This thread is a continuation of the original "Bitcoin and other Cryptocurrencies" threads.

https://forum.lowyat.net/topic/3051328
https://forum.lowyat.net/topic/4218606



Guide to Investing in Cryptocurrencies in Malaysia


A friendly warning before you proceed
If you're new to cryptocurrencies, then welcome to the world of cryptocurrencies!!! Before you proceed further, if your intention is to invest in cryptocurrencies, please be informed that cryptocurrencies are VERY high-risk high-return investments. If you have the money, you can earn a lot but you can also lose all and CRASH & BURN! Just as with any other conventional investment vehicle, you need to do your own research and make up your own strategy including the important exit strategy i.e. when to cut your losses.

In general, for risk-averse conservative investors, it is advisable to allocate not more than 10% of your portfolio to high-risk instruments such as cryptocurrencies.

Enter AT YOUR OWN RISK and if you lose your money, it is NOBODY's fault but yours!

You have been warned.




TABLE OF CONTENTS

Post #2
1) What are cryptocurrencies?
2) How to buy cryptocurrencies (bitcoins) in Malaysia (using MYR)?
3) How to buy altcoins?
4) Where should I keep my BTC and altcoins?
5) Sending bitcoins/altcoins to exchanges/addresses and wallets
6) SPECIAL WARNING on cryptocurrency addresses
7) Incurred fees
8) What is the current price of BTC or altcoins?

Post #3
1) Important advices and tips for cryptocurrencies

Post #4
1) Why you should consider getting some good altcoins

Post #5
1) Cryptocurrency Market Capitalisation
2) Cryptocurrency's Progress
3) Cryptocurrency News

Post #6
1) Malaysian law and cryptocurrencies

Post #7
1) Grow your money on Poloniex - how to lend out your coins

Post #8
1) Important or potential coins

Post #9
1) Cryptocurrencies - Is it a big bubble ready to burst?
2) Cryptocurrencies - Is it a Ponzi scheme?

Post #10
1) Cryptocurrency wallet FAQ

Post #11
1) NEO
2) Ethereum

Post #19
1) Ethereum



Thanks to our forumers for contributing to these guides on cryptocurrencies:
1) wengherng
2) kmarc
3) WooTz
4) Enigmatic

This post has been edited by wengherng: Aug 10 2017, 08:04 AM

What are cryptocurrencies?

Cryptocurrencies are the digital media of exchange which use cryptography and shared transaction ledgers to create a secure, anonymous, traceable and potentially stable monetary system.
Cryptocurrencies take their name from their use of cryptography. Cryptography is the study of the methods of encrypting information, primarily with the intention of sending a message securely and privately but also for tasks such as data security and authentication. Crypto, the prefix in both words, comes from the Greek word kruptos, which means “secret.” Cryptocurrencies incorporate many of the technologies and theories developed by cryptographers in order to create a digital money exchange system that is resistant to both censorship and fraud.
In the two decades prior to 2008, there had been several attempts at creating a decentralized currency that would rely on cryptographic protocols and distributed networks. It is only with the launching of Bitcoin, however, that the idea has really taken root and started to attract multiple followers all over the globe.
Bitcoin remains the most popular cryptocurrency, but there are now virtually thousands of cryptocurrencies with various levels of popularity, value and originality. Cryptocurrencies other than Bitcoin are often referred to as “altcoins.” While there are many altcoins that are simple clones on the Bitcoin system, the most successful ones tend to have a unique hook or advantage that Bitcoin either can't or chooses not to provide. The best-known examples of popular altcoins include Ripple, Litecoin and Dogecoin.
(source taken from Cointelegraph)

How to buy and sell cryptocurrencies (bitcoins and altcoins) in Malaysia (using MYR)?

Note : This guide does not cover obtaining cryptocurrencies through mining.

In Malaysia, using MYR, there are limited options to buying and selling bitcoins (BTC). Unfortunately, at the moment, it is only possible to buy and sell BTC and ETH directly with MYR; all other cryptocurrencies can only be bought and sold by converting through either BTC or ETH first.

You can buy and sell bitcoins through these platforms (click to go to the website):
1) Localbitcoins
2) Remitano
3) Luno

Important :
Do note that due to the lower liquidity in Malaysia, cryptocurrency prices on these websites are often a few percentages higher compared to the average global prices. But you can sometimes get a good price if the seller is desperate to sell. In order to get the best BTC or ETH price, it is recommended that you check out the prices on all the exchanges mentioned above. For example, on 29th April 2017, Localbitcoins and Remitano prices are higher for BTC, but the best BTC buying price was at Luno. The only problem with Luno is that you need to login/sign up to see market details, and before you can buy any coins, you need to transfer money to the exchange's bank account first, which will only be reflected in your exchange account after they have processed it.
Also, VERY IMPORTANTLY, whichever website you use to buy or trade cryptocurrencies, it is of utmost importance to activate 2-factor authentication (2FA) for better security.

