With tons of options now available, looking for your very own trading headquarters can be a little intimidating. Many traditional exchanges have upgraded their systems, cleaned up their user interfaces, and made trading much easier. However, most of these exchanges will require you to link a bank account—and for the millions of people out there that don’t have access to one, that could be a problem. 

If you’re looking to get started in crypto without having to use a bank account, Paxful may be the way to go. 

What is Paxful?

Paxful is the world’s leading peer-to-peer (P2P) crypto marketplace. It has nearly 400 payment options, allowing you to get Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), and Tether (USDT) at ease. With a robust security system and state-of-the-art blockchain analysis tools to back you up, it’s also a very safe place to start. 

If you aren’t familiar with how P2P trading works, think of it as the modern-day form of barter. This system will basically allow crypto sellers to trade their funds for whatever they want, choosing the way they get paid—e-wallet funds, gift cards, cash payments, or even other digital currencies. 

In comparison to the style of trading found on more traditional exchanges, P2P marketplaces switch it up and personalize the whole trading experience. In doing so, they create opportunities that’ll allow users to not only trade efficiently but also make money in the process. It’s also worth noting that P2P platforms will often have lower fees. 

When it comes to fees on Paxful, the platform makes it ridiculously easy to start. You can choose from thousands of offers from trusted sellers and buy Bitcoin with as little as 10 USD and zero fees.

Creating an account and buying your first BTC

Although the whole concept of P2P trading may be a little intimidating at first, it’s not at all that complicated. Paxful’s process is straightforward and very beginner-friendly. In fact, you can get your first BTC in three simple steps: 

  • Create an account and find an offer
    The first step to getting your hands on some BTC is by creating an account. After signing up, you’ll get your free BTC wallet and you’re ready to start trading. 

    Input your preferences—the payment method you want to use and your preferred currency—and click Find Offers. From there, you’ll see a list of offers to choose from. All you need to do is pick the one you like and move on to the next step. 

    Pro tip: Use the filters on the side to find the best deals from the platform’s most trusted sellers.

 

  • Start a trade
    Once you find one that you like, click on the Buy button and quickly go over all the offer details. When you’re ready to trade, input how much BTC you want to buy, and then click Buy now.

    As soon as the trade starts, you’ll be sent a set of instructions on how to pay. Follow them carefully, send in your payment, mark your trade as Paid, and give your trade partner a few minutes to verify everything. 

    Pro tip: you can check Bitcoin’s price today before you start the trade so that you can get an idea of how much BTC you’ll receive.

 

  • Receive BTC
    Once your payment is verified, the seller should release the BTC from escrow into your Paxful Wallet. From there, all that’s left to do is to leave feedback and the trade is complete.

Once you have BTC in your wallet, you can go on to explore selling it for a profit. To do so, all you need to do is Create an Offer, input all the details (including your profit percentage), post it, and then wait for someone to buy your BTC. 

Additionally, if you want to get your BTC in person, you can check out Paxful’s Bitcoin ATM locator to see if there are any machines in your area. 

Ready to get started?

As you can see, getting started in crypto doesn’t have to be that complicated—you don’t even need a bank account! 

With platforms like Paxful raising the bar for crypto accessibility, anyone in the world can get started right away. Try it out now and experience the wonderful world of crypto at its finest. 

*The content of this article is for informational purposes only, you should not construe any such information or other material as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.