In certain situations and in certain regions of the world where the banking system is not optimally developed, it may be difficult to buy or sell bitcoin on platforms. This can also happen when you want to buy bitcoin, without KYC, without going through a platform of any kind. This can also happen when we find ourselves travelling and we cannot find other solutions to exchange our bitcoins, for example.
In fact, many people want to buy or sell them locally, by meeting people in real life. Platforms like LocalSats allow you to meet people near you who are looking to sell or buy bitcoin, in person.
This remains a very practical and direct method which can prove practical in certain situations, it is true. However, this is not a method that suits all profiles because no one is safe from coming across dishonest individuals.
Discover in this article the presentation of Localsats in order to understand the process and also know the measures to take if you also want to exchange bitcoin with people near you.
LocalSats Overview
LocalSats is an open source platform developed by the developer Jared Dahkle which is free and very easy to use. The platform allows you to submit or respond to advertisements from people who wish to buy or sell bitcoins. Anyone can submit or respond to the various advertisements posted anonymously on the platform to find a person near them. So, even when traveling, the platform remains very practical because you can choose the location of the desired exchange.
To summarize, understand that it is a platform that connects people who want to trade bitcoin in real life. Typically, a person who wants to buy bitcoin and give cash to a physical person will post an ad on Localsats.
The site is presented in the form of a global map where you can click according to the geographic location where you are.
Every day, the site presents new advertisements with people who remain anonymous on the platform and with whom we can communicate by chat to schedule a possible meeting and also discuss prices. Messages exchanged are end-to-end encrypted to preserve user confidentiality.
Before getting started, please read the precautions to take.
Precautions to take when trading bitcoin in life IRL
⚠️ If you want to buy or sell bitcoin on Localsats, it is imperative to take security measures to avoid scams or theft. You should be aware before you start that there may be a risk of running into scammers.
- Choose a friendly place where there are people around you. Don't trade bitcoins with a stranger in a dark alley, of course. Typically, discussions often take place in cafes. The fact that there are people around you can dissuade the person from stealing from you or being violent, for example.
- You can also bring a friend to add extra security. It is best to tell the person that you will be accompanied.
- Do not give out personal information and choose a neutral location that is not too close to you.
- Don't trust anyone in general. Do the operation with courtesy but keep a distance from your identity.
- Talk carefully with the person beforehand to spot the signs of scams.
This may seem like a paranoid checklist. However, we are never truly safe. Please note, however, that buying bitcoin in this way is not illegal. It's simply more risky because you may meet a person who later wants to scam you by offering you other things for example.
Understanding the ad system on LocalSats
The platform has more ads mainly in the USA but you can find ads in Europe as well, and also in France.
The announcements are represented by two logos which allow you to understand people's requests:
- The Bitcoin logo indicates that a person wants to sell bitcoin.
- The green dollar logo indicates that this is a person who wants to buy bitcoin.
How to use LocalSats?
To use Localsats, you do not need to use your email address and the ideal is to connect directly with a wallet compatible with the Lightning Network as Breez which seems better suited for the platform.
However, you have the choice according to your preferences among many wallets like Phoenix, Blue Wallet, Zeus, etc.
You can save your passphrase to your PGP keys which will encrypt your messages. This is what will allow you to access localsats on another device and find your messages for example.
Once logged in, you can either respond to ads posted by people or you can create a post yourself to buy or sell bitcoins in person.
Now you have to wait for an interested person to respond to you. You can also add an email address if you want to be notified when someone responds to you.
From there, you can use the chat to chat with the person interested and make an appointment together.
Refer again to the list of steps to take to do this.
Then, once you have made the appointment, you can make the agreed exchange. You can either give physical cash while the person sends you bitcoin or the opposite depending on the situation.
Are the messages anonymous?
You should know that all messages exchanged are end-to-end encrypted using PGP ( Pretty Good Privacy). It is a cryptography program that provides data privacy and authentication. It uses a public key cryptography approach to allow two parties to communicate securely, even if they have never shared a secret key before.
In other words, when you use the LocalSats platform, your anonymity is preserved and you can chat with people on the platform without jeopardizing your confidentiality.
Final word
This is not a method for buying (or selling) bitcoin that can please everyone. We must agree. There are risks and overall it is less practical than doing it on a peer-to-peer platform (P2P) as Noons ou Peach Bitcoin (recommended if you are in Europe) for example where you do not need to travel.
However, you should also be aware that in some cases and in certain regions of the world, exchanging bitcoin physically is actually the simplest option. There are countries where it is not as convenient to use your bank card or make transfers. In these cases, a platform like Localsats comes in very handy.
See also:
Note: This is not financial advice or investment advice. Always do your own research.
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