of companies that invest in groups of ETFs or baskets of ETFs instead of trading in each ETF in brokerage markets. This works the same way you can invest in crypto indexes that hold groups of crypto instead of investing in individual cryptos in your portfolio.
- Blockchain ETFs invest in companies investing directly or indirectly in crypto, blockchain tech, NFTs, crypto exchanges, DeFi, etc. ETFs own and hold stocks of companies that use or invest in these technologies.
- A blockchain ETF could invest in a basket of stocks of companies dealing with these technologies. An investor in such an ETF will buy the ETF’s share to gain exposure to such companies and the technology in general. The same applies to crypto ETFs.
How to Trade or Invest in Crypto Futures and ETFs
Step #1: If investing in futures, first understand the risks of investing in Bitcoin futures. Decide how much should go into future investment given those risks. Know how changes in prices occur, what affects prices, what volatility is, and how they can affect you.
- As a trader, you can sign up with a cryptocurrency exchange that offers futures for trading, deposit cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin or one which futures you want to trade, and start buying and selling futures on the exchange. There are hundreds of crypto exchanges offering futures contracts on which you can trade. They include Binance, Coinbase, FTX, KuCoin, Huobi, and others.
- As a broker company, you can have an app or exchange where customers can trade futures contracts and even partner with exchanges and utilize the crypto exchanges’ APIs (a crypto exchange that offers futures products) to provide liquidity to your customers who trade in crypto futures.
- As a trader, you can sign up with a CME broker, deposit money with them, and buy CME-listed ETF shares through the broker. CME runs a brokers’ list–the list includes 347 brokers like Barclays Capital, Blue Line, Daw Trading, E*Trade, and many others from which you can buy and trade various ETF shares. Learn which broker to trade with and through, their commissions and fees, their platform features and modes of trading, available futures contracts, initial deposits, margin trading requirements, availability of overnight trading, and other things.
- As an investment group/company, you can invest in brokerages or exchanges that offer futures contract trading.
#6) Investing in Crypto Trust Funds
Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (which invests in and trades Bitcoin directly), Grayscale Ethereum Trust, and other trusts can also hold crypto or stocks of companies that invest in crypto/blockchain. Investors can also buy and trade their shares through the same brokers. They can also be bought at Robinhood, OTCMarkets.com, and other brokers.
#7) Crypto Index Funds
Crypto Index Funds are funds that invest in a group of cryptocurrencies offered as a basket. For instance, the index can comprise the top 10 cryptocurrencies by market cap or the bottom 10 by market cap, and so forth.
The customer will buy a share and the return will be a dividend just the same way as stocks. There are regulated and unregulated crypto indexes depending on where they are traded and who offers them for trading.
The advantage is that you do not have to hold as many cryptos and keep rebalancing them now and then. Indexes allow you to hold just one share or one crypto (for tokenized index funds) representing many cryptos. Unfortunately, most are accessible to private accredited investors since they are not ETFs but private investment vehicles.
An index fund will either actively or periodically balance the portfolio (how much of each crypto is invested) to profit the investors. The fund pulls money from investors and invests in a group of cryptocurrencies. A crypto index fund can also invest in one or more cryptos mixed with other assets, such as stocks or futures.
Examples of crypto indexes are Crypto20, Bitwise 10 Crypto Index, DeFi Pulse Index that tracks major tokens in DeFi, NFT Index, Hold 10 index, and the Bitwise 10 Crypto Index Fund. There are crypto trading platforms that allow traders to build indexes comprising a select of cryptos in their portfolios and set the indexes to automatically rebalance themselves. Even bots exist to rebalance these custom indexes.
How to Invest in Crypto Indexes
- Indexes are traded via brokers and crypto exchanges. Brokers and exchanges where they can be traded include AvaTrade, Binance, FTPrimus, CM Trading, Pionex, Vantage, 8eightcap, IC Markets, NordFX, Uphold, and Coinmama. Other brokers include IQ Option, Oanda, Forex.com, Capital.com, BitMex, and Prime XBT.
- Some platforms sell these index fund shares directly, so brokerage is not needed. A tokenized crypto index like Crypto20 (C20) index works by the investor buying C20 tokens on Invictus, HitBTC, or Uniswap exchanges. Therefore, some are tokenized and to invest in them, you just buy the token representing the basket of investment.
- Assess risks. Research crypto index platforms, risks, investment minimums and maximums, payment and deposit methods, broker fees, exit fees, withdrawal methods, etc.
- Sign up with a broker, deposit money, access their crypto index page, and follow the buying procedure, which varies from one broker to another.
- It is possible to build your index as a trader. To build your automated crypto index, sign up with a crypto exchange (e.g., Pionex), verify your account, deposit, visit their index creation page, set up a rebalancing bot where necessary, and if supported, select the cryptos (including how many) to include in the index, decide how much to invest in each crypto, make the purchases, and activate it.
