Over the next few months, I learned the ins and outs of Bitcoin, bought some mining hardware, and ended up mining about a dozen bitcoin.
Over the next year or so, I spent Bitcoin, sold Bitcoin, and bought more Bitcoin.
In fact, the digital currency is worth about six times as much as it was just one year ago.
The price of the digital currency increased from about $13 at the start of 2013 to about $1,200 by the end of October.
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In short, don’t buy Bitcoin because you think it’s going to go up this month or even this year.
If someone hacks into your bank account and attempts to wire money to another country, there’s generally some time period where the transaction can be reversed.
For example, to gain access to wallets that require two-factor authentication, thieves are sometimes taking the elaborate step of switching the victim’s phone service to one they control to gain access to the authentication app.
Even most Bitcoin experts agree that the digital currency isn’t a great method of payment for goods and services — at least not yet.
In addition, since the IRS considers Bitcoin to be property, there are tax implications to spending Bitcoin if its value has increased since you bought it.
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Matt is a Certified Financial Planner® and investment advisor based in Columbia, South Carolina.
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