Andreas Antonopoulos isn’t just an early adopter of cryptocurrency, he is one of its earliest educators and evangelists. Antonopoulos has been putting his master’s degree in computer science from the prestigious Imperial College London to good use for many years and is the author of the world-renowned book on Bitcoin called The Internet of Money. He’s also responsible for being the first person to educate a certain Netcoins writer on Bitcoin.
Antonopoulos regularly streams educational videos related to cryptocurrency on YouTube and Twitter. He took to
to slam PayPal for selling Bitcoin that he says is not actually the cryptocurrency. Antonopoulos did this in response to a question from a viewer.
The Elephant in the Room That Should Make You Question Buying Bitcoin through PayPal
During Antonopoulos’ live stream, a viewer asked this very important question:
“Do you see a danger of Bitcoin becoming fractionalized by PayPal in a way that the total balance from all accounts will inflate the actual supply?”
Here is how Antonopoulos answered:
“If you buy your Bitcoin on PayPal, you didn’t buy Bitcoin. What you bought is exposure to the price of Bitcoin mediated by a custodian who you hope is doing good risk management practices, but who you cannot audit for their actual existence of reserves.”
Both the question and the answer are really important. PayPal is a centralized business. They are in the same business that banks are in. They want to collect interest and fees. The company itself has no desire to allow you the individual to become your own bank, which is the fundamental reason Bitcoin exists today.
What Antonopoulos is saying is true. PayPal doesn’t owe it to you to prove that they have the bitcoin they are actually selling. All they are selling you is a promise. In that way, buying Bitcoin through PayPal is like buying a gold certificate through a bank. All you are really buying is the promise of an asset, not the asset itself.
PayPal will allow you to use Bitcoin for payments, but only through their platform. It’s highly unlikely that you will be able to transfer the cryptocurrency you are holding on their website to a private wallet.
Always Remember the Classic Bitcoin Mantra
The bottom line is, if you don’t own the private keys to your Bitcoin, it’s not your Bitcoin. Don’t waste your time letting somebody else be your banker. Be your own.
Buy Bitcoin
, Ethereum , and a handful of other cryptocurrencies through the most trusted cryptocurrency exchange in Canada. Netcoins .
Do you want to
purchase bitcoin
? Netcoins has you covered with lots of different cryptocurrencies!
Written by: Jack Choros
Writer, content marketing at Netcoins.
The information provided in the blog posts on this platform is for educational purposes only. It is not intended to be financial advice or a recommendation to buy, sell, or hold any cryptocurrency. Always do your own research and consult with a professional financial advisor before making any investment decisions. Cryptocurrency investments carry a high degree of risk, including the risk of total loss. The blog posts on this platform are not investment advice and do not guarantee any returns. Any action you take based on the information on our platform is strictly at your own risk. The content of our blog posts reflects the authors’ opinions based on their personal experiences and research. However, the rapidly changing and volatile nature of the cryptocurrency market means that the information and opinions presented may quickly become outdated or irrelevant. Always verify the current state of the market before making any decisions.
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