- For Pionex, for instance, a rebalancing bot can support two or multiple (up to 10) and it works for both leverage and spot market. You can sort crypto to invest in the index in terms of the most profitable, trending, and latest published. Then you need to choose the trigger price, rebalance, rebalance mode, and periodic rebalancing at a set interval, or as per a set threshold value. You can set the total profit, number of transactions, and when the next rebalance starts.
#8) Investing in Crypto Trading
There are many ways of investing in crypto trading, as a broker, as an exchange, or as a regular trader. It is possible to trade as an individual, company, or group either in spot or futures crypto markets.
You can do it actively, with the motive of holding crypto, or by way of actively/passively rebalanced portfolios and indexes. You can use manual methods, bots, advanced trading platforms, APIs, or other.
There are many private investment funds, both managed and non-managed, that deal in trading crypto or crypto derivatives. You can also invest in these funds as an accredited investor or otherwise by buying shares or other modes of investment.
- Brokers develop their trading apps or exchanges and enter partnerships with and use APIs of established exchanges to connect their trading platforms to these exchanges, providing liquidity. This way, they can provide liquidity to their clients and earn commissions from trades.
- Standalone crypto exchanges are in the business of directly listing crypto tokens created by developers and integrating trading protocols that enable fans of these tokens to trade them directly on the exchanges.
- Regular traders can sign up on exchanges or trading apps, deposit money, and trade using advanced order types, bots, or simply hold crypto for a certain period until the price is satisfactorily higher than the buying price. This is one of the most common methods for those seeking how to invest in cryptocurrency beginners.
Top Platforms to Invest in Cryptocurrencies
There are numerous methods of investing cryptocurrencies including spot trading, holding, derivatives trading, brokerage services, staking, lending, mining, angel investment in a crypto startup, savings, liquidity mining, especially as a broker, and buying ICOs/STO/IEO and other tokens during private and public token offers.
Other methods of investing in crypto include crypto stocks, NFT stocks, buying and investing in crypto ETFs, crypto ETNs, crypto indices and baskets, retirement accounts, and other funds.
For these reasons, there are hundreds of websites/apps/companies where to invest in cryptocurrency, specializing in one or many of the above methods. This tutorial discusses the top of these places where to invest in cryptocurrencies.
#1) Uphold
Uphold wallet allows users to store cryptocurrency, stocks, precious metals, and fiat – all in one account. It is a great place if you want to track all of your asset portfolios in one place, which offers better portfolio management and diversification.
In fact, if you are an investor interested in portfolio balancing among these assets, Uphold is a great option. This is because you can cross-exchange or convert between these assets however way you want.
Uphold also lets you trade cryptos and other assets with limited and automated methods. The latter is done ‘set and forget’ feature on the trading platform. You can also connect your Uphold account to third-party trading and portfolio management tools for better trading and portfolio management experiences.
Uphold also offers aggressive trading or purchase limits. The debit and credit card limit is $2,500 per day; Google and Apple Pay is $500/day; bank transfer is $2,500/day; while wire transfer, SEPA, FPS, and crypto deposits are unlimited. The minimum deposit is only $10 per transaction.
Uphold also does not charge trading fees. It charges spreads. However, fees of between 2.49% and 3.99% apply when using Apple Pay, Google Pay, and credit/debit card for purchases. Bank transactions are free (US wire is $20 for purchases of less than $5,000 while all others are free).
Uphold also lets you spend the invested crypto and earn cashback on purchases with the Uphold MasterCard. It can be used at ATMs and merchant stores.
#2) KuCoin
KuCoin rivals Binance as an investment platform for many people who are looking to invest in cryptocurrencies in the United States and other 200+ countries. This is because it supports 700+ cryptocurrencies and has nearly the same features as Binance.
It allows you to save and stake crypto for APRs of up to 100%+, and has spot and futures trading (including bot trading). Professional traders practicing swing, day, scalp, and other forms of business crypto trading can still rely on advanced orders and trading tools to generate profit from it. Some tokens are also leveraged for trading.
It supports lending, has a platform native token that allows for the reduction of fees and expanded investment, and customers can use KuCoin Card, which is a Visa card that eases spending of crypto at the global merchant and ATM stores. It also supports USD (and another fiat) top-ups, has member benefits, and supports Apple and Google Pay.
KuCoin, which is also regulated and allowed in many jurisdictions, including the United States, also supports proof-of-work mining pools for those who want to invest as little as $10 in mining cryptocurrencies. It allows institutions to invest in cryptocurrencies.
Besides, it also has an NFT marketplace and an NFT Launchpad for those interested in NFT investing either by buying existing or newly launched NFT tokens.
If you are a business or company, you can launch and list a cryptocurrency or token and benefit from KuCoin users who want to buy into your ICO/IEO token offers. You can also invest as a professional market maker or peer-to-peer trader for a profit/incentive.
Website: KuCoin
#3) Coinbase
Coinbase squarely rivals KuCoin and is better in many ways except for fees. Otherwise, it offers nearly the same type of products/services. However, it may be one of the top choices for cautious U.S. investors, especially for institutional products.
