Bitcoin investment goes mainstream amid an uncertain economic climate
Bitbuy trading platform customers embrace digital currencies as an exceptional store of value
For Jordan Anderson, chief operating officer at Canada’s largest cryptocurrency trading platform Bitbuy, the recent news that Tesla has invested US$1.5 billion of its assets in Bitcoin isn’t surprising. It’s just another indication that major companies and institutional investors are becoming increasingly comfortable with cryptocurrencies as an investment asset class. However, Bitbuy’s core mission remains the same: to provide a trading platform that makes cryptocurrency trading simple, transparent and accessible to everyone from new retail investing customers to sophisticated investors.
Bitbuy was founded in 2016 to allow Canadians to take part in the innovation of Bitcoin when there were few avenues to buy and sell this revolutionary asset class.
“Today, we employ close to 50 people who bring increasing levels of technological sophistication to the trading tools we offer and provide extensive support for our customers,” says Anderson.
While Bitcoin continues to be the most popular and well-known cryptocurrency, Bitbuy now offers Ethereum, Litecoin, Bitcoin Cash, EOS, XRP (Ripple), AAVE, Chainlink and Stellar Lumens (XLM).
Why are Bitbuy customers investing in cryptocurrency?
“In recent years, we’ve seen cryptocurrencies outperforming other asset classes by a wide margin and investors want to hold some of these coins as part of a diversified portfolio,” Anderson says. “In addition, in a world where record-setting monetary stimulus by central banks is rapidly eroding the value of traditional currencies, cryptocurrencies are becoming attractive to investors because of their deflationary characteristics.”
They’re deflationary, he explains, because most cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin and Ethereum, enforce an upper limit on the number of coins that will ever be minted — with some currencies committed to actually reducing the number of coins in circulation.
Anderson notes that crypto investors using Bitbuy appreciate the fact that they actually own the coins in which they’ve invested — unlike alternative methods for cryptocurrency investment exposure.
“If you buy a cryptocurrency ETF, for example, it’s a derivative of the actual asset, which you don’t actually own,” he says. “If you buy Bitcoin on Bitbuy you own the actual coin just as though you own a bar of gold or silver. It’s a commodity to do with what you want, whether that’s holding, selling, trading or spending it.”
It’s also less expensive to acquire actual crypto coins than crypto derivatives because the fees associated with buying them are far lower than acquiring a cryptocurrency ETF.
Anderson notes that Bitbuy customers are often drawn by the platform’s industry-leading capability of quickly verifying new customers, so they can begin acquiring cryptocurrency in about 10 minutes at values of as little as $100. Unlike some services, Bitbuy also allows customers to hold cryptocurrency on the platform or move it to their own private digital wallets.
Trading is offered at three levels with Bitbuy Express Trade offering one-click buy and sell orders, Bitbuy Pro Trade offering greater trading capabilities for advanced users, and Bitbuy OTC helping customers looking to acquire large amounts of digital currency.
Bitbuy also provides extensive information resources for investors, helping them to understand the value proposition behind each currency, explaining the ins and outs of various trading strategies and alerting them to the latest industry news.
“We work hard to educate and earn the trust of our customers who may not fully understand this asset class,” says Anderson. “For example, all transaction fees are fully disclosed and transparent, and customer Bitcoin balances are insured through a key partnership.”
In 2019 and 2020, Bitbuy conducted third-party proof-of-reserves audits to assure customers that every digital coin registered on its platform is actually held there. Bitbuy also observes the principles of SOC 2 compliance, an auditing standard observed by financial institutions to ensure that transactions are securely completed and that all client data is protected. Additionally, the company is registered with federal government agency FINTRAC, as a virtual asset service provider.
“Under current government stimulus strategies, the value of traditional fiat currencies continues to erode at a rapid rate,” says Anderson. “With major publicly traded companies and institutional investors jumping into cryptocurrencies we believe we’re seeing a perfect storm as retail investors begin to understand that these digital assets really are an exceptional store of value to buy and hold.”