Ask CryptoVantage: What’s the Best Way to Gift Bitcoin?

Send BTC Using Bitcoin Network

The easiest way of gifting someone Bitcoin is to simply send it directly to them.

Bitcoin was created to be a P2P cash system and so it’s very easy to send Bitcoin once you know someone’s public BTC address. It takes around 10 minutes usually with a relatively small fee.

Of course that means they would have to already have a Bitcoin wallet, which is not the case for a lot of people. That’s why we’re looking at a number of alternatives.

A Brand-New Preloaded Hardware Wallet

You can send your loved ones a hardware wallet with some Bitcoin private keys pre-generated inside. A hardware wallet is simply a device similar to a flash drive that stores your private keys in an offline environment.

Hardware wallets have become a preferred choice for the security of bitcoin wallets as they are small manageable some are virus-proof and even water-resistant. However, you need to be careful with which wallet you select when trying this option because not all wallets are created equal.

Keep in mind that you’ll have to set-up and load the hardware wallet yourself (which is a bit awkward). Make sure you give the recovery seed phrase and pin number to whomever you’re gifting it to.

The advantage of a hardware wallet is the receiver can basically just put it somewhere safe and sit on it for many years without having to worry about hacks.

Bitcoin Gift Cards

Another easy way to send Bitcoins to your friends and family as a gift is through gift cards. The gift cards work like retail gift cards.

The buyer only needs to select how much bitcoin they want to give the recipient and purchase a gift card. Once the gift card is purchased, the buyer can send it to the recipient’s email. Upon receiving the gift card, the recipient has to visit the same website from which the buyer bought the gift card and enter their personal identification number in order to redeem the value on the gift card.

Once the recipient’s information is verified the bitcoin is set to the recipient’s wallet. Examples of companies that offer gift cards include the likes of CashApp, Robinhood, Binance, and Coinbase.

Bitcoin Paper wallets

If you want to give Bitcoins to your loved ones in the form of a gift but don’t know how then you can simply print out a QR code that holds the private keys of a wallet with bitcoins.

Preparing a paper wallet is just like printing out any other document or piece of information only this time, it has sensitive keys in them that point to a wallet with precious bitcoins. Simply, print out the QR code and safely store it somewhere secure. The recipient will need a mobile wallet to scan and redeem the funds in the paper wallet. Examples of wallets that can do this include Mycelium.

There are dangers in printing out paper wallets so make sure you are on a secure network. In general paper wallets are considered fairly risky these days and not recommended.

A Note on Physical Coins

This isn’t possible anymore but in the early days of Bitcoin there were several manufacturers making physical coins. These coins were made of metal but had private keys written on them so users could peel off a holographic sticker and claim their BTC.

The most famous of these coins was the Casascius coin but the government eventually stepped in and forced the maker to stop manufacturing them.

The physical coins always had an inherent security risk (you could just peel the sticker and steal someone’s bitcoin) so it’s probably for the best they are gone.

Interestingly the original Casascius coins have become somewhat of a collectors item and even ones that have been drained of their Bitcoin are worth thousands of dollars.

Conclusion: Why Giving Bitcoin Gifts is Great

As you can see, giving bitcoins as a gift is easier than before.

You can use reputable gift cards, hardware wallets or send your loved ones the actual coins in paper wallets. Whatever method you choose, it is an easy way to give bitcoins as a gift without worrying about wrapping presents or drawing out gift certificates. Just copy and paste the code into your wallet then send it to that special someone with just one click of a button.

Historically Bitcoin has been the gift that keeps on giving thanks to its incredible appreciation in value.