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Did you know that you are not required to hold a social security to invest, hold, and sell Bitcoin?
Despite the fact that Bitcoin is a decentralized, peer-to-peer electronic cash system, many people still rely on major exchanges like Coinbase that act as a middleman for the purchase and sale of cryptocurrency. There are, however, other avenues for those who are unable to provide a social security number or government-issued ID, making it a great investment for those censored or disfranchised from their centralized economies.
Undocumented immigrants who have been banned from job opportunities, banking, and other centralized institutions are now able to own a piece of their financial future through cryptocurrency.
While most major exchanges use the “Know Your Customer” procedure to verify identities and stay within U.S regulations, there are some exchanges that allow people to use an Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN) instead of a social security number.
Immigrants are also able to use a passport from their country or a U.S ID if available (some undocumented immigrants might be able to obtain a U.S ID depending on their state of residence or DACA status).
For those undocumented immigrants who do not have an ITIN or a passport from their country, they may be able to use some Bitcoin ATMs that allow you to buy and transfer small amounts of Bitcoin without KYC. Another option is a peer to peer platform like LocalBitcoins or Binance P2P where people can meet in person and buy or sell bitcoin to one another.
High Rate of Return and Early Capitalization
The technology adoption graph below shows that we are just getting started with Bitcoin. We are seeing individuals and corporations like Tesla, MicroStrategy and Apple add Bitcoin to their balance sheet. And we are beginning to see banks publicly announce that they are purchasing Bitcoin.
This is one of the few times in history where regular people, who are not “Registered Investors” can invest in crypto with as little as $5. In fact if you would have invested $100 in Bitcoin in 2010 when it was about $.08, you would have $62,000,000 today (Based on the BTC price today of 50k). Bitcoin is by far the best performing asset of the decade!
The high return of investment can be a safe haven for many immigrants who live paycheck to paycheck and are unable to invest big amounts of money. However in order to have more immigrants investing in Bitcoin, we must first educate the masses about crypto, blockchain technology and investing.
If you are an immigrant who didn’t invest in Bitcoin in 2010 or still hasn’t to this day, understand that there are still opportunities because we are still in the early stages of Bitcoin’s growth. So make a plan, educate yourself and the people around you, and start executing today!
A Remittance and Inflation Hedge
Many countries are currently experiencing outrageous inflation rates and job scarcity. Countries like Venezuela and Zimbabwe that face hyperinflation have found cryptocurrency to be a great way to store, keep value and exchange their declining currency. Global crypto currencies have many advantages for immigrants, including low transaction fees and the ability to access funds if they face deportation and family separation.
In the end, the cryptocurrency space is rapidly growing with people all over the world gaining interest in digital assets. While there is still lots of education that needs to occur in the space, immigrants deserve to have access to the vast opportunities available in the crypto space.
