Ever since it crossed the $1000 mark and made its way into the mainstream consciousness, Bitcoin has seemed elusive. After all, the majority of us can’t easily make a $50,000, $10,000, $3,000, or even $1,000 purchase without thinking long and hard about it. So for Bitcoin newbies, the dream of cryptocurrency may have ended as a dream. But people looking to buy cryptocurrency for the first time should know that you don’t have to buy a whole Bitcoin. There’s another option, and that’s to buy MilliBit.
MilliBit, also known as mBTC, is a fraction of a Bitcoin. One thousandth, or 0.001, of a Bitcoin to be exact. Its price as of this writing? An extremely attainable $48. But why should you buy MilliBit (mBTC) amounts?
A currency you can relate to
Let’s face it, when the rate of Bitcoin is over than 45,000 times that of one US Dollar, it’s hard to relate to it as a useable currency. After all, your brain is unlikely to calculate that a tube of toothpaste costs 0.00005 BTC, or that you owe your friend 0.00025 BTC for the fancy latte and croissant she bought you.
But put it in terms of MilliBit, and suddenly it’s not so foreign. That toothpaste now costs 0.05 MilliBit; kind of like in the good old days when toothpaste cost 5 cents. And the money you owe your friend? An even 0.25 mBTC, which again is like paying a quarter for breakfast in olde timey money.
So despite ultimately being the same thing as Bitcoin, MilliBit is the everyday currency to Bitcoin’s investment strategy. It’s what you can use when picking up groceries or paying for parking. And using MilliBit for common goods takes it a step towards becoming the alternative currency it was envisioned as—one that is borderless and eliminates the middle-man—and puts it on the path to wider adoption.
A gateway to investing
While thinking of cryptocurrency in terms of MilliBit or mBTC rather than Bitcoin or BTC puts things in a context that’s more approachable, that shouldn’t discredit Bitcoin as an investment. As Bitcoin continues to gain legitimacy and value, it has become a way to invest money for the future. But even as an investment, one need not buy a whole Bitcoin. For people with limited funds, a MilliBit—or several—is the perfect way to dip your toes in the crypto waters. MilliBits allow users to invest only what they feel comfortable with, rather than committing to Bitcoin in whole denominations.
How to buy MilliBit
Buying MilliBit is as easy as buying Bitcoin—after all, MilliBit is just Bitcoin on a smaller scale. Most fiat to cryptocurrency exchanges have minimum order amounts, and while you may not be able to buy just one MilliBit, you’ll still be able to buy Bitcoin in fractions. Coinmama, for example, has a minimum order amount of $50, which at the time of this writing and a Bitcoin price approaching $50,000, is roughly 1 MilliBit, or 0.001 BTC.
To buy 1 MilliBit, you would need to:
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Create a Coinmama account. Simply enter your email address to get started. You’ll need to complete our verification process in order to finish your account set up and start buying.
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Select “Buy Bitcoin,” and enter the amount you’d like to purchase. You’ll need to enter the amount you’d like to buy in terms of Bitcoin, so remember that 1 MilliBit equals 0.001 Bitcoin, 1 mBTC is 0.001 BTC, and 100 mBTC is equal to 0.100 BTC.
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Enter your wallet address. If you don’t already have a Bitcoin wallet, read more about different wallet types and about how to set up a wallet.
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Add your payment details. You can buy MilliBit or Bitcoin with Coinmama around the world using a Visa or Mastercard credit or debit card. In Europe, you can also buy MilliBit using a SEPA bank transfer. In the rest of the world, a SWIFT bank transfer will work.
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Confirm your Wallet address. You’ll receive an email asking you to confirm your wallet address. Triple check that it’s correct, as Coinmama is unable to retrieve coins sent to the wrong wallet address.
Tada!! By following the steps above, you should now be the proud owner of MilliBit (and of course Bitcoin). Hooray! Want to use your new mBTC? Bitcoin is accepted around the world. Here are a couple of resources to get you started.
