Learn About Crypto Before You Invest in It

In this section of Crypto Retirees, you’ll learn important information about crypto from a retiree’s standpoint. 

Before we get to the crypto articles, take the time to read a few articles that aren’t directly related to crypto.

The crypto articles are listed below them.

Money

We all depend on money. It's changing though, and perhaps not for the better.

This article discusses Aristotle's three functions of money, its properties, and its future.

Click here to read Money — What It Is, What It Isn't, and Where It's Headed.

Inflation

When it comes to inflation, most people confuse the symptom with the disease. In this article, I discuss the most common cause of inflation, and the additional ones affecting us here in the 2020s.

Click here to read Inflation — Wreaking Havoc on Your Fixed Income Retirement Lifestyle.

Accredited Investor

The Securities Exchange Commission (SEC) in the U.S. considers some cryptocurrencies to be securities. So it restricts ownership of those assets to what are called accredited investors.

To avoid the hassle of dealing with the SEC, some exchanges won’t accept U.S. citizens or people with permanent residency in the U.S.

Others provide a U.S.-only version of the exchange that doesn’t permit trading in those coins and tokens deemed to be “securities.”

And some crypto rewards platforms restrict you from certain bonuses if you’re not an accredited investor.

Click here to read The Accredited Investor Requirement Costs U.S. Crypto Investors a Lot.

Asymmetric Investing

The crypto world brings with it an opportunity not often found when investing in businesses — gains of hundreds to tens of thousands of times the original investment.

This is called asymmetric investing, because the risk you take for the reward you can receive is lopsided to your benefit.

Click here to read Asymmetric Investing — Use This to Grow Your Crypto Wealth With Little Risk.

Crypto Permanent Portfolio

Creating a portfolio of cryptocurrencies and then letting it ride for a year at a time reduces your tax burden, your tax reporting burden, and your stress levels. It will also reduce your losses during the down years.

Click here to read Convert Harry Browne’s Idea Into Your Crypto Permanent Portfolio.

We’ll start the crypto information with a look at the basics.

Then we’ll move on to articles with info about a specific aspect of the crypto world, including fees, loans, wallets, paying taxes on your crypto, and estate planning.

What Is Crypto?

We rarely feel comfortable when we first start to learn about something new. Crypto is no exception, especially if we feel left out of conversations going on around us.

Crypto, at its simplest, is a form of digital money, one with no government control.

Click here to read What Is Crypto? A Comparison of Cryptocurrency to Money.

Blockchains

This might be one of the least-understood aspects of cryptocurrency. In this article, I use the analogy of a grain train to explain the various aspects of a blockchain.

Click here to read What Is a Blockchain? An Analogy to Help With the Fundamentals.

Smart Contracts

One idea changed everything in the crypto world — smart contracts.

They allow for physical objects (real estate, art, collectibles) to be owned by hundreds of people. They allow for sports teams and musicians when event tickets are resold (or scalped).

And they allow people like you and me to earn yield on the crypto we own.

Click here to read What Is a Smart Contract? And What’s the Fuss All About?

What Is a Stablecoin?

There are over 18,000 cryptocurrencies. Most go up and down in price many times each day.

Others have little price volatility. These are called stablecoins.

Click here to read What Is a Stablecoin? And What Is Its Purpose?

Unbanking

You may never have heard the term “unbank” before. Or you may have heard it used to describe people in many parts of the world who have no access to banking services.

In crypto, it means something different — to remove yourself from the traditional financial world, wherever possible.

This article discusses unbanking, along with three other terms that are core to crypto.

Click here to read Unbank Yourself — What It Means, and What It Means for Your Retirement.

HODL Crypto

This is a uniquely crypto term. This article discusses how it came about, what it means, and its counterpart in the conventional investing world.

Click here to read HODL Crypto? What the…?

Crypto Glossary

There are hundreds of terms bandied about in the crypto world. Some have the same meaning they have in the conventional investing/financial world. Others have a different meaning.

And some terms are uniquely crypto.

This glossary covers over 200 terms. It omits dozens more that aren’t relevant to our purposes as retirees looking to stay ahead of inflation by investing in crypto.

Click here to read Crypto Retirees Glossary of Crypto Terms.

Crypto Security

In the conventional financial/banking world, government insurance programs protect some of your funds (except most of them are underfunded!).

And there are regulatory agencies, laws and policies protecting you from yourself, and from unscrupulous people.

In crypto, you and I are completely, totally and unequivocally responsible for the funds we invest. Don’t let that scare you from investing in crypto.

In this article, I cover what you need to do to ensure that no one ever gains control of your crypto assets.

Click here to read Crypto Security Begins With You — Steps to Take to Keep Your Assets Safe.

Crypto Wallets

Every cryptocurrency, down to the tiniest fraction, is kept in a wallet. Some are physical objects. Most are digital.

Some you have control over, while others belong to exchanges and rewards platforms.

This article covers the various types of wallets, along with information about public and private addresses, and what the difference is between them.

Click here to read Hot. Cold. Custodial. Non-Custodial. Which Crypto Wallet Is Right for You?

Fees

We never escape them, do we? In the conventional banking/financial world, we pay ATM fees, monthly banking fees, trading fees to a stock broker, and more, more, more.

In crypto, you’ll pay for each transaction you initiate, whether it’s on an exchange, or wallet to wallet.

Click here to read Crypto Fees — What They Are and When You’ll Pay Them.

Crypto Loans

If you ever need cash for some purpose, you don’t have to convert your crypto (for a fee), send the money to your bank (for a fee), and possibly have to pay tax on the earnings.

You can take out a crypto loan, often for a ridiculously low interest rate.

Click here to read Crypto Loans — How They Work, and Why They’re So Cheap.

Taxes

Another thing we never escape. In the U.S., paying taxes on your crypto earnings is particularly onerous.

There are multiple forms involved, plus tracking and recording every trade and transaction you make.

Click here to read Paying Crypto Tax — There’s No Getting Around It.

Estate Planning

We never escape death either. So it’s essential that your heirs know how to access your crypto wallets and accounts on exchanges and rewards platforms.

Click here to read Crypto Estate Planning — Ensure Your Heirs Will Benefit From Your Crypto Assets.

Bitcoin Mining and Electricity Use

Bitcoin detractors say that mining BTC is destroying the planet by pushing tons of carbon into the atmosphere.

This article compares the electricity use of mining to that of the gold industry and the banking industry. You may be surprised by what you learn.

Click here to read Is Bitcoin Mining Killing the Planet? Perhaps Not.