Localbitcoins
- Peer-to-peer exchange (P2P) where the website serves as a platform for you to deal directly with a seller (or buyer)
- Since you are dealing with a stranger, it is very important to :
----- a) Deal with verified trader who has very good reputation/feedbacks and has done many deals. You can check their profile by clicking on their ID.
----- b) Ensure they are online
----- c) Read the traders terms & conditions before you trade
----- c) Ensure you can do instant bank transfer especially for different banks. If possible, it is preferable to use the same bank to avoid delays.
- the good thing about Localbitcoins is that you can send messages (and pictures if needed) during your trade. Say you want to buy 1.0 BTC, you click the "Buy" button, indicate the amount you want to buy, and type the message. I usually type something like "Wanna buy BTC. Can proceed?" and wait for them to respond.
- once you have transferred the money, you have to click on the "I have paid the seller" button. The seller will be automatically notified and will release the BTC when he confirms the money is in his bank account. You must NEVER accidentally press the "Cancel trade" button when you have already transferred the money or you will lose your hard-earned cash!!! The "Cancel trade" button is only used when you really want to cancel the trade and have not transferred any money.
- for safety purposes, once you initiate a trade, the BTC is kept in escrow (kept by the website) until the trade is complete. In the event that there are problems with the trade, the BTC will be held until the issue is resolved.
- your BTC is kept in the websites BTC wallet

Remitano
- P2P exchange that supports both BTC and ETH
- operates similarly to Localbitcoins except you can't communicate with the seller
- your BTC is also kept in the website's BTC wallet.

Luno
- Online cryptocurrency exchange, supporting several cryptocurrencies like BTC, ETH, XRP and LTC.
- LUNO has been gaining popularity in recent months as they are able to process fiat deposits even on weekends. If you deposit MYR using Instant Interbank Transfer from Maybank (and have filled in all the fields correctly), you should typically see your LUNO account credited within 15 - 30 minutes.
- The popularity of LUNO also directly results in a much higher liquidity, and subsequently there is a smaller buy/sell spread.

How to buy and sell altcoins?

As previously mentioned, at the moment, except for a few select cryptocurrencies like ETH, XRP and LTC, there are limited ways to buy and sell altcoins using MYR. You have to buy BTC/ETH first (XRP and LTC have limited pairs with other altcoins) and send it to an exchange that can convert it to altcoins, and when selling, you need to trade your altcoins into BTC or ETH first, the send to the local exchange and sell it.
There are many exchanges available. Take a look at this link : https://www.cryptocompare.com/coins/btc/markets/USD
You can use any exchange but different exchanges have different altcoins. Some unique ones worth mentioning are as below (click to go to the website):

1) Poloniex

2) Bitfinex

3) OKEX

4) Kucoin

5) Bittrex

6) Binance


Personally, if you want to acquire lots of different types of coins with high liquidity, Binance would be the best platform for this.

Where should I keep my BTC and altcoins?

Yay! You bought your first BTC or your first altcoin. If you plan to hoard coins with high net worth, it is important to keep them in a safe place.

Here are some articles on coin wallets:
https://www.weusecoins.com/en/find-the-best-bitcoin-wallet/
https://99bitcoins.com/best-bitcoin-wallet-...parison-review/
http://www.hongkiat.com/blog/bitcoin-wallets/

In general, you would want to keep your coins out of reach of hackers and the best way to do that is to keep it offline i.e. your coins are not connected to the internet. A hardware wallet is a very good option. NEVER keep any significant amount of cryptocurrencies in online exchanges, except those that you plan to use for trading.

Currently, there are two hardware wallets that are the most popular:
1) Trezor - https://shop.trezor.io/
- supports BTC, ETH, ETC, LTC, ZCash, Dogecoin, Dash, Namecoin and Testnet; similar to the Ledger Nano S, it also supports all other ERC20 tokens via MyEtherWallet.

2) Ledger Nano S - https://www.ledgerwallet.com/products/ledger-nano-s
- natively supports BTC, ETH, ETC, LTC, XRP, ZCash, NEO, Dogecoin, Dash and Stratis, with more being added every now and then; also supports every other ERC20-type token via the use of online platforms like MyEtherWallet - Click here for more details

The only problem is that it is quite difficult to get these wallets locally as cryptocurrencies are still not popular in Malaysia. It may be easier in future when it becomes more popular here.

