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From the class-action lawsuit website "FAQ": > Coinbase allowed users to withdraw BTC prior to the hard fork > The process of transferring Bitcoin can be comp

by pera 9y ago

From the class-action lawsuit website "FAQ": > Coinbase allowed users to withdraw BTC prior to the hard fork > The process of transferring Bitcoin can be complex and potentially very risky even for experienced users. Additionally, creation of a new account or wallet on a different exchange is often a lengthy and difficult process. While Coinbase did suggest to users that they could move their BTC to a different wallet in order to obtain BCH, the procedure can be seen as prohibitive by a significant portion of users. Finally, many users reported slow or non-responsive site when trying to move their BTC from Coinbase prior to the lock-down that preceded the hard fork. First, transferring founds from one wallet to another is trivial in Bitcoin, and in fact it is easier than any other money transfer method that I know of. Second, if it really was that difficult then why they are, at the same time, accepting donations using Bitcoin and Ethereum on the same website?. Third, "Bitcoin Cash" is an altcoin, and anyone can create a similar fork from the Bitcoin blockchain, should Coinbase support them all?? because that would be ridiculous. I can not believe these people are serious...

bradly 9y ago
I had to move my coins out of Coinbase last week and it was very scary. I had never moved coins before and I even though the process seems simple, I had very little confidence in what I was doing. Honestly, I almost just left the coins in Coinbase figuring losing 10% of value from BCH is still probably positive equity compared to my perceived risk of losing it all which felt between 25% and 50%.
- pera 9y ago
  What was the very scary part? you just need to copy and paste a Bitcoin address, it literally can not be simpler :) is it maybe the the alphanumeric hash that looks scary?
  - lawn 9y ago
    Handling a potentially large of money and keeping it secure? How to store the key? What happens if I loose my phone/computer? How can I protect myself from fire and theft? Which wallet to choose? How can I be certain I don't have a virus waiting to steal my coins? Did i copy my address correctly? That's a lot of uncertainty for "it literally can not be simpler".
    - pera 9y ago
      Being able to easily handle a potentially large amount of money is exactly the reason why Bitcoin was created in the first place, so you don't need to depend on entities like banks. But even then, if you don't want to do that, there are other exchanges and online wallets that can do all that for you.
      - lawn 9y ago
        Uh, you literary did not respond to any of my remarks on why someone might find it scary.
        pera 9y ago
        But I did: if you read my comment you will see I literally wrote that you don't have to store the wallet yourself, just use some online wallet. Another option is a hardware wallet like Trezor. What I don't understand is why would anyone who is so scared of using Bitcoin transfer money to Coinbase to buy Bitcoins. To me this is the same as withdrawing all your money from your bank while being super scared of having your own savings in cash at home.
        lawn 9y ago
        No, that doesn't address the potential fear a customer might have. And I didn't even mention the problems with an online wallet. Yes, you should fear online wallets.
        pera 9y ago
        To buying bitcoins on Coinbase (and almost any other exchange) one have to use their online wallet. Fear was not a decisive issue when you (fig.) decided to buy bitcoins, but for whatever reason it is now that you want to move them somewhere else?
- bdcravens 9y ago
  For me, keeping coins on an exchange is scary with the many, many failures and hacks. I prefer to keep mine on a Trezor.
lawn 9y ago
> Third, "Bitcoin Cash" is an altcoin, and anyone can create a similar fork from the Bitcoin blockchain, should Coinbase support them all?? Good luck creating a fork with currently 20% of the value of Bitcoin.
- pera 9y ago
  Non sequitur, but anyways: I could hard-fork the blockchain any day and sell each mined altcoin to myself to then sue Coinbase for not supporting my fork. How that makes any sense?
  - MichaelGG 9y ago
    Sure if you can get a serious volume and trade on other exchanges where people are trading and keep it up for a bit, then yes, Coinbase should support your fork. We'll see in a few more days when real trading is happening where BCC ends up.
  - lawn 9y ago
    Did you not read my comment? What is confusing?
    - pera 9y ago
      There is nothing confusing, your reasoning is simply unsound: the market price (not the value) of some traded altcoin is completely irrelevant to Bitcoin. Even the price of Bitcoin itself is irrelevant to the Bitcoin protocol. There is no law, anywhere in the world, mandating cryptocurrency exchanges to adopt altcoins after they reach some price point, and exchanges are not obligated to trade new altcoins either (which requires adapting their infrastructure, so it makes sense if they decide to not doing it), so, why exactly should it matter that Bitcoin Cash is being traded somewhere else for X% of the current price of Bitcoin? It simply doesn't.
      - lawn 9y ago
        > why exactly should it matter that Bitcoin Cash is being traded somewhere else for X% of the current price of Bitcoin? It simply doesn't. Because Coinbase is keeping the coins the customers could have used to gain the X%?

