How to Gift Bitcoin, Crypto, and NFTs to Your Friends & Family
Statista has placed the number of crypto users worldwide at 221 million people in 2022, making it a technology that is growing in popularity. For active crypto users, introducing family members and friends to the field has become commonplace. If you are one of these people, or if you would like to learn how to gift someone in your life with crypto or NFTs, then this guide is for you. Read on to learn how to gift cryptocurrency and NFTs to your loved ones.
How to Gift Bitcoin & Crypto: 3 Ways
Let’s take a look at the three simplest ways to give cryptocurrencies like bitcoin to friends and family.
Set Up a Mobile Wallet And Send Them Bitcoin
Arguably, the easiest way to give someone bitcoin is to set up a mobile wallet on your recipient’s smartphone and then send them some bitcoin.
To start the process, you will need to download a mobile crypto wallet that supports bitcoin on your friend’s or family member’s phone. Examples of mobile bitcoin wallets include CryptoWallet, Bluewallet, Copay, Electrum, and Muun Wallet.
Once you have downloaded your wallet of choice, you will need to help them secure their seed phrase safe. Make sure you first help them understand what their wallet’s seed phrase is, and why they need to note it down and keep it safe. After they have understood this and have written down their wallet recovery phrase, it’s time for you to send them some bitcoin.
To send bitcoin to your loved one, make sure you have some bitcoin in your wallet. Then, ask them for their wallet address and input the amount of bitcoin you would like to send them. It’s important for you to double-check that the wallet address you have imputed is correct. Lastly, press ‘send’ and confirm that they have received the bitcoin by checking the balance in their wallet.
Purchase a Bitcoin Voucher & Gift It
Another way to gift a loved one bitcoin using a bitcoin voucher.
Bitcoin vouchers contain a specific amount of bitcoin pre-loaded onto a physical or online card. Once you buy a bitcoin voucher, the person you bought it for can redeem the amount onto their wallets. If they don’t have a bitcoin wallet yet, you will have to help them set one up using the same process as discussed above.
You can purchase a bitcoin voucher through voucher vendors like Azteco, Coinfinity, FastBitcoins, and more.
Gift a Hardware Wallet With Bitcoin in It
Lastly, you can gift your loved one bitcoin through a hardware wallet.
The difference between a hardware wallet and a software wallet is that in a hardware wallet, you will be storing the private keys to your bitcoin on a specialized hardware device without the device being constantly connected to the internet. This type of cryptocurrency wallet is considered safer than software wallets because it is at less risk of being hacked compared to an online or mobile wallet.
To get a hardware wallet for your loved one, research companies that sell hardware wallets that support bitcoin. Examples include Ledger Nano S, Trezor Model One, Cardwallet, and more.
How to Gift an NFT
Now, let’s take a look at how you can give a loved one an NFT as a gift.
NFTs (Non-fungible tokens) are unique digital representations of various items from art, music, collectibles, and more. They are unique because they have been created on blockchains as unique cryptographic tokens that cannot be replicated. This means that if you buy your loved one an NFT, they will be the only person who owns the NFT until they decide to sell it.
When thinking about what kind of NFTs to gift someone in your life, it’s important to figure out the kind of things they like. They might be into video games, sports, books, art, or music. Next, you can look at the kinds of NFTs available in various NFT marketplaces like OpenSea and Rarible, or if you would like to buy them virtual land in metaverses like The Sandbox or Decentraland.
There are many NFTs, each with its unique designs, and prices. Some NFTs, like Bored Apes, art by Beeple, and music by artists like Grimes have sold at very high prices, while other NFTs can be very affordable.
After identifying the NFT that would suit your loved one, check out the blockchain, the NFT has been created on. This would help you to know which cryptocurrency you will need to use to purchase the NFT. At the same time, you will also need to make sure that the crypto wallet you are using can support the purchase and storage of NFTs using the cryptocurrency of your choice. Wallets that enable you to connect to an NFT marketplace like OpenSea and support various cryptocurrencies are Guarda Wallet, MetaMask, and Trust Wallet.
Once you have confirmed that you have the right wallet and cryptocurrency, help your family member or friend to download the same wallet on their phone. Then, head over to the marketplace and buy the NFT, then send it to their wallet address. And that’s it!
Gifting someone you love crypto and NFTs can be very easy. And on top of that, you can spend quality time with the person you are gifting, explaining to them how bitcoin, crypto, and/or NFTs work and why they have value.
FAQs
Can you give an NFT for free?
No. Buying an NFT and sending it to someone you love costs money. The amount is determined by the marketplaces where you can buy NFTs, and can also be affected by the blockchain fees you will pay to transfer the digital assets.
How much crypto can you send as a gift?
You can essentially gift someone as much or as little crypto as you’d like. While some jurisdictions may have tax laws affecting high-value gifts, smaller amounts can typically be gifted to anyone at any time.
Can cryptocurrency be converted to cash?
Yes, cryptocurrency can be converted to cash.
The person you have gifted can convert the crypto to cash in several ways. First, they can sell their crypto on an exchange for fiat currency. They can also withdraw cash from a crypto atm when they sell their digital currency there. Other alternatives are to use a broker to sell your crypto or trade crypto for cash with someone they know on a peer-to-peer basis.