I never had any of these problems, nor does anyone I know have them. My and everyone's applications at Mt.Gox and Bitstamp and elsewhere have always been accepted, as far as I know. And there are of course alternatives like Localbitcoins or in the Netherlands you can pay using iDeal (e.g. at bitonic.nl) which is extremely easy. A 5 minute deal the first time around. I also never encountered any trouble buying Bitcoin simply for being European. So far I actually thought the people in the US would be having a harder time with the MtGox trouble.
It's practically impossible for regular people to buy Bitcoin
101–110 of 140 posts
Re: It's practically impossible for regular people to buy Bitcoin
#102Even these comments here are full of obstacles. Its like techies are so into btc they cant comprehend an article stating a real problem witb bitcoin. Its supposed to be easy but it isnt, all these btc exchanges/markers/sites are worse than normal banking/trade sites. No I havent handed my photo to my bank and I wont do so for all the shady btc sites mentioned here. I dont hand my ID or "get verified" to amazon when b…
What scams have you ever heard of that made it hard to get your money into them?
The reason it's a pain to get into Bitcoin is because of all the regulations that the "shady" exchanges are complying with (and again, how many "shady" operations do you know that comply with government regulations?).
By the way, I do agree that it can be inconvenient to get everything set up initially in an exchange like Coinbase or Bitstamp, but no more challenging than establishing a checking account at a local bank. Both are equally inconvenient to set up now due to onerous government regulation.
Re: It's practically impossible for regular people to buy Bitcoin
#103Even these comments here are full of obstacles. Its like techies are so into btc they cant comprehend an article stating a real problem witb bitcoin. Its supposed to be easy but it isnt, all these btc exchanges/markers/sites are worse than normal banking/trade sites. No I havent handed my photo to my bank and I wont do so for all the shady btc sites mentioned here. I dont hand my ID or "get verified" to amazon when b…
I was with you until the final sentence, which makes you sound emotionally involved rather than putting forward a logical argument. That aside, let me retort; > Its supposed to be easy but it isnt I agree, and I'll be hugely surprised if some enterprising individual doesn't solve the friction soon. > No I havent handed my photo to my bank and I wont do so for all the shady btc sites mentioned here. I dont hand my ID…
>I agree, and I'll be hugely surprised if some enterprising individual doesn't solve the friction soon.
Well, unfortunately, it's not a lack of innovation. It's government regulations. Hundreds of people are capable of setting up and marketing quick and easy ways to buy/sell Bitcoins, but they can't do it without risking jail time for breaking money transmission laws.
Entrepreneurs are eager to take risks, but not the kind of risk that can land you in prison.
Re: It's practically impossible for regular people to buy Bitcoin
#104[deleted]
Did you read the article at all? How is mining BTC an option for regular people? Have you attempted to purchase a foreign currency? It's usually a two-click operation at most.
No where did I suggest that mining bitcoin was for the general public. What I was pointing out was that the generalization of the article ("it's hard for me, so it must be hard for everybody") was incorrect and if the author had framed the article better then it would have made a much more valid point.
I totally agree that exchanging cash for bitcoin should be no different to exchanging cash for another currency, but given bitcoins decentralized nature and the fact that none of the major currency exchange companies haven't had the balls to do this means unless you change the regulation so that new companies can move into the space then not much is going to change.
Re: It's practically impossible for regular people to buy Bitcoin
#105Could I setup a small kiosk at a heavily populated area and sell bitcoins for cash and/or money orders? Any regulations in SF against something like this?
Re: It's practically impossible for regular people to buy Bitcoin
#106Serious question: What's to prevent me, as a US citizen, to buy bitcoins on Coinbase, then setup an online store where I sell bitcoins at a 10-20% markup, payable by credit card? 1. I realize I'd be taking a risk with chargbacks. Any way to minimize this? Perhaps hold onto the bitcoin for a period of time? Seems like the demand from ordinary people is so high, they wouldn't mind paying $100 - $200 per bitcoin if they…
As modeless said chargebacks. Think about it this way: If you can buy Bitcoins online without verification you are basically opening up a goldmine to people with stolen credit cards. A user may make 100 fraudulent purchases on 100 different cards through 100 different accounts to 100 different Bitcoin addresses from 100 different IPs. You are stuck with 100 chargebacks, and he is stuck with a nice chunk of anonymous…
True, I didn't think about stolen credit cards.
Re: It's practically impossible for regular people to buy Bitcoin
#107Just got to https://localbitcoins.com/ and buy some online by bank transfer, it takes about 15 minutes. It's not rocket science.
Re: It's practically impossible for regular people to buy Bitcoin
#108The very first sentence shows that the author does not know what he's talking about. Tulips manic is not an accurate comparison because the number of Bitcoins can't be increased except through mining which is a predetermined rate. Tulips can easily be increased by planting more.
> Tulips can easily be increased by planting more.
Please see https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=6763421
Re: It's practically impossible for regular people to buy Bitcoin
#109Earlier quoted context omitted.
Same here...localbitcoins was very easy.
Is this really practical for mainstream use though? If I want to buy a single bitcoin, I need to meet a stranger and bring $1,000 in cash? If this is the recommended method of acquiring bitcoins, it deserves to fail.
You don't need to buy a whole bitcoin. These aren't shares in a company. You can bring $50 and buy a fraction of a bitcoin.
Re: It's practically impossible for regular people to buy Bitcoin
#110Could I setup a small kiosk at a heavily populated area and sell bitcoins for cash and/or money orders? Any regulations in SF against something like this?
I think you could, and you should.