by pera 9y ago

bradly 9y ago

I had to move my coins out of Coinbase last week and it was very scary. I had never moved coins before and I even though the process seems simple, I had very little confidence in what I was doing. Honestly, I almost just left the coins in Coinbase figuring losing 10% of value from BCH is still probably positive equity compared to my perceived risk of losing it all which felt between 25% and 50%.

pera 9y ago
What was the very scary part? you just need to copy and paste a Bitcoin address, it literally can not be simpler :) is it maybe the the alphanumeric hash that looks scary?
- lawn 9y ago
  Handling a potentially large of money and keeping it secure? How to store the key? What happens if I loose my phone/computer? How can I protect myself from fire and theft? Which wallet to choose? How can I be certain I don't have a virus waiting to steal my coins? Did i copy my address correctly? That's a lot of uncertainty for "it literally can not be simpler".
  - pera 9y ago
    Being able to easily handle a potentially large amount of money is exactly the reason why Bitcoin was created in the first place, so you don't need to depend on entities like banks. But even then, if you don't want to do that, there are other exchanges and online wallets that can do all that for you.
    - lawn 9y ago
      Uh, you literary did not respond to any of my remarks on why someone might find it scary.
      - pera 9y ago
        But I did: if you read my comment you will see I literally wrote that you don't have to store the wallet yourself, just use some online wallet. Another option is a hardware wallet like Trezor. What I don't understand is why would anyone who is so scared of using Bitcoin transfer money to Coinbase to buy Bitcoins. To me this is the same as withdrawing all your money from your bank while being super scared of having your own savings in cash at home.
        lawn 9y ago
        No, that doesn't address the potential fear a customer might have. And I didn't even mention the problems with an online wallet. Yes, you should fear online wallets.
        pera 9y ago
        To buying bitcoins on Coinbase (and almost any other exchange) one have to use their online wallet. Fear was not a decisive issue when you (fig.) decided to buy bitcoins, but for whatever reason it is now that you want to move them somewhere else?
bdcravens 9y ago
For me, keeping coins on an exchange is scary with the many, many failures and hacks. I prefer to keep mine on a Trezor.

lawn 9y ago

> Third, "Bitcoin Cash" is an altcoin, and anyone can create a similar fork from the Bitcoin blockchain, should Coinbase support them all?? Good luck creating a fork with currently 20% of the value of Bitcoin.

pera 9y ago
Non sequitur, but anyways: I could hard-fork the blockchain any day and sell each mined altcoin to myself to then sue Coinbase for not supporting my fork. How that makes any sense?
- MichaelGG 9y ago
  Sure if you can get a serious volume and trade on other exchanges where people are trading and keep it up for a bit, then yes, Coinbase should support your fork. We'll see in a few more days when real trading is happening where BCC ends up.
- lawn 9y ago
  Did you not read my comment? What is confusing?
  - pera 9y ago
    There is nothing confusing, your reasoning is simply unsound: the market price (not the value) of some traded altcoin is completely irrelevant to Bitcoin. Even the price of Bitcoin itself is irrelevant to the Bitcoin protocol. There is no law, anywhere in the world, mandating cryptocurrency exchanges to adopt altcoins after they reach some price point, and exchanges are not obligated to trade new altcoins either (which requires adapting their infrastructure, so it makes sense if they decide to not doing it), so, why exactly should it matter that Bitcoin Cash is being traded somewhere else for X% of the current price of Bitcoin? It simply doesn't.
    - lawn 9y ago
      > why exactly should it matter that Bitcoin Cash is being traded somewhere else for X% of the current price of Bitcoin? It simply doesn't. Because Coinbase is keeping the coins the customers could have used to gain the X%?