You can invest in the company’s crypto stock COIN, which is listed on the NYC stock market, and benefit from the best of the cryptocurrency exchange. Otherwise, corporates can invest in crypto through profit-generating custody even for huge sums of crypto for their customers. There are also opportunities to earn through liquidity provision, futures trading, and market making.
Businesses can also rely on Coinbase Commerce to accept crypto payments for goods and services with a fast and easy conversion to real-world money. Corporates can leverage staking APIs, wallet integration, and Prime API for trading through APIs for instance, to offer their clients trading services by leveraging Coinbase liquidity through APIs and other services.
The Asset Hub is another notable feature that allows businesses and developers to launch their own tokens and cryptocurrencies. They can, after launching, list on the exchange to then leverage Coinbase’s huge customer base to earn more clients (more people can get to trade their tokens/crypto).
The Assets Hub is also a place for Coinbase Customers to invest in newly launched assets/cryptos/tokens. Coinbase will investigate/check/research the tokens, their fundamentals, liquidity, team, and credibility for you before they list them, although some shoddy projects definitely do sneak in.
Otherwise, Coinbase still offers an NFT marketplace for people who want to invest in and trade NFTs, and crypto trading including margin trading, lending, staking, mining pool, derivatives trading, etc.
Website: Coinbase
#4) eToro
eToro is a place to trade and invest in stocks, futures, cryptocurrency, crypto and other CFDs, crypto, and metaverse portfolios, as well as 40+ other financial products. The regulated broker allows customers to invest in spot crypto and crypto CFDs at a very low cost, although it supports a few cryptocurrencies.
With contracts for Difference, the customer agrees with the broker on the opening price for the contract and if the position closes at a profit; the trader earns the profit; otherwise, they pay the broker the difference. Also, eToro allows customers to copy trades from professional traders and trade on margins/leverage of up to 5x.
eToro now supports crypto and metaverse portfolios, allowing customers to invest in portfolios that can generate a predefined percentage return. The platform also allows customers to stake cryptocurrencies Cardano, Tron, and Ethereum.
Website: eToro
#5) e-Trade
e-Trade is a regulated broker for stocks, options, mutual funds, ETFs, futures, bonds and CDsm pre-built portfolios, retirement investment accounts, and IPOs. It offers a good variety of crypto products for those who want to invest crypto in a regulated environment at lower-than-market brokerage costs and account minimums.
The products include the most popular 13 crypto ETFs and Trusts, crypto indices, and stock exchange-listed crypto and blockchain stocks/shares. Other brokers through which you can buy crypto stocks and ETFs include interactive brokers Charles Schwab, TD AmeriTrade, and others.
Bitpanda is also a great alternative for those who want to invest in cryptocurrency futures, fractioned crypto stocks, and spot crypto outside the United States.
Website: e-Trade
#6) OpenSea
OpenSea is one of the largest and best NFT investment platforms because you can find lots of clients and diversity if wanting to invest in NFTs. It has recorded over $20 billion of all-time sales, hires 200+ people, has 600 million+ users, and over 80 million NFTs and 2 million+ collectibles.
With it, you can create NFTs from scratch from collectibles, domain names, music, art, photography, sports, trading cards, and virtual worlds. You can alternatively opt to buy and resell NFTs or just import and display NFTs created elsewhere. You can also create and trade NFTs across Ethereum, Solana, Polygon, and Klatyn blockchains.
The marketplace is backed by some of the leading crypto firms, including Coinbase, Andreessen Horowitz, Trust Wallet, Dapper, and Blockchain Capital, among others.
Website: OpenSea
Advantages
- It is hard or impossible to be censored by governments.
- Crypto can be invested regardless of your location or country. There are no border limitations.
- There is no minimum maintenance or investment balances.
- You can start for as little as $1 on most crypto investment platforms.
- There are barely any investment requirements as you would expect when investing in other assets.
- No brokerage and no brokerage fees. Together with the fact that you can invest without middlemen, this makes it very affordable.
- There are thousands of viable cryptocurrencies and tens of forms of investment from which to choose.
Disadvantages
- Most investment platforms are shaky in terms of surety and guarantee of investment.
- It is a highly risky method of investment, given the volatility and the fact that most platforms aren’t regulated. Make sure to assess investment risk when investing and to seek investment ideas and advice if needed.
Conclusion
This tutorial discussed the top methods or ways of investing in cryptocurrencies. We see crypto trading as one of the most common methods people are investing in digital assets. Trading is accessible for regular and advanced users, individually or as a company.
Crypto exchanges, advanced trading tools, advanced trading orders, bots, and liquidity APIs are available if you want to stay smarter in investing in crypto trading. Another very common way is buying raw tokens at public issuance or through private sales to hold and then liquidate later at a profit.
Venture funding is also a dominant way to invest in cryptocurrency tech and companies, contributing over $4 billion to crypto startups and growing companies. It is suggested for investor companies and capital funds with significant investment resources.
Brokers, companies, and groups also invest in trading futures, ETFs, and trusts. Individuals can also buy these crypto stocks in expectation of profits.
Research process:
- Time taken to research and write this article: 25 hours.