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0 pointsgonehome5y ago0 comments

The most interesting bitcoin story I read somewhere was about a Ukrainian living in the Russian controlled portion of the country getting out with his wealth intact.

The border was controlled by corrupt Russian guards that would steal things of value. You could pass the border occasionally to visit family on the other side, but it was risky to take anything.

He put all his wealth into bitcoin, memorized his wallet seed words like his life depended on it, crossed the border with nothing, and then regenerated his wallet on the other side.

I thought that was pretty cool.

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andrewzah5y ago

That's one use for btc that I hadn't thought of. Neat! However one still has to be careful to somehow fund a cold wallet without linking your ID via the transactions.

I.e. to use an exchange like binance or coinbase, I have to link my US ID. So if a government actor were after me, they could easily find out about my cold wallet by viewing my transactions, no?. I guess I could -not- divulge the seed words, but that's assuming I'm not being accosted/tortured either.

I would have to use a btc atm (none near me...), swap a visa gift card for btc (and take a ~10-20% haircut...) or find someone to trade cash for coins, which is its own issue.

sukilot5y ago

Government/warlord-avoiding money transfer like this is the core use case for Bitcoin outside of speculating on its future value. It's not for casual shopping transactions.

parliament325y ago

localbitcoins. It's like craigslist: you find people you meet up with, give them cash, they transfer you the BTC (through escrow). No KYC, no shenanigans, you just need to be willing to pay their few-percentage-point fees.

justaj5y ago

Correction: Localbitcoins does require KYC.

parliament325y ago

You're right, they do, once you're over 1000€ per year: https://localbitcoins.com/blog/id-verification-update/

ryanlol5y ago

Incorrect, localbitcoins only requires KYC for their escrow feature. Most people do not use the useless escrow feature.

lawn5y ago

I've read similar stories of people escaping Venezuela with their wealth.

whatsmyusername5y ago

To me that's the main use for bitcoin. Moving money if you're worried about it getting ripped off in transit, not as a permanent store of wealth.

j / k navigate · click thread line to collapse

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andrewzah5y ago

That's one use for btc that I hadn't thought of. Neat! However one still has to be careful to somehow fund a cold wallet without linking your ID via the transactions.

I would have to use a btc atm (none near me...), swap a visa gift card for btc (and take a ~10-20% haircut...) or find someone to trade cash for coins, which is its own issue.

sukilot5y ago

Government/warlord-avoiding money transfer like this is the core use case for Bitcoin outside of speculating on its future value. It's not for casual shopping transactions.

parliament325y ago

justaj5y ago

Correction: Localbitcoins does require KYC.

parliament325y ago

You're right, they do, once you're over 1000€ per year: https://localbitcoins.com/blog/id-verification-update/

ryanlol5y ago

Incorrect, localbitcoins only requires KYC for their escrow feature. Most people do not use the useless escrow feature.

lawn5y ago

I've read similar stories of people escaping Venezuela with their wealth.

whatsmyusername5y ago

To me that's the main use for bitcoin. Moving money if you're worried about it getting ripped off in transit, not as a permanent store of wealth.

j / k navigate · click thread line to collapse