Sending bitcoins/altcoins to exchanges/addresses and wallets

There are a few things you have to keep in mind when you transfer cryptocurrencies:
1) It is not instantaneous. It may take a few minutes to a few hours!
- take a look at BTC's confirmation times : https://blockchain.info/charts/avg-confirmation-time
- there's a whole lot of issues on this but it is hoped that the long confirmation time will be resolved soon.

2) Ensure the address is correct
- This is EXTREMELY important. If you send to the wrong address, you WILL lose the coins! Refer to the next point for further elaboration.

3) Ensure the address is correct for the type of coin
- Also very important. You CANNOT send BTC to an ETH address. Cryptocurrency addresses are not compatible with each other.

4) There's a transfer fee for all transfers, which depending on network congestion, may not be insignificant. Always check the gas fees before transacting.

5) You can always track your transfer. Just enter your receiving address into the link and you will be able to see the status of the transfer : https://blockchain.info/

SPECIAL WARNING on cryptocurrency addresses

A lot of people have been confused by the long and confusing addresses when sending or receiving coins, so it is worth to take a few minutes to understand the concept behind these addresses.
Cryptocurrency addresses are derived from a mathematical function, and are always paired with a private key. The private key is the sole identifier of ownership of the coins within that address, so if you lose your private keys, you effectively lose your coins (i.e. you can see it on the blockchain, but you can never access those funds again).
Also, the very nature of a decentralised distributed ledger protocol ensures that all transactions are irrevocable and irreversible, so it is EXTREMELY important that you NEVER send your coins to a wrong address by accident.

Bitcoin addresses use a Base-58 format, which is alphanumeric but without the characters that would be confusing to normal people (i.e. 0, O, I and l). A normal bitcoin address would look something like this: 1BvBMSEYstWetqTFn5Au4m4GFg7xJaNVN2 and the length may vary anywhere from 26 - 35 characters. It is absolutely imperative that bitcoin addresses are entered EXACTLY as they appear, including both capital and small letters, because bitcoin addresses are check-summed and have the version-number built in, so even a single wrong character will result in a completely different address.

For Ethereum, often times the addresses will be presented in the "raw" format, which is pure hexadecimal form (i.e. includes all numbers and all alphabets, for example 0x4cbe58c50480......). In this form, users will sometimes encounter addresses with some capital letters, and sometimes addresses with only small letters. It should be noted that both types of addresses (with or without capital letters) are valid, and can be used without any concerns, because Ethereum addresses are essentially not case-sensitive (the capital letters are a feature for some compatible wallet software to use the check-sum feature, so if some addresses have no capital letters, the software will just ignore the check-sum feature).
It also means that if your address originally had some capital letters, but was later changed to small letters only (e.g. when transferring to a paper wallet), do not worry, as both addresses are exactly the same and both can be used.

However, as good practice, it is advisable to just put the addresses (for any coins) exactly as they are without any modifications, and it is definitely prudent to double and even triple check your recipient address prior to any transaction, to avoid any unfortunate mishaps and lost coins.

Incurred fees

Keep in mind that, just like any other investment vehicle, you will be charged some fees when you make a transaction or transfer, depending on the platform you use. Here's how it generally work:
1) Buying BTC - generally free
2) Selling BTC - free or fees charged by platform
3) Sending BTC from one address to another - network transfer fees
4) On exchanges, fees vary.

These are some examples of fees being charged by different websites/platform:
- Poloniex - https://poloniex.com/fees/
- Bitfinex - https://www.bitfinex.com/fees
- Localbitcoins - https://localbitcoins.com/fees
- Shapeshift - https://shapeshift.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/art...-fee-structure-

Examples of fees being charged:
- Transfer from Airbitz mobile app (in phone) to hardware wallet twice - 0.000812 & 0.00045 BTC.
---- If BTC was USD 1000/BTC, that would mean a transfer fee of USD 0.812 & USD 0.45. Do note the difference of fees is also affected by the price of BTC at that time.
- Transfer from localbitcoins to Poloniex
- Transfer from Remitano to Poloniex
- buy altcoins from poloniex (direct buy)
- buy altcoins from poloniex (bidding)

What is the current price of BTC or altcoins?

There are a lot of ways to check the prices.
Coinmarketcap.com is one of the more popular websites. Another popular one is Cryptowatch.
Cryptocompare.com is also one of the very popular sites, where you can see:

- prices of any coins across different exchanges : https://www.cryptocompare.com/coins/btc/markets/USD
- overall prices of coins : https://www.cryptocompare.com/coins/#/usd
- and much much more! Explore the website to see the wealth of information it provides.

