Recently, I’ve noticed more and more people around me want to enter the crypto world, but most of them are actually completely confused and don’t know where to start. Since the topic of getting started in crypto is so popular, I’ve put together some of my own understanding here—maybe it can help beginners who want to learn about digital currency trading.

First, let’s talk about what it means to trade crypto. In fact, it’s very simple: buy low and sell high to profit from the price difference. It’s the same logic as stock trading or real estate speculation. The only difference is that the target here is digital currencies. One key advantage is that crypto can be traded 24 hours a day, nonstop, and there are no price up/down limits—meaning the profit potential is relatively much larger than in traditional stock markets, futures, or funds. I’ve seen many people who, after getting started in crypto, truly achieved solid returns through reasonable investment strategies.

To start trading crypto, you first need to understand exchanges. An exchange is a platform where you trade digital currencies. Choosing a top-tier exchange with strong safety and reliability is important, so you can trade with confidence. Different exchanges may support different coins. Some smaller coins can only be bought on specific platforms.

Once you’re on an exchange, you’ll come across an important concept—USDT, also known as Tether. Essentially, it’s a stablecoin pegged to the U.S. dollar. You can simply think of it as digital dollars. 1 USDT equals 1 dollar. Why do you need it? Because exchanges can’t directly buy and sell virtual coins—you need to first use RMB to buy USDT, and then use USDT to exchange for the digital currency you want. This process is called coin-to-coin trading. When selling coins, it’s the reverse: you exchange the coin for USDT, and then exchange USDT back into RMB.

Beginners in crypto must master some basic terms. For example, “position” refers to the proportion of your investment funds. “Full position” means buying coins with all your money. “Reducing position” means selling part of your holdings. “Empty position” means selling everything. There are also the concepts of take profit and stop loss—setting predefined levels so that you sell when you’ve made a certain amount of profit, and you cut losses when the price drops to a certain point. This is the core of risk management. In a bull market, prices keep rising; in a bear market, prices keep falling. “Going long” means buying with an expectation that prices will rise; “going short” means selling with an expectation that prices will fall. Terms like building a position, adding to a position, a rebound, consolidation, and a “dive” are commonly heard in trading—eventually, you’ll understand them.

As for mainstream coins, it’s generally believed that Bitcoin ranks first and Ethereum ranks second. Coins with higher market capitalization usually have greater recognition, better liquidity, and relatively higher investment value; conversely, smaller coins ranked lower come with higher risk, so beginners should be more cautious.

What I must emphasize here is the issue of risk. Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin once said the most honest line—don’t put any money into this that you can’t afford to lose. I especially want to remind beginners in crypto: under no circumstances should you borrow money, take out loans, use collateral, or swipe a credit card to participate in this kind of investment—those behaviors carry extremely high risk.

If you want to make money even in a downtrend market, you need to understand contract trading. Contracts are standardized futures products. You can deposit a certain percentage as margin to borrow coins for trading. For example, if you expect Bitcoin to fall, you only need to deposit 1% margin to open a short position with 100x leverage, using BTC capital to control the equivalent of 100 BTC in returns. Suppose BTC drops from 35000 dollars to 34000 dollars—you could then earn 100000 dollars in profit. Sounds tempting, doesn’t it? But I have to say it three times: beginners should not trade contracts! Beginners should not trade contracts! Beginners should not trade contracts! Contract trading may look like the fastest path to get rich quickly, but in reality, the even faster way is getting liquidated and going bankrupt.

If you truly want to start practicing in crypto, I suggest preparing three things. First, an Android phone, which is more stable than an iPhone. Second, some spare money—money you don’t need urgently in the near term, so even if you lose it, it won’t affect your life. Third, the right mindset—trading crypto is risky, and those who get overly anxious or constantly worried really aren’t suitable to participate.

Actually, making money in crypto is far from limited to just trading coins—there are many paths you can explore. The key is to stay rational. Returns are always proportional to your input. I hope everyone can gain something in the crypto world.