Although Ripple has all the characteristics of a cryptocurrency, it differs from others in a couple of ways.

First of all, it is not a completely decentralised currency, it is under the control of Ripple Labs. And this for many people is not a point in their favour, because its value is intrinsically related to what happens with that company.

Secondly, this coin cannot be mined.

Main Features of Ripple

It is an alternative cryptocurrency that is based on Bitcoin technology, with which the money could easily be exchanged. An alternative that is revolutionizing the way banks operate.

It uses ripple technology, this is nothing more than releasing the money. It would no longer rely on banks, credit cards or any other means of restricting international transfers.

Its use enable banks to substantially reduce operating costs and offer new services to their users for instant international transfers and payments.

It provides access to any interbank network, speed for instant settlements and transfers, certainty for the mobilization of money and costs to the minimum value for each transaction made by users.

Is Ripple safe?

Large global financial institutions have started using Ripple protocols for real-time inter-network trading and currency exchange. Unlike other crypto currency coins, their actual use has meant that more and more banks are using them to offer better services to their customers, starting by reducing costs. It is as simple as transferring $1, 00,000 to Japan, for example, immediately, this currency is received and converted into the local currency. No intermediaries in between and in matter of seconds.

The expectations and advantages offered by Ripple, has led large companies such as Google Ventures, Standard Chartered, Accenture Ventues, to invest millions of dollars in their market. In addition, it is receiving the support of adding to its customer networks, financial institutions with broad international strength such as American Express, Santander, BBVA, Cambridge Global Payments, YES BANK, MUFG, eZforex.com, SEB, Star One Credit Union, Akbank, SBI Remit and Banco del Eje. On 12 January, 2018 MoneyGram also announced partnership with blockchain startup Ripple.

With these entities, there are already more than 50 entities that are using Ripple. This has led them to have the most modern interbank network services worldwide. To let you the power of Ripple, it can settle 1,000 transactions per second, which is faster than biggest cryptocurrency out in the market – bitcoin which has capability of handling 7 transactions per second.

And this is what is attracting financial institutions.

Buying Ripple in 2018

The process for buying Ripple does not differ much from the way the other cryptocurrencies available in the market are traded. You just have to meet some conditions and know how to pay.

In the first place, one must resort to what is known in the world of crypto coins as Exchange. These are online platforms that function as a financial market where you can buy different types of cryptocurrencies. For example, there is exchange where individuals can trade only Bitcoin.

The safest and most popular Exchanges to buy/sell are:

Changelly: This exchange is easy to use and accepts other cryptocurrencies as payment. Just open an account on the platform, select the amount of XRP you want to buy, the currency in which you want to pay and the wallet where you want to receive the XRP.

Bitstamp: In this platform you can buy XRP not only with crypto coins, but also with other types of monetary units such as dollar/euros, and widely used payment method – credit card. To purchase XRP here, you need to open an account on the site and make a deposit or money transfer to have a balance in the account. The next step is to select the type of currency to be paid, either digital or dollars, etc., add the wallet and confirm the purchase.

GateHud: Here you can also buy XRP with various currencies (dollars, euros, etc.) or digital money by following a very similar process.

In the course of the XRP purchase it is necessary to provide the wallet or, in some cases, these remain in the exchange. If this is the case, it is necessary to pass the XRPs to the personal wallet of preference. It is always recommended not to leave them on the Exchange platform.

Ripple against other digital currencies

Before Bitcoin, in the coin market, there were other digital coins.

However, it was Bitcoin that revolutionized the technology offered by the blockchain to strengthen this market and become the first currency to be accepted for the payment of goods and services by large companies engaged in international trade.

The problem with Bitcoin is that it is designed to generate a certain number of coins. As a result, new digital proposals have emerged that solve this problem, the most popular being Ethereum and Litecoin.

Ripple’s difference between these digital currencies and the one that makes the difference is that it provides currency exchange without intermediaries. This element has led to billions of dollars in investment, which has led to the capitalization market being ranked in third place, behind Bitcoin and Ethereum.

What is the future of Ripple?

When talking about the future that Rippple will have in the market, as with the rest of the cryptocurrencies, some doubts and uncertainties tend to arise in this regard.

But for many experts in the field believe that the characteristics that differentiate XRP from other currencies will make it maintain its position in the market even if there are still ups and downs in its price as is common in the financial market.

One of the elements that gives stability to the XRP is that it has a large number of portfolios that make transactions flow and, therefore, helps to maintain liquidity in your market. And it is in this liquidity where its market is supported to lay the foundations of the confidence that some banks and financial institutions have begun to have in it to carry out some operations with Ripple.

Another important element that ensures the future of this cryptocurrency is the low transaction costs that are made through the system. This particular feature has made many people prefer to perform operations using Ripple.

The value of Ripple in the market may have a tendency to rise in 2018, but it is still one of the most accepted and used cryptocurrencies to perform operations. If all this is taken into account, it can be said that Ripple will maintain its strength in the market, which makes it a good investment option.

Ripple provides a common system

Using a common system to operate between banking networks is what Ripple is making the difference. As a result, banks make transactions within a country through their network, but when they are going to operate outside their borders it is where problems arise, where the first drawback, especially for the user who uses the service, is that the cost per transaction is very high.

In this case, Ripple uses a common system through Gatehub, its official connection between banks that have been added to this growing network to use its protocols. This is how the currency exchange is carried out automatically after the transfer and the money is available in seconds to the recipient, without the cost per transaction being high. This is a great advantage for both banks in the Ripple network and their customers.

