How to use Bitcoin digital currency on international websites
Bitcoin is a digital currency which can be used for online trading or buying products/services without paying tax. This article tells how you can create a digital wallet, get free Bitcoins and shop on international websites.
There is a lot of buzz around Bitcoin these days. For those who are still unaware of Bitcoin, let me tell you that it is a popular digital currency used for online trading or buying products/services without paying tax. It is based on peer-to-peer transfer technology and is encrypted to prevent online counterfeits. It is issued by an open source software program by a process known as mining. Like you have been carrying currency notes in your pocket wallet, similarly you can carry thousands of Bitcoins i.e., virtual currency in a digital wallet. How to create this wallet, earn free bitcoins and use them as discussed in this article.
Bitcoins are not a new concept. The digital currency was found back in 2009 but it had recently gained much attention. One reason is that in a court case ruling last week, United States approved Bitcoins as real money which can be used for cash transactions. Many governments are backing virtual currency. Canadian government has even come up with its own currency called MintChip which competes directly with Bitcoin. Some other alternatives are Namecoin, Ppcoin and Litecoin.
There are over 23,000 India-based Bitcoin users and if Indian government regulates Bitcoins in future, the slump in the value of the money can be arrested. Many of these users are tech-savvy young entrepreneurs. A fixed supply of 21 million Bitcoins is designed by the operating network to ensure the growth of digital currency while keeping inflation rates low. Though RBI has admitted that it is learning the processes and watching recent developments in Bitcoins, the chances of it being regulated in the country are less, as risk of money laundering is associated to it. Since the transactions using this currency are non-traceable, the money can be used for illegal purposes like buying drugs. Anybody can transfer money from a smartphone or desktop to support any illegal activity and never get caught as the transaction can't be traced. There have already been virtual currency controversies in some countries like Russia and Ukraine.Where are Bitcoins traded
Over 80% of this currency is traded on Mt. Gox which is a Tokyo-based digital currency exchange. Over 11.5 million Bitcoins are circulated world-wide. Factors like public interest levels, hacking attempts, less awareness or confusion among buyers/sellers and supply-demand relationship affect the volatility of the currency. In this year only, the values varied from 8 USD to 1BTC. If you get lucky on Mt. Gox and the value of Bitcoin jumps up, you can earn money just the way you earn on any stock market. The trading value should be higher than your purchase value at the time you sell the currency.
Denomination of the currency
1 Bitcoin or BTC= 100 million Satoshis
Satoshi literally means wisdom. When this electronic cash system was started in 2009 by an anonymous group, pseudonym 'Satoshi Nakamoto' was used by the members. The founders of the system are yet not known.
The official website of Mt. Gox shows the value of Bitcoin against all currencies. When I checked last time, the value of 1 BTC was around Rs 6,400 in Indian currency. BTC is the currency code for Bitcoin.How to start?
To start using Bitcoins, first sign up at any international digital wallet site that accepts this currency. Coinbase is one such website where creating a wallet is free. Account can also be created offline by making use of software tools like Armory. Once you sign up, you will receive a unique Bitcoin address for transactions. This address is a long string of alphanumeric characters which typically looks like 1VayEert3x1KzbpzMGt2qdqrATzjRoqw8. After creating this account, you can start buying Bitcoins with your currency.
How to get free Bitcoins?
If you do not want to buy digital currency, you can also get it for free. There are two main ways to go about it.What all can be done using digital currency?
Though Bitcoins are not yet accepted by any physical stores in India, there are some international websites where you can use them to donate or purchase items. If you wish to donate money to Wordpress, EZTV, Reddit, The Pirate Bay or The Internet Archive, all these popular websites accept Bitcoin donations. If you want to make some purchases with it, go to somethinggeeky.com and the website will offer a range of products to choose from. There are many online shopping websites these days which accept virtual currency, be it in form of Bitcoins, MintChips, Ppcoins or any other form.
King Dotcom's Mega allows users to upgrade free storage by exchanging Bitcoins. Some online casinos like Satoshibet and bc-casino also accept them.
The currency is growing at a fast pace. Even some physical stores outside country (especially in U.S. and Canada) accept digital currency. You can visit the official website of Coinmap to view store locations.
You may also create a digital wallet and mine some Bitcoins for yourself. You never know, like other nations, Indian government might as well regulate digital currency in future.
Read How Can I make Money Online in India without a website?
