Assets, Bitcoin

Can You Legally Buy Bitcoin?

Bitcoin is a decentralized digital currency, without a central bank or single administrator, that can be sent from user to user on the peer-to-peer bitcoin network without the need for intermediaries. Transactions are verified by network nodes through cryptography and recorded in a public distributed ledger called a blockchain.

Bitcoin is unique in that there are a finite number of them: 21 million.

Bitcoins are created as a reward for a process known as mining. They can be exchanged for other currencies, products, and services.

As of February 2015, over 100,000 merchants and vendors accepted bitcoin as payment.

NOTE: WARNING: Buying Bitcoin is not illegal, however there may be legal implications depending on where you live and the laws in your country or state/province. Before purchasing Bitcoin, please consult a qualified legal professional to determine if buying and/or using Bitcoin is allowed in your jurisdiction. Furthermore, please be aware that buying and trading cryptocurrencies can be highly volatile and risky. You should always do your due diligence before investing any money into cryptocurrency.

The legal status of bitcoin varies substantially from country to country and is still undefined or changing in many of them. While some countries have explicitly allowed their use and trade, others have banned or restricted it. Likewise, various government agencies, departments, and courts have classified bitcoins differently.

China Central Bank banned the handling of bitcoins by financial institutions in China during an extremely fast adoption period in early 2014.[42] In Russia, though cryptocurrencies are legal, it is illegal to actually purchase goods with any currency other than the Russian ruble.[43].

There is a growing number of businesses and individuals using Bitcoin. This includes brick and mortar businesses like restaurants, apartments, law firms, and popular online services such as Namecheap, Overstock.com, and Reddit.

While Bitcoin remains a relatively new phenomenon, it is growing fast. At the end of April 2017, the total value of all existing bitcoins exceeded 20 billion US dollars, with millions of dollars worth of bitcoins exchanged daily.

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