# Is it wise to buy Monero if you're not gonna spend it shortly after? I'm losing a lot of money **URL:** https://discuss.privacyguides.net/t/is-it-wise-to-buy-monero-if-youre-not-gonna-spend-it-shortly-after-im-losing-a-lot-of-money/30084 **Category:** Questions **Created:** 2025-08-15T18:51:55Z **Posts:** 48 ## Post 1 by @PurpleDime — 2025-08-15T18:51:55Z I am a total newbie to cryptocurrencies. After years of wanting to buy Monero for anonymous payments, I was finally able to purchase it without KYC. Because this is my first time and all I can afford, I got a small amount ($30 USD). It’s been almost a month and I have yet to make a single purchase with it, as I don’t need to right now. However, **I currently have less than $22 left. I lost 28% of what I bought, and it keeps going down.** I am extremely worried. Purchasing Monero was complicated for me. I got it through unconventional ways, and I don’t know when I will be able to get it again. I always intended to buy it and save it for payments that would for the most part come months down the line. Maybe even a year. Yet every day I am losing money, which is making me think that Monero is not a stable currency for crypto savings. Especially when all the purchases I intend to make are priced in FIAT. If I had bought €36 worth of Monero with the intent of buying a one year Tuta subscription, within days I would have no longer been able to afford it. Hence, my questions: 1. **Is it wise to buy Monero if you’re not gonna spend it shortly after** 2. **Is it safer/wiser to save money in Bitcoin, if the money is gonna stay in my wallet for months before I make a purchase** I’m losing money and I haven’t spent a dime yet. Please advise. --- ## Post 2 by @anonymous378 — 2025-08-15T18:58:05Z This is happening because XMR went super high in May and has dropped since then. If you look at XMR over time, every few years it reaches a peak and then falls back down. The long terms trend is still that XMR is slowly climbing in value. While I get losing 28% in the short term is not ideal, it does not mean XMR is unstable. You just happen to buy XMR when it was decreasing from a high. ![image](https://forum-uploads.privacyguidesusercontent.com/original/2X/4/4f0645d23dd4d8796a809a9110fc8374b31c969f.png) --- ## Post 3 by @PurpleDime — 2025-08-15T19:00:23Z Does that mean I am going to lose more and more money every day? How much USD will I have left after another month? Less than 10? --- ## Post 4 by @anonymous378 — 2025-08-15T19:02:50Z You might. I am not really in the projection game. If you are buying XMR to save, then you need to accept its an up and down road. Its going to have peaks and valleys but over time will climb in value. For example, it was at $195.39 to start the year and is now at $235.88 - Thats about a 20% increase in value YTD. --- ## Post 5 by @PurpleDime — 2025-08-15T19:07:11Z I am not buying Monero to save. I never saw it as an investment opportunity. What I did was buy it in advance to spend later, as in months down the line. The first service I intend to use it for only costs less than $2, often even less than $1. I didn’t expect to lose so much money without spending a dime. Hence, my other question, is it safer to keep my cryptocurrency in Bitcoin? --- ## Post 6 by @Anvil — 2025-08-15T19:07:21Z The exchange rate of XMR relative to EUR or USD changes all the time. In the short term, sometimes, when you convert to XMR, you will see it increase in value. Sometimes, you will see it decrease. On average over the long term, you will likely see it increase as @anonymous378 says. Personally, the way I deal with this is to buy larger amounts of XMR every once in a while so that I always have enough to spend. Sometimes, it goes up and sometimes, it goes down, but I know that if I keep using it, on average, I won’t lose any money to these fluctuations. As you mention, you can also deal with this by just buying the XMR when you are about to spend it, but I personally find that less convenient To answer your second question, the value of BTC in EUR or USD is also not very stable, so that would not help much. You would also suffer higher transaction fees. If you want to ensure that you lose the least amount of money possible and you don’t mind waiting for your XMR, you can use something like [Kraken