I'm thinking of buying Bitcoin and other crypto currencies. Crypto noob here. Created an account on Coinbase but the site & app behave strangely. Not confidence building. I came across tons of reddit posts about how bitcoin balances on Coinbase are not actual bitcoins but IOU promises etc etc. What do you guys recommend if I do not want to use Coinbase and something that is legit? Or is Coinbase the real deal? Thanks.
Coinbase Pro works fine for me. I use a hardware wallet and withdraw all funds within a day of purchase. There’s a saying, not your keys, not your coins.
Coinbase is fine for starters and on ramp from $ to BTC, then Bittrex for a bigger selection and/or trading
There's always Robinhood so you can join wsb community
I’m clearly biased but there’s a reason we’re the most trusted and largest US exchange. There’s plenty of people online who spread inaccurate or exceptional circumstances from time to time but the vast majority of users are happy with our services. Yes, we hold custody of your crypto until you send it offsite. That’s true of every exchange and not unique. (Ok crypto nerds I’m quite aware of DEXs and you need a fiat bridge to get into those on the first place). There are exchanges that do that and also don’t allow you to send it anywhere. I’d recommend avoiding those. On Coinbase you can send it wherever you want and then do whatever you want. But if you don’t want to deal with the complexity of doing that we’ll make sure to keep track of it for you for free.
Coinbase pro (formerly GDAX) or Gemini (v legit, Wall Street focused) are what I would do. Those are good thanks to much lower fee structures compared to consumer Coinbase. Lately Coinbase pro has stated listing way too many new coins. Such coins are just speculative compared to Bitcoin, and that’s reeeeallllllyyyy saying something. Lumens? BAT? Really?! If I could start over, I’d try Gemini, but I don’t mind Coinbase pro. Coinbase pro has a decent API if you care about that (docs are pretty bad, but it works!). Re coin ownership: do you really, really, really think your personal Op Sec will be better than theirs? If so, just export to paper wallet after buying. Me? My coins are on exchange, behind 2FA and a big-ass password.
Why can you not start over? Just transfer to Gemini, sell any crypto that Gemini doesn't have listed or use coinbase pro for trading the shit coins and Gemini for the more legit crypto.
Honestly, inertia. It’s not enough on the line to justify the time lol