It is undeniable that this innovative common system is being the revolution to operate with crypto currency and is therefore becoming a point of interest for large companies, especially in stock markets around the world. Ripple was the trend in 2017, so the statistics show that it will strengthen as the best cryptocurrencies on the market.

For traders with a limited number of crypto currencies, e.g. bitcoins, altcoins or others, there is the possibility of margin trading to multiply the gains/losses of the investment. This actually increases the amount invested without actually having to increase the assets. It is important to note that margin trading is not recommended for everyone and there is a very high risk.

Let’s get started: What is Margin Trading?

Margin trading using crypto currencies lets users to borrow money against their current funds which can then be used to further trade cryptos on various exchanges but “on margin”. In layman terms, crypto currency holders can leverage their existing cryptos to increase buying power in return of interest. Although interest is not always charged.

This type of trading enables a trader to provide a position with a profit/loss multiplier. For example, you opened a margin position with multiplier X2, your real estate had increased by 10%. Your position increased by 20% due to the X2 multiplier. Standard trades are traded without multipliers.

Margin trading is possible due to the existence of the credit market. Borrowers offer loans to traders so they can invest in multiple coins and lenders benefit from the interest rates of the loans. In some exchanges, such as Poloniex, users offer loans for the markets and in others, the exchange offers the loan itself. For example, in Poloniex, anyone can borrow their bitcoins or altcoins and benefit from the interest on the loans. The main disadvantage is that the coins must be in the exchange wallet, which is much less secure than a cold-wallet.

Costs and risks of Cryptocurrency margin trading

As mentioned above, the cost of the margin position includes the payment of interest on the borrowed coins (whether to the exchange wallet or to other crypto users) and fees for opening a position on the Exchange.

As the chance of winning more is higher, the risk of losing more is also higher. The maximum you can lose is the amount you have invested to open the position. This stage is called the liquidation value. The liquidation value is the value at which the stock exchange would automatically close your position, so that you lose none of the borrowed funds and only lose your own money.

Example: When we talk about standard trading, multiplier X1, the liquidation value is reached when the position reaches zero. As the multiplier increases, the liquidation value will come closer to the purchase price. For example, the bitcoin value is $1000 and you buy a bitcoin with multiplier X2. The cost of your position is $1000 and you borrowed $1000 more, the liquidation value of your position will be a little over $500, because at this point you will lose exactly the initial $1000 plus interest and fees.

Margin trading Tips

Risk management – In margin trading, it is important that there are clear rules regarding risk management. Beware of excessive greed. Consider the amount you are willing to risk to keep an eye on, because it can happen that everything gets lost. Define clear steps for closing positions and take profit or stop the loss.

Watch out – Cryptographic currencies are considered to be assets with excessive fluctuations. Margin trading with crypto currencies doubles the risk. Therefore, try to make short-term deals. In addition, the fees and interest can amount to a considerable sum in the long run.

Extreme movements – Crypto trading sometimes has extreme fluctuations that occur in both directions. The risk in this case is that the depth will affect your liquidation value. It could happen that when the multiplier is high that the liquidation value is relatively close. In fact, you can take advantage of these lows by setting target positions where they believe that the lows will not reach them, so you end up with a decent profit and then go back to the previous price.

Stock exchanges that enable margin trading

It is now possible to conduct margin trading on most stock exchanges. The advantages of trading with multipliers are very clear and another important advantage is the security aspect. Cryptographic traders should try to minimize the amount of coins they have in the Exchange Wallet. The exchange is seen as a hot target for hackers and in recent years there have been several attacks on such exchange wallets, the last big hack was the Bitfinix hack in 2016, when a third of the bitcoins on exchanges were stolen.

Learn more about features of bitcoin

Margin trading allows you to open higher positions without the need for bitcoins, so you need to have fewer coins on the exchange. For example, portfolio could be made up of five bitcoins and you want to hedge against the risk of a decline in bitcoins, then you could open a position with an X10 multiplier and then this would be equivalent to 40% of your bitcoin portfolio. To open the position, the required quantity is only one tenth of that. This means, you only need to keep 0.2 Bitcoins.

Bitcoin and Altcoins Margin Trading for beginners

Bitmex – Bitmex has gained a good reputation in a short period of time and many dealers use it frequently. Leading in margin trading, the stock market offers up to margin trading with a multiplier of up to X100’s. It is very easy to use and offers a lot of support.

Plus500 – Plus500 is a world-renowned forex trading company. In the area of margin trading with cryptocurrencies, it offers Bitcoin and all other large old coins (such as Ethereum, Ripple, Litecoin, Bitcoin Cash and more) for margin trading. The main advantage is that it is a fully regulated company, with 24-7 support for its millions of customers. Currently, you can’t deposit any bitcoins, but you can join and start margin trading immediately with credit card deposit or bank transfer. The multiplier can be set up to X20 and it is easy to get started, as a free demo account can be opened.

Interesting read – history of bitcoin origin

Bitfinex – This exchange coordinates the largest trading volume of the American Bitcoin market with margin trading with a multiplier of up to X3.3, the interface is user-friendly and easy to execute transactions.

Poloniex – The largest crypto exchange. Trading of 11 Altcoins, unfortunately there is no BTC USD margin trading. Only one multiplier of up to X2.5 is available. Relatively high interest rates for short positions.

AVAtrade – Another world-renowned CFD exchange that allows you to trade in Bitcoin CFD and some other major crypto currencies. The company is fully regulated and like Plus500 there is a free demo account.