With over 400,000 daily transactions, Bitcoin is the world’s first and most popular decentralized cryptocurrency, used by over 106 million users globally. Its wide accessibility, blazing-fast transaction speed, and decentralized nature make Bitcoin a better alternative to fiat money.

If you are new to the Bitcoin ecosystem, understanding how everything works can seem a bit overwhelming. But really, it’s not. You can send and receive Bitcoins anywhere in the world with just a few clicks. In this blog, we will learn how you can transact in Bitcoins, what you need, how to get started, and the things you should know before using Bitcoins. If that sounds exciting, let’s get going!

How to send Bitcoins?

Sending Bitcoins is even simpler than wiring money via banks. All you need is a Bitcoin wallet and the recipient’s wallet address to initiate the transfer. Let’s dive deeper.

First things first, we will need a Bitcoin wallet. If you don’t have one, you can download the Speed Bitcoin Lightning Wallet application from Google Playstore or Appstore. It’s secure, reliable, and completely free.

Once downloaded, sign up using your email address. Upon successful registration, you will be redirected to your wallet’s main screen, which will show the total balance, LN address, and confirmed and pending transactions.

• To send Bitcoins, tap on the send button from the bottom right corner. On the next screen, you will be able to scan any Bitcoin payment QR generated through wallet applications like Speed, Binance, Coinbase, etc.

• You can also send Bitcoins directly to a lightning address by entering the details or by uploading the QR from your files.

• On the next screen, you will be able to enter the amount, add a note (if any), and tap on submit.

• The amount will be instantly transferred to your preferred Bitcoin wallet. The transaction will reflect in the “Transactions” tab on your application. You can tap on the transaction to see additional details like the recipient’s address, amount of Bitcoins, and network fee for the payment.

That’s it. In just a few taps, you can send Bitcoins to anyone, anywhere, with Speed’s Bitcoin Lightning Wallet.

How to receive Bitcoin?

Receiving Bitcoins via the Speed app is easy, too. Let’s understand how it works:

• Sign into your Speed Wallet application and tap on the “Receive” button at the bottom left corner.

• On the next screen, you will see your wallet QR. You can share the QR code with the payer to receive the payments. If required, you can specify the amount you wish to receive by selecting “Custom amount”. You can also copy the QR code or invoice directly and share it with the payer via social media apps.

• Once you receive the payment, it will instantly reflect in the “Transactions” tab. You can tap on any transaction to check its status.

Receiving payments via the Speed app is completely free. You can receive as many Bitcoins as you want at no cost.

How long does Bitcoin take to settle?

Every transaction is successfully recorded on the Blockchain only when network nodes verify it cryptographically.

On average, transactions are settled within minutes. However, settlement time may vary as it depends on a lot of factors, such as the total network activity, hash rate, and transaction fees. This means if the network is overloaded, there will be a backlog of transactions, which would result in users paying more transaction fees for faster settlements. In April 2021, average Bitcoin transaction fees reached $59 as the network was congested.

Let’s understand how Bitcoin network fees are calculated and how can you minimize them.

Bitcoin network fees explained

Bitcoin network fees were implemented to prevent spam transactions that could slow down the network. They are usually expressed in satoshis (a unit of Bitcoin equivalent to 0.000270 US Dollars). Bitcoin owners pay network fees to miners to validate the transactions and add transactions to blocks.

The average Bitcoin network fee is approximately $1.59 per transaction. However, it varies based on the data volume and transaction speed (the faster a user wants their transaction to be confirmed, the more fees they will have to pay).

All the Bitcoin transactions are processed in blocks, which have a maximum capacity of 4 MB. The network fees are directly proportional to the size of a transaction and the number of people initiating transactions.

Larger transactions usually take more block data. Thus, they pay higher fees on a per-byte basis. The amount of fees paid also determines the speed of a transaction. Miners prioritize higher fee transactions first, which means the more a person pays, the faster their transaction will be settled.

With that said, there are several ways you can minimize your transaction fees. Let’s quickly look at a few:

• Time your transactions: Fees are generally higher when a lot of people are initiating transactions. Thus, if you want to minimize your fees, time your transactions when the network has fewer transactions than usual.

• Use Lightning Network: Also known as “Layer 2”, the Lightning Network is a second layer on top of Blockchain that not only minimizes the network fees but also enables faster settlements. You can use the Lightning Network for transacting Bitcoins.

• Compare service provider fees: On top of network fees, several crypto platforms also levy additional charges for using their services. To minimize the cost of your transaction, you should check the platform you are using has minimal transaction fees.

Conclusion

Sending and receiving Bitcoins gets easier, efficient, and cost-effective with Speed Bitcoin Lightning Wallet. If you haven’t already, download the app for free from Google Playstore or Appstore. The app is easy to use and works with all Bitcoin wallets across the globe. You can send and receive Bitcoins anywhere, anytime, via our app.

If you are a business or merchant, consider signing up for a Speed merchant account. With a merchant account, you can access our exclusive payment features at the lowest transaction fees. Get started today to experience lightning-fast payments with Speed.

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