What is Theta?Before you jump in and buy Theta, it’s important to understand what it is. You should never invest in something you don’t understand. So, with that in mind, here’s a quick summary.The Theta network is a blockchain-based video delivery platform. Its goal is to enable high-bandwidth decentralized streaming, with users able to pay to watch other people’s streams, or get paid to stream to other people. THETA is the cryptocurrency used to make these payments.Theta is being touted as the next generation of video delivery, with YouTube co-founder Steve Chen claiming that the platform is set to disrupt the current online video industry in the same way that YouTube’s platform did to traditional video in 2005.’How does Theta work?Theta works by decentralizing the video streaming process in order to increase the quality of video available to users. The Theta team identified three key problems with live video streaming: low quality, high infrastructure cost, and inefficient centralized ecosystems.They then used blockchain technology to help solve these problems.The Theta network rewards viewers for sharing bandwidth and resources in the form of Theta tokens. This allows the network to eliminate costly centralized infrastructure and therefore provide smooth, high-quality video streaming at a reduced cost.The Theta Token (THETA) is the ‘governance token’ of the platform and should not be confused with Theta Fuel (TFUEL), the operational token of the protocol (so called because it is the ‘gas’ of the protocol). THETA is used strictly for staking and securing the network, while TFUEL is used to fuel microtransactions and network operations.How to Buy Theta online-step by stepStep 1. Find an exchange to buy ThetaThere are plenty of exchanges on offer if you want to buy or sell Theta. Each has advantages and disadvantages, so it’s a good idea to do a little research, and you can find a quick and easy comparison of the best options in the table further up this page. To get you started, here are two of our favorite Theta exchanges:Binance: widely regarded as the best and most trusted place to buy altcoins, Binance is the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange. It offers a large marketplace and fees that compare favorably with its major competitors, plus a well-designed mobile app.Changelly: Changelly combines sleek design, high convenience and speed. Fees are 0.5%, which is a touch higher than many exchanges, but these don’t feel exorbitant given the quality of the platform.Step 2. Sign up and fund your accountOnce you have selected the exchange you wish to use, you will need to go to their website and set up an account. The steps for this process will vary from exchange to exchange, but in general you will need to provide an email address, phone number and a form of identification.Some exchanges will not allow you to deposit fiat currency, but will only allow you to fund your account with cryptocurrencies. This means you will have to go to a Bitcoin broker like Coinbase to buy some coins, and then transfer them to your exchange account.Step 3. Buy ThetaOnce you have funded your exchange account, you can start trading your cryptocurrency for Theta. Again, this will vary from exchange to exchange, but you will be able to place orders on a crypto trading pair (such as THETA/BTC) to buy Theta from other exchange users, in the same way a stock exchange works.
Step 4. (Optional) get a suitable walletIf you want to keep your Theta for a long time and store them more securely, the best thing to do is to set up a personal wallet that you control and transfer your Theta to. This is not absolutely necessary, as most reputable exchanges have good security features, but it is an approach that some investors choose to take.There are currently some good Theta wallet options available on the market, which include:Theta Wallet: the official Theta wallet can be created as a web wallet through thetatoken.org and is now available as a mobile app for Android and iOS. The official wallet can store both ERC20 Theta Token and Theta Mainnet tokens. It also offers support for Trezor and Ledger hardware wallets.How to trade with Theta – step-by-step guideIf you are only interested in trading with Theta, you don’t need to worry about getting a proper wallet. This is because the process of trading cryptocurrencies involves taking a position on the value of the currency rather than actually buying it. Through CFD (contracts for difference) brokers or spread betting brokers, you can benefit from increases in the value of Theta without having to own the coins. Here are the steps to follow.Step 1. Find a brokerTHETA and TFUEL are fairly new to the market, so you may have difficulty finding a trading platform that will allow you to trade on them. This will probably change over time. Plus500 and eToro are two of the most popular online cryptocurrency trading brokers today.Step 2. Deposit moneyMost trading platforms will allow you to deposit money in fiat currencies (e.g. USD, GBP, EUR). There are usually fees associated with different ways to fund your account, so be sure to check out our reviews to find the cheapest way to start trading with Theta.Step 3. Decide how you would like to tradeThere are two methods for trading cryptocurrencies: CFDs (contracts for difference) and Spread Betting. Both methods essentially involve speculating on the price movements of your chosen currency. If you are unsure which option to choose, we recommend reading more about both methods here on Invezz.Step 4. Start tradingIf you are a complete newbie, we recommend you start with a demo account and familiarize yourself with the process and your chosen platform. Cryptocurrency trading is extremely volatile, which means you can make and lose money very quickly, so it’s important to know what you’re doing before trading with real money.As a cryptocurrency trader, you are speculating on the price movements of your currency by taking a short (sell) or long (buy) position. If you think Theta will fall in value you should take a short position, if you think it will rise in value you should take a long position.You may choose to incorporate leverage into your trading strategy. Leveraged trading allows you to put a fraction of the value of the trade as a deposit or “margin”. This can be risky, however, so be sure to have a stop loss in place for damage limitation.Is it worth investing in Theta?If your purpose for buying Theta is simply to use the Theta network, then it is always a good time to buy. As long as you can afford the tokens, then simply buy a few and take a look.However, if you are looking to buy or trade Theta as an investment, then you will want to do more research on its long-term view and current price performance. It’s also a good idea to check out the latest news on Theta so you can assess whether it’s something you want to get involved in. Here are three of our most recent analyses from our experts.
