Trading P2P is the Best Way to Buy USDC

by Adam Tracey

If you want to use a stablecoin, you may find yourself looking for a fully collateralized and regulated stablecoin. However, even if you’re going to buy a stablecoin like USDC, you may find yourself wanting to do it in a fast, effective way that also enables you to trade in a way that suits you. P2P is the best way to buy and sell USDC. Read on to find out why and how you can take advantage of the stability offered by USDC without having to deal with centralized order book style exchanges to buy crypto even if you don’t have a bank account.

What is USD Coin?

USD Coin (commonly referred to by its ticker USDC) is a stablecoin pegged to the price of the US dollar. Launched in 2018, USD Coin has grown to be one of the most popular options for storing a stable value without selling your crypto or exiting the cryptocurrency markets. While called a coin, USDC is technically a token and operates on top of the ethereum network in the form of an ERC-20 token. Like other ERC-20 tokens, having the backing of a solid blockchain like ethereum allows for USDC to avoid reinventing the wheel and instead allow its developers to focus on providing a backed and regulated stablecoin.

USDC is fully backed 1:1 USDC to USD for every token in circulation, and the smart contract used is even open source. This strong backing helps USDC maintain a relatively consistent peg to $1 USD. If you have had concerns about how some stablecoins maintain their peg, or how reliably backed they are, USDC may be an excellent choice for you when you are looking for a stablecoin to trade.

In recent years, USDT, USDC, DAI, and other popular stablecoins have become staples in many cryptocurrency traders’ toolkits. Allowing anyone to quickly exit a cryptocurrency position without having to cash out their crypto to fiat allows for reactive trading without delays. Stablecoins like USDC are also a great way to store value over a more extended period, so it has become more common to see traders holding some of their profits in tokens like USDC.

One of the best ways that stablecoins can be helpful is by providing a cheap way to perform remittance. If you are regularly looking for ways to send money to friends or family overseas and are tired of paying high percentages to do so, often stablecoins can be a great answer when combined with P2P trading.

Peer-to-Peer Trading is the Best Way to Buy USDC

When buying stablecoins, including USDC, you are often severely limited in the payment methods you can use to buy and sell these digital assets. Thankfully, using an exchange platform like LocalCoinSwap allows you to select from a vast range of payment methods covering everything from cash to M-Pesa. Whatever payment method you have available and essentially any fiat currency pairing you'd like to trade against, LocalCoinSwap can help thanks to the flexibility offered through P2P trading.

Can I Buy USDC with Cash?

While you may assume this is a difficult task, with the help of LocalCoinSwap, you can buy USD Coin with cash or convert your USDC to cash as well. P2P trading allows you to use payment methods like cash-in-person quickly and easily. More people all the time are looking to use cash and other alternative payment methods instead of having to use their bank account and deal with potential issues arising from anti-crypto financial institutions like many banks.

How Do You Buy USDC?

  • Head over to LocalCoinSwap and register an account if you don't have one already. All you need is an email address to get started.
  • Use the search filter to help you look for trades that suit your needs. If you can't find a trade offer that suits you, then you can make one yourself in a matter of seconds by selecting "Create Offer.”
  • Enter a trade and be led through the trading process by following the prompts provided. Stay safe by never releasing escrow before payment is verified if selling USDC or when buying USDC, never send payment before the crypto is locked in escrow.

What are the Fees for Trading USDC?

LocalCoinSwap charges makers 1% on completed trades. If you are using someone else's trade offer, you can buy USD Coin without fees. If you create your own, you'll have a small fee of one percent whenever you complete a trade.

Why Does the Price of USD Coin Change?

While USD Coin is considered a stablecoin, like just about any stablecoin, the price can fluctuate slightly. You'll notice the most change in the price of USDC during volatile market conditions, such as a sudden shift in bitcoin price sending waves across the rest of the market. Generally, price swings outside of a couple of percent will even out quickly once the volatility has settled down, and the market has leveled out the price through arbitrage traders and other means. Any differential in price will usually be arbitraged across the various exchanges that list USDC, just as it typically will with other large cryptocurrencies. You may notice the price of USD Coin can be higher or lower depending on the payment methods offered when trading P2P. This variance is normal depending on how in-demand any specific payment method is and the other terms provided for individual trades.

Part of P2P trading’s flexibility is setting your terms and margins, enabling you even to make money becoming a P2P trading vendor. You can also explore the potential opportunities in regional arbitrage and payment type premiums.

What is the Best Wallet for USDC?

With USD Coin being an ERC-20 token, you have many USDC wallet options, but you also have a great one provided to you with your LocalCoinSwap account. When registering an account on the platform, you will have wallets generated to use that only you have control over. The platform doesn't store or otherwise log your private keys, enabling you to have a user-friendly web wallet for USDC alongside the many other cryptocurrencies supported by the platform. The most secure way to store USDC and other cryptocurrencies is in a non-custodial wallet where only you can access the private keys.

Find Stability with USD Coin & LocalCoinSwap

Even if you're not big on fiat currency, you may find yourself from time to time, wanting to take advantage of the stability offered. Keep your options open, and without having to hold actual US dollars, take advantage of this useful tool for crypto traders. If you are a cryptocurrency enthusiast who likes to reduce third party exposure and retain control of your private keys.

Get started by creating an account on LocalCoinSwap where you can buy a range of stablecoins and some of the most popular cryptocurrencies like bitcoin, ethereum, and more.