Pro](https://pro.kraken.com/app) to automatically buy XMR when it dips below a certain value, which will ensure that you buy the XMR at an exchange rate where it is unlikely to decrease in value further. --- ## Post 7 by @anonymous378 — 2025-08-15T19:08:26Z > [@PurpleDime](#): > > I am not buying Monero to save The answer seems obvious then, you should probably only buy it in quantities that you are going to spend right then or, that you don’t mind losing value on in the short term. This would be true of pretty much anything you buy. There is no point in buying extra that you are not using and don’t want to keep long term. --- ## Post 8 by @PurpleDime — 2025-08-15T19:15:08Z I see. I didn’t buy Monero from a marketplace. It’s very hard to find some that sell low amounts and don’t require KYC. I bought it through a real life contact I’ve known for years, and happens to be a crypto user. They provided KYC to the marketplace they usually buy cryptocurrency from, and bought Monero for me, that they later sent to my wallet. Although that’s not a sustainable to buy crypto long term, the next time I do it again, I intend to do it the exact same way. --- ## Post 9 by @anonymous378 — 2025-08-15T19:16:33Z None of this is your fault. I am sorry if I came off like I was blaming you. Just based on what you told me, if I was you, I would only attempt to buy XMR when you know you are going to spend it relatively soon (ie in the next couple days / week). As a rule of thumb I would probably look to purchase XMR when the value is lower then 115% ($224.70) of what the value of XMR was at the start of the year. That will probably protect you from losing money even after the value averages out. --- ## Post 10 by @anon57862721 — 2025-08-15T19:24:29Z > [@PurpleDime](#): > > I am extremely worried. Buddy, I get it. You bought something you’re new at and this does not feel good. But I am assuming you only bought $30 because that’s what you would have been “comfortable” losing in the absolute worst case. That said, it’s only $30. Extreme worry is not warranted. What’s happening is not great but is also not the end of the world. Look, I am not tying to disparage your feelings, I do understand. But since you’re new, it’s good to learn early on than much later that crypto is still a volatile place to be and have a lot of money in. I generally only recommend BTC to invest or buy to use as actual currency even though Monero is more private by design. But if you use non custodial wallets like Cake Wallet, BTC in and from Cake Wallet provides a lot of privacy too, so having or buying with XMR is not necessary (practically speaking unless you only want to use XMR because that’s all the merchant accepts). I would say, relax - not the end of the world. > [@PurpleDime](#): > > Purchasing Monero was complicated for me. Do you not have any crypto ATMs near where you live? I recommend searching for those as they are the best, easiest, and non KYC way to buy crypto (BTC, XMR, ETH, SOL, etc.) > [@PurpleDime](#): > > - **Is it wise to buy Monero if you’re not gonna spend it shortly after** If you’re planning to buy and spend within hours, yes. If not, given XMR’s volatility, I only recommend BTC if going with crypto still. > [@PurpleDime](#): > > s it safer/wiser to save money in Bitcoin, if the money is gonna stay in my wallet for months before I make a purchase Yes indeed. For example, recently I had some BTC appreciate for me and I could buy/add credits to my Proton account “for free” without losing my original purchasing power of my wallet asset. > [@PurpleDime](#): > > I’m losing money and I haven’t spent a dime yet. It should eventually come full circle. Don’t spend for more time and it may bounce back. It’s the market. Things go down and they also can come back up. We just don’t know when. – Those are my two cents. I still would not call losing portions of $30 a lot of money either. It’s a nominal amount unless $30 where you reside is indeed a lot of money. --- ## Post 11 by @PurpleDime — 2025-08-15T19:29:27Z Thanks. I will look into that. Which source do you use to check the value? --- ## Post 12 by @anonymous378 — 2025-08-15T19:30:28Z I was looking at [coinmarketcap.com](http://coinmarketcap.com) - theres a ton of sites. The value is the value so it really shouldn’t matter what site you decide