The purpose of this article is to highlight the features available on eToro so that you are aware of the pros and cons of using it as a crypto exchange service.
Well before you can do anything with the eToro app you'll need to go through a "ID verification" process. Please, be very careful when putting in your information. If you accidentally put in the wrong birthday for example (hey, typos happen and we don't always catch them) eToro doesn't generally fix it in their system, which could have tax filing implications for you. However, if it was put in correctly when you signed up and later (due to a system glitch on their part) it somehow changes they are quite accommodating and will fix that for you as soon as possible. I recommend checking to make sure your account information is still accurate from time-to-time; better safe than sorry.
When you first open up the app you'll see a screen that has tabs for "home," "watchlist," "portfolio," and "discover." The home tab brings you to a screen with a feed of other users social posts, a chart with your current overall balance, and the day's biggest movers. The watchlist tab brings you to a screen which shows a collection of crypto (&/or stocks) you are watching; you have the option to add or remove anything you want from the watchlist or create other lists. The discover tab is there to help you search stocks, crypto, ETFs, and even other trader portfolios, which eToro allows its users to copy the trades thereof. I personally wouldn't recommend copying another trader's portfolio actions but others appear to find it useful.
You may have noticed in the previous paragraph I skipped over the "portfolio" tab rundown and that's because it deserves its own. On the top of the portfolio tab screen you will see a number of things: 1) a three horizontal line image (that's a dropdown menu icon), 2) your current balance & what amount it is either up or down on the day, 3) a little alert bell icon which pops up a list of recent price/percentage changes for the market, 4) the word "portfolio" is a dropdown menu also offers you the option to look at your pending "orders" and your portfolio "history," 5) there's also a 3 vertical line with a gear wheel icon -- clicking on it allows you to change what you're looking at for the 4 columns showing on the page (i.e. "invested," "units," "profit/loss ($ &/or %), etc.), and lastly, 6) to that icon's right is another which if you click on it changes to a different icon and reveals a different layout of information on your portfolio tab screen.
I previously mentioned there was an "orders" screen. One of the neat features available with eToro is you can utilize market buys and sells or you can set limit buys and sells. I personally prefer limit orders because I can set the prices I'm willing to buy and sell at, and how much money I want to put into that order, then I can walk away and if the targets are hit the app will automatically do it while I'm living my busy life. Some find that limit orders help them reduce their anxiety and panic regarding whether they should buy or sell at any given point. For those that still find themselves feeling a bit antsy when they check their portfolio and see something is either doing well or poorly they can in a single transaction request put a close order request in and it should simultaneously cancel any existing limit order and put through a market order in its place. Something to keep in mind is that eToro doesn't appear to allow transferring an asset to a different wallet/exchange. It also sets a spread on all purchases aimed at ensuring they get you the most out of your purchase request during market fluctuations but some find the spread is often a bit wider than they'd prefer.
The "history" option available under the portfolio drop-down menu is a great tool and you'll need to get familiarized with it for tax purposes. The previously mentioned 3 vertical lines with a gear wheel icon on this page allows you to choose the time frame of your history you want to look at or you can simply request the "account statement." The latter of the two is the one you'll need to choose so that you can set a specific taxation year time frame (i.e. Jan. 1st 2021 to Dec. 31st 2021).
Finally, last I knew there are minimum purchase ($25US), minimum withdrawal (I've never done this myself), and minimum deposit ($50US) requirements but due to recent TOS updates this may have changed recently so be sure to look into that yourself. I hope this brief introduction and rundown on the eToro app has been helpful.
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