This post has been edited by wengherng: Apr 13 2021, 08:51 AM

So, who's up for taking the lead to create a dedicated thread for Cryptocurrency mining in the Hardware section?
I think we have come to a point where the cryptocurrency presence in Malaysia has matured enough to require two separate and dedicated discussions threads, one for investing and one for mining.

And I think this is also important so that more people will become aware of cryptocurrencies in general.

Unfortunately, I have zero knowledge in mining, and am not really interested in doing so either, at least not at the moment.
Kmarc has already contacted goldfries about this, I think he's the best person to take the lead.

I don't do any mining, but just curious to know, why do you say that it is not worth it to mine, when the ROI is just 4.5 months or less?
Compared to any conventional business, the ROI could be a year or more, so 4 months seem pretty good to me?
Or am I missing something?

Back to cryptocurrency investing......ETH is pushing USD 380...!
And market cap is pushing USD 115 Billion...!
This is unreal.


By the way, can anyone enlighten me, what's the deal with Dash?
I know that it originated from Darkcoin and has squeezed into the Top Ten, but what actually fuels it's meteoric rise?
I'm asking because I see that it has been chasing Zcash when they were both below USD 100, until ZCash left it behind recently.
If history repeats itself (and it usually does), then I'm thinking that it would not be unthinkable for Dash to reach USD 330 in the near future too?
Since, as we all know, fundamentals go out the window when it comes to cryptocurrency euphoria.

It's not really that strange, actually.
For me, the daily volume is a good parameter, but not the best indicator of money flowing in......market capitalisation is a better indicator.
And looking at it, we are looking at 35 Billion, edging closer and closer to bitcoin's 48 Billion.
The flippening is really happening, it seems.

I give them both another 2 days to reach USD 3000 and USD 400 respectively.

I must have misunderstood somewhere.
How did your 0.8 BTC and USD 4000 end up becoming a USD 390,000 loss?

So...you were already a whale even back in the days.
Damn.

Damn it, Ether, I said two days, not two hours...!!!

Well, the term "altcoin" was used in the early days to denote every other cryptocurrency that is not bitcoin, so ETH by default *is* an altcoin.
By the way, it is also important to note that the term "altcoin" does NOT have any negative connotation to it......it doesn't mean that an altcoin is somehow inferior to bitcoin, nor does it mean that the coin with the highest market cap is the "main" coin while all others are "alternative" coins.
It's just a term of reference.

That said, however, I do get where you're coming from.

How about we dispense totally with the actual names of coins, and just call this thread the "Cryptocurrencies Thread"?
What say you?

No worries.
I don't have a problem with changing the thread title, actually, if that's what everyone wants and if that's going to help spread awareness.

Personally, I've never had any problems with Poloniex withdrawals.
During times of extreme volatility, they do disable withdrawals or deposits for a certain time (presumably to protect their position and to control arbitrage), and now and then, they will routinely disable withdrawals for a day for maintenance, but other than that, I've never really had any problems with them.

I don't particularly like Poloniex for a variety of reasons, but withdrawals is not one of them.

Damn......hats off to you indeed!
You've managed to put a convincing argument with a mathematical model, what I have been trying to explain using mere words.

I *wish* that I were an ETH whale......but alas......

I *wish* that I were a BTC whale......but alas......

Hey what's the deal with this IOTA...?
I haven't been following the news lately, and suddenly see this new fellow just barge through the front door and settle down comfortably in the Top Ten.

For goodness' sake, it started with a market cap of USD 1.76 Billion!

It is possible, of course.
However, it is more likely that this civil war will lead to a lot of FUD, causing all the weak investors to flee the entire cryptocurrency sphere into the "supposed" safety of fiat.
In this case, we will see ALL cryptocurrencies taking a nose dive.

However, to be honest, I am not sure how I feel about it.
A true civil war tearing apart the largest cryptocurrency in existence......that's on an unprecedented scale, so when people flee, it's going to be an absolute bloodbath.
But, on the other hand, seeing as to how the other altcoins are building up and holding their own, it also gives me a feeling that the whole cryptocurrency world is not as feeble as many think it is.
We may yet see that the altcoins will take a massive beating, but still rise up again shortly.

That's why WooTz said it's going to be a massive discount sale......it's not the end of the world, people.

Woah, whatever happened to ZCash???
USD 416...?!

Poloniex is the largest cryptocurrency exchange in the world, don't worry, definitely not a scam.
Withdrawals are instantaneous, however, how long it takes to be credited into your recipient address depends on how fast your transaction is confirmed by the nodes.