If you have decided to purchase and hold some Litecoin (LTC), it might be one of the best decisions you will ever make. After a year of racking up massive profits in 2021, with several cryptocurrencies seeing all-time highs (ATH), crypto investments are still gaining momentum, even in a bearish market.
Although the current bearish market has seen a drop in the prices of various cryptocurrencies, crypto analysts and experts say this downtrend is a signal to stack up crypto assets at cheap prices.
In Litcoin, you have a top crypto asset with a good use case and fundamentals. This guide will take you through all you need to know about buying Litecoin on a reputable exchange platform in eToro.
Why buy Litecoin (LTC)?
Litecoin (LTC) is one of the earliest cryptocurrencies and blockchain networks created after Bitcoin, the first cryptocurrency. Litecoin, a fork of Bitcoin was launched on October 2011 by Charlie Lee, a Massachusetts Institute of Technology graduate. It is one of the oldest surviving forks of the Bitcoin network and bears lots of parallels with Bitcoin.
It is referred to in crypto circles as digital silver compared to Bitcoin, which is digital gold. It has an 84 million total supply, placing it four times when compared to Bitcoin’s 21 million. However, Litecoin is distinct from Bitcoin in two key ways: transaction fees and transaction confirmation times.
Litecoin provides a solution to the problem of Bitcoin’s slow transaction processing. Bitcoin blockchain network processes a block of transactions at a standard of 10 minutes, while Litecoin’s block confirmation time is four times that of Bitcoin. It takes roughly 2.5 minutes for each block of transaction confirmation. The implication is that users and miners enjoy four times the speed of confirming their transactions than Bitcoin. Also, the transaction fees that users incur while transferring Litecoin assets are about 1 to 2 cents per number of transfers. The transaction fee is modest compared to Bitcoin’s $1 to $3 fee depending on the transaction.
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By market capitalization, Litecoin is among the top 25 cryptocurrencies, with around $3.80 billion and a market price of $53.10. Litecoin is an alternative cryptocurrency (Altcoin) that uses an open-source, decentralized blockchain network that is not under the control of any central authority. Litecoin network runs on a Scrypt proof-of-work algorithm which is safer than hashing algorithms and contrasts with Bitcoin’s SHA-256 processing power. Its node operators store a copy of every transaction that occurs on the blockchain to ensure that every new transaction that follows is not contradicted by previous ones.
Miners also assist in processing every new transaction by placing them in a newly mined block for verification. Litecoin is made possible through ASIC miners, and its miners receive rewards for verifying blocks within the blockchain in Litecoin.
Litecoin Use Cases
Litecoin has several utilities which make it attractive to its users and new investors.
- Litecoin is an ideal investment tool for cryptocurrency investors to secure investments. Despite the high volatility associated with the crypto markets, Litecoin remains one of the standout players in the crypto industry.
- The crypto asset is adopted for cross-border transactions. It is used to bypass a country’s central bank regulations, usually through a country to country payments or transfers.
- Litecoin is beneficial in the trading and finance world. Given the blockchain has created the possibility to make digital transactions at a relatively low cost, Litecoin provides a more secure, cheap, and fast alternative for transactions.
- It is used for everyday online transactions and payments. Recently, Litecoin has been accepted by over 3,000 merchants as a payment asset, with popular merchants like Travala, BitPay, Oxio joining in the fray. Its rising adoption signals it is one of the leading crypto assets used in real-world applications.
- One thing experienced traders consider about an asset apart from its technical side is whether it has good fundamentals. Litecoin fits the bill as a crypto asset with powerful fundamentals backing it. It has a strong community and team members working to make it successful. Litecoin creator, Charlie Lee, is one of the prominent names of team members within the Litecoin community. The community and team members work together to deliver community-driven projects.
Investing in Litecoin on eToro: The best trading platform for cryptocurrencies
Using eToro as your exchange broker for buying and selling Litecoin is an excellent choice. The platform was created in 2008 and has made a name for itself as the number one destination to purchase cryptocurrencies, including Litecoin. In contrast with other platforms, eToro is flexible and offers users the option to use multiple methods to fund their wallets. Users are charged a single and transparent 1% fee for buying and selling crypto assets.
Before placing a buy order for Litecoin on eToro, you must have an account with the platform. Here is a guide to registering an account with eToro:
Personal Information Requirement
eToro requires users to reveal some confidential information when creating an account. You will need to fill in some of these details:
- Your first name
- Your last name
- Your workable email address
- Your preferred username
- Finally, a password is required to open an account
Account Protection and Validation
When opening an account on eToro, you will discover that the exchange requires your phone number. Your phone number is vital and will help protect your account against hack or theft.
