Cryptobase ATMs: Guide to Converting Bitcoin to Cash
This is a guide on how one can convert bitcoin to cash. Though this doesn’t talk about Cryptobase ATMs, it will give you some basic knowledge of how the transaction works.
How the Bitcoin Transaction works
The entire bitcoin process is done through software that runs on your computer. This software is called a “wallet.” Many different types of wallets serve different functions. Some wallets help you spend money, while others help you hold money. In this article, we are only concerned that you can use bitcoin to purchase anything of value.
The wallet works by holding a key that allows you to “sign” (signifying your ownership of) a transaction. A signature is this — a series of numbers and letters: bitcoin:N:M:C: B, which stands for the amount of bitcoin going in (bitcoin), the number of inflection points on your wallet (N), the number of characters in your wallet name (M) and your private key, which is the code you have to enter on your phone or computer to sign transactions.
When you want to make a purchase, you will input your signature, the amount of bitcoin you want to send, and then send it to a “wallet address.” A wallet address is a way of distributing bitcoin unique to each transaction. This is how one can tell if one of these transactions belongs to them:
If I wanted to send 1 BTC to my friend Alice, I would put in my signature (which matches my private key), 1 BTC (because I have exactly 1 BTC on my phone), and her wallet address. If I wanted to purchase 0.5 bitcoins, I would look at the same address, ensure that my signature matches my private key, and input 0.5 bitcoins.
Depending on how busy the network is, the transaction can take anywhere between 10 minutes to 1 hour. The network is like a highway of information; your payment must get through traffic to reach Alice’s wallet for her to receive her bitcoin. Traffic can delay your payment if there are many things to compete against on its route to Alice’s wallet.
How to do it
To convert bitcoin to cash, you must have a wallet with bitcoin inside it. The easiest way to get started is through Coinbase, a very simple app that you can download on your phone or computer. It allows you to purchase and sell bitcoin, ether, and litecoin directly from your wallet. Once you have purchased on Coinbase, they will deposit the money into your bank account.
Once you have purchased some bitcoin from Coinbase or another exchange, the first thing that you need to do is send them to a safe place — in this case; we will be sending them back over to Coinbase. You do this by inputting the transaction as we did above:
Putting 0.25 bitcoin into the transaction.
Signing it.
Sending it to the Coinbase wallet address.
Once you have confirmed that your 0.25 bitcoins have been sent to Coinbase, you can go back over to Coinbase and purchase USD with your bitcoin. You put in your signature (which matches your private key), USD as the receiving currency, and input how much money you want to spend in USD. Once you have spent $10 of bitcoin at 8:15 AM on a Tuesday, you can expect your money to arrive in your bank account in 4-5 days or so.