Crypto for Dummies: From Zero to Your First Trade in 30 Minutes

Apparently, you have already seen stories about people who bought Bitcoin for $100 and became millionaires. Want to know if it's real or a myth? Spoiler: it's real, but it's not that simple.

What is cryptocurrency?

Imagine: money that lives on the internet, without banks and governments. Sounds like science fiction? But it works thanks to cryptography — it protects your coins just like a safe protects jewels.

There are three types of cryptocurrencies:

Coins — operate on their own blockchain (Bitcoin, Ethereum)

Tokens are created based on an existing blockchain (, for example, USDT on Ethereum ).

Stablecoins — pegged to the dollar or gold, do not fluctuate in price.

Price History: Facts vs Emotions

Here's what happened with Bitcoin:

• 2011: from $0.01 to $5 (500 times)
• 2013: up to $1 000 (still 200 times)
• 2017: $17 700
• 2021: $69 000 (pic)
• 2024: $107 822 (new record)

Ethereum has come a long way from $1.2 to $4 600. Even Ripple has risen by 1,250 times.

Conclusion? Cryptocurrencies are not just rising — they rise in cycles, but each cycle is higher than the previous one.

6 ways to earn on crypto

1. Trading — buy low, sell high. The risk is high, but the profit can be quick.

2. Arbitrage — the same coin is priced differently on different exchanges. Some take advantage of this difference.

3. Free coins — airdrops, faucets for simple actions (subscription, repost). Not an investment, but good for a start.

4. Staking — freeze the coin in the wallet, earn rewards. How to deposit money.

5. DeFi and NFT - more risky, but in a bull market tokens can rise by thousands of percent. Yearn.Finance rose by 30,000%.

6. Memecoins — the trend of 2024. Created based on jokes, they rise on the wave of community hype.

How to Start Trading: 5 Steps

Step 1: Choose an exchange — Gate, Kraken, Coinbase. Look for reliability and a good interface.

Step 2: Register and complete the (KYC) verification. Boring, but necessary.

Step 3: Top up your account. By transfer, card — depending on what the exchange supports.

Step 4: Buy the coin. The “Buy” button — and you're done.

Step 5: Choose where to store it. On the exchange? Maybe. But it's safer — in a personal wallet (MetaMask, Trust Wallet).

Top 3 Coins for Beginners

Bitcoin (BTC) — $91 100 now. The first coin, the most famous. Referred to as “digital gold” for its stability. If you don't know what to buy — buy BTC.

Ethereum (ETH) — $3 030. Not just a currency, but an entire platform for applications. It is interesting for those who want to understand decentralized systems.

Solana (SOL) — $138. Fast, low fees. Many NFT projects and DeFi are built on it.

How to Avoid Losing Money: Checklist of Mistakes

❌ Do not buy on news — by the time you hear about them, they are already priced in.

❌ Use a stop-loss — an automatic sell order if the price has dropped too much.

❌ Don't give crypto to strangers — even if they promise 1,000% a month.

❌ Trade only with free money — do not take loans for crypto.

❌ Emotions kill the score — FOMO and panic — the enemies of a trader.

❌ Keep track of transactions — see patterns, learn from mistakes.

Conclusion

Crypto is not a lottery, but a tool. Yes, stories about $100 → million are real, but they are exceptions. Most newcomers lose money due to haste and emotions.

Start small, learn, do not risk more than you are willing to lose. And remember: the cryptocurrency market is very volatile. Today +50%, tomorrow −40%. This is normal.