A helpful guide to Bitcoin Cash

For someone new to the world of cryptocurrency, it can be confusing as to why there are existing coins with Bitcoin in their names such as Bitcoin XT and Bitcoin SV. These coins called ‘forks’ stem from Bitcoin’s original blockchain, and through the years, Bitcoin Cash cryptocurrency remains on the top despite the emergence of numerous Bitcoin forks.

Find out what separates Bitcoin Cash other Bitcoin forks when you read more about it right here at BTC Post!

An introduction to Bitcoin Cash

Bitcoin Cash cryptocurrency was created in August 2017 by a group of Bitcoin users who wanted to solve the cryptocurrency’s problem in scalability. They did this by increasing the size of blocks from Bitcoin’s 1MB to 32MB so Bitcoin Cash can process more transactions at a faster rate while still maintaining a cheaper fee.

When Bitcoin Cash was proposed, Bitcoin’s total number of transactions per block was around 1,000 to 1,500. Considering the volume of Bitcoin transactions daily, this number wasn’t enough, causing the network to slow down and for unprocessed transactions to pile up.

As a solution, a group of people created Bitcoin Cash where up to 25,000 transactions can be included in a block, significantly increasing the blockchain’s scalability.

Aside from having an increased block size, the Bitcoin Cash blockchain works the same way as its predecessor. It also has its own coin running within the network called ‘Bitcoin Cash’.

While this Bitcoin fork is the most popular and successful today, it’s actually not the first of its kind. Other forks such as Bitcoin XT and Bitcoin Classic were released in the early 2010s but none have become as successful as Bitcoin Cash. Currently, BCH has a price of $1,434 and is the ninth-largest cryptocurrency in terms of market capitalization, according to CoinMarketCap.

Difference between Bitcoin and Bitcoin Cash

One of the key differences between Bitcoin and Bitcoin Cash is the block size. Bitcoin has a smaller block size than Bitcoin Cash, having only 1MB compared to Bitcoin Cash’s starting block size of 8MB when it was first released. To support more transactions, it was then upgraded to 32MB.

Aside from the block size, another significant distinction between the two is SegWit used in the Bitcoin blockchain which reduced the transaction size by up to 75%. When implemented, SegWit will limit the amount of data that can be stored in a block. This means that the transaction time can be cut in half by requiring fewer data packed in one block without increasing the block size limit.

Ways to use BCH

Since Bitcoin Cash is based on Bitcoin itself, their applications are also the same. Below are other details you need to know about Bitcoin Cash cryptocurrency and its uses:

Send and receive

Perhaps one of the most appealing features of Bitcoin Cash is its ability to send and receive money directly from person to person. Compared to banks, Bitcoin Cash doesn’t need a third party to process transactions so it’s faster and cheaper.

If you want to send money to a person from the other side of the world, you can easily do it with only a low transaction fee. Additionally, the transaction can be completed in just a short amount of time compared to banks that take a few days before the person can receive the money.

Investing and trading

If you’re someone who likes investing, Bitcoin Cash is the next investment option for you! With the rapid rise in popularity of crypto today, more and more are joining the hype. However, Bitcoin Cash isn’t only viable as a long-term investment product. It can also be profitable in the short term because of the crypto market’s volatile nature.

Like other cryptocurrencies, Bitcoin Cash has high volatility and many day traders see this as a great deal to make money. By correctly predicting the highs and lows of cryptocurrency prices in the market on an hourly basis, they can profit a lot from altcoins like Bitcoin Cash.

However, beginners in investing tend to spend more than they should and sometimes end up losing a lot of money. Remember to spend only a portion of your income that you can afford to lose.

How to get Bitcoin Cash

If you’re interested in Bitcoin Cash cryptocurrency, there are lots of ways you can acquire it:

Through an exchange site

This is the most common way to get Bitcoin Cash because it’s fast and reliable. You can find an extensive selection of cryptocurrency exchanges that offer Bitcoin Cash and other altcoins such as Ether (ETH), Litecoin (LTC), Bitcoin (BTC) and more. Additionally, you can purchase BCH using your local currency or exchange it for other cryptocurrencies.

Here are some of the most trusted exchanges you can try:

Binance

Binance allows the trading of various cryptocurrencies like ETH, BTC, DOGE, BNB, XRP and more. It is considered the largest crypto exchange in the world when it comes to trading volume.

Coinbase

Coinbase is an American cryptocurrency exchange founded in 2012. It’s the largest crypto exchange in the US in terms of volume. Some of the supported altcoins of Coinbase are ADA, EOS, ETH and others.

Through crypto ATM

This is one of the convenient ways to purchase BCH if you don’t want to use crypto exchanges. Similar to bank ATMs, crypto machines also work the same way. You can buy BCH and other altcoins using a bank card or cash.

Through direct purchase

There are a lot of online platforms that let you buy BCH in exchange for another altcoin and one of those is a peer-to-peer marketplace where you can purchase crypto directly from another person.

Here are some of the most trusted P2P marketplaces you can try:

Binance P2P

Binance is known for being the largest cryptocurrency exchange in terms of trading volume. But aside from the number of cryptocurrencies available on the site, it also offers a P2P section where you can trade Bitcoin (BTC), Binance Coin (BNB), Binance USD (BUSD), Ethereum (ETH) and other altcoins directly with another user.

Remitano

Remitano exchange was created in 2016 with a focus on South African and Nigerian markets but the site is accessible to anyone around the globe. It only charges a 1% transfer fee with no additional fees on each type of cryptocurrency.