Another thing the platform asks users to do is validate their account upon opening one. Once you register on the eToro exchange, you will immediately receive an email in your mailbox. Follow the prompts in the email to get your account validated. You must ensure that you validate your account before making any transaction on eToro because this is necessary to ascertain your account is linked with your email address.
Complete user profile and protection for your account
After your registration on eToro is complete, log into your account to complete your user profile. Click on the “Complete Profile” button, and you discover a new page where you are to provide more details about yourself. These are some of the information you can provide:
- Your contact information
- Your goals and experiences
- Your gender
- And your date of birth
You can add other information to your profile, such as your mobile phone number, and then activate two-factor authentication (2FA) security measures. The 2FA contains a form that consists of secure connections between two means of verification. For instance, it could be combining your password plus a code sent to your mobile number or email or using your password plus a Google Authenticator-generated code.
Step-by-step Guide to Buying Litecoin on eToro
After completing account creation, verification processes, and securing your account, you can start buying and trading Litecoin on eToro. Below is a step-by-step guide to buying Litecoin on eToro.
Deposit Funds to Get Started
Before you can place any cryptocurrency for purchase on eToro, you need to make an initial deposit first. What this signal is that you need to credit your eToro account with funds to buy yourself a cryptocurrency, in this case, Litecoin.
Simply search for the “Deposit of Funds” button and click on it. You have to indicate the amount you want to deposit into the platform. Choose a means of payment of your preference, and give the required information before you click on “Submit.” One enormous advantage users have when using eToro is that the platform allows several payment options. Some payment options are PayPal, Skrill, credit card and debit card, bank transfer, and Neteller. After you pick your payment option, you can proceed to fund your account. The entire figure you will find is inclusive of the platform transaction fees plus your deposit amount.
How to Purchase Litecoin
Now that you have credited your account with funds, you can place buy orders for some Litecoins. The first step to take is to search for Litecoin by using the search bar on the eToro home page, then type “Litecoin” or “LTC” into the search bar. Another way to do this is to click on “Markets” on the left of the homepage. Doing this will bring you to an open page where you can find many cryptocurrencies on the platform. Click on the “Crypto” button to open up a list of available crypto assets, and then find Litecoin.
When you find Litecoin, you can tap on its logo to open up the cryptocurrency’s page to look at the latest information surrounding the asset. You can click on “Buy” directly to bring you to a page where you can make a purchase.
Two options exist on eToro when you want to purchase Litecoin: invest or make a buy order. The invest option allows you to buy Litecoin directly and immediately at market price, while the buy order will trigger automatically when the price of the crypto asset reaches the target price you input. Once you choose from the two options, simply click to “Place an order” (a buy order) or “Open position” to finish off your purchase.
How to Store Litecoin Using eToro?
After making a purchase using eToro, you can decide to move your Litecoin away from the platform to a cold wallet (secure storage). These wallets are secure from hacking or hijacking because they are not connected to any internet and therefore are not susceptible to attack. Some cold wallets that support Litecoin include Ledger Nano X and Ledger Nano S. Additionally, eToro offers a wallet (eToro Money Crypto Wallet) to its users as an option for storing their crypto holdings.
Open an account on the eToro Money Crypto Wallet using the same name you have imputed when creating an account on the eToro trading platform. You don’t have to worry about any fees to open a Litecoin wallet to transfer your crypto asset. Finally, whenever you want to sell off, you can move your funds from your wallet or eToro Money Crypto Wallet back to the eToro platform and then sell off.
Essential Factors To Consider When Buying Litecoin on eToro
Invest What You Can Afford To Lose
Never make the mistake of investing more than you can afford to lose. It is vital, especially when you are trading volatile assets, such as cryptocurrency. Litecoin and other assets apart from stablecoins are volatile assets with prices changing rapidly at intervals. You can lose all your investment from a sharp price fall.
Make Investment a Gradual Process
Investing gradually at different prices is an excellent idea when you consider buying Litecoin. Buying at numerous price rates rather than at once helps average your buying price and reduce your risk, especially as price tends to fluctuate.
Analyze Entries Using Technical And Fundamental Analysis
It is a brilliant idea to employ technical analysis tools on the charts when you want to purchase Litecoin. Technical analysis lets you identify buy and sell levels on the charts, helping you make informed decisions. Another thing to consider is to combine fundamental analysis by analyzing news, team, etc., of the crypto asset.
Conclusion
Before making any buying decision on crypto assets, it is essential to know investing in cryptocurrencies cannot make you rich overnight. It is much crucial you know this to evade falling into buying crypto assets that have no real-world utility but built around hype. Litecoin is an excellent crypto asset with powerful fundamentals and acceptance by merchants and investors. Buying Litecoin comes with a high level of feeling of security. Another thing that guarantees your funds are safe is using a secure trading platform in eToro to buy your Litecoins.