to use. The site is kind of nice as they do try to explain stuff (if you believe their analysis) > TLDR > Monero (XMR) fell **4.17%** over the past 24h to $235.88, underperforming the broader crypto market (-1.14%). The drop aligns with a **30-day decline of 27.74%** , driven by network security concerns, miner centralization risks, and bearish technical indicators. > > 1. **Hashrate takeover attempt** – Qubic mining pool briefly controlled 51% of Monero’s hashrate, triggering security fears. > 2. **Exchange withdrawals paused** – MEXC, HTX, and others halted XMR transactions due to network instability. > 3. **Technical breakdown** – Price fell below critical support levels as RSI14 hit oversold levels. --- ## Post 13 by @PurpleDime — 2025-08-15T19:44:15Z > [@anon57862721](#): > > Buddy, I get it. You bought something you’re new at and this does not feel good. But I am assuming you only bought $30 because that’s what you would have been “comfortable” losing in the absolute worst case. That said, it’s only $30. Extreme worry is not warranted. You are correct. It’s not that big of a deal, but I am quite disappointed. > [@anon57862721](#): > > if you use non custodial wallets like Cake Wallet, BTC in and from Cake Wallet provides a lot of privacy too Since I am a newbie, I trusted PG by using CakeWallet as my wallet, and to use Monero with it since it’s the only private cryptocurrency, from my understanding. I think that was a wise decision. > [@anon57862721](#): > > Do you not have any crypto ATMs near where you live? I found out that there are crypto ATMs in my city, but they don’t sell XMR based on my research. But even if they did, I would worry that they have cameras like regular ATMs. I also suspect, though I could be wrong, that you can’t buy with cash. How do crypto ATMs work in your corner of the world? Do they require KYC? Can you use cash? Do they have cameras? > [@anon57862721](#): > > Yes indeed. For example, recently I had some BTC appreciate for me and I could buy/add credits to my Proton account “for free” without losing my original purchasing power of my wallet asset. I might take that into consideration next time. > [@anon57862721](#): > > Those are my two cents. Thanks a lot of the advice. I appreciate it! > [@anonymous378](#): > > I was looking at [coinmarketcap.com](http://coinmarketcap.com) - theres a ton of sites. Thanks for the recommendation and the explanation. I have another general question: The contact who purchased XMR for me has an account with an exchange, for which he provided his KYC. They’ve had that account for years. That said, when they purchased Monero for me, it is not clear to me if they sent the money directly to my wallet first, or if they sent it to theirs, and then sent it to my wallet. **If they chose the former, is my privacy compromised to the extends that my wallet will be linked to their ID, a person I know IRL?** --- ## Post 14 by @anonymous378 — 2025-08-15T19:46:46Z > [@PurpleDime](#): > > it is not clear to me if they sent the money directly to my wallet first, or if they sent it to theirs, and then sent it to my wallet. My guess is they send it from their account on the exchange to your wallet. You could just ask your friend. --- ## Post 15 by @PurpleDime — 2025-08-15T19:48:37Z True, but my question is, if they sent it from the exchange to my wallet directly, is my privacy somewhat compromised to the extent that is linked to an identity who knows me personally? --- ## Post 16 by @anonymous378 — 2025-08-15T19:50:49Z Somebody more knowledgeable would have to confirm but I think wallet to wallet would be preferred. My understanding is transactions from the exchange to wallet are tracked, associated with the sender, and are on the public ledger. --- ## Post 17 by @anon57862721 — 2025-08-15T19:51:20Z > [@PurpleDime](#): > > and to use Monero with it since it’s the only private cryptocurrency, from my understanding. Yes and no, I feel. Cake Wallet has features and functionality such that using any currency it supports provides a lot of privacy as it is. Monero is not the only one needed to use it. Just so you know. Especially if you can get BTC in it without KYC. > [@PurpleDime](#): > > I found out that there are crypto ATMs in my city, but they don’t sell XMR based on my research. I would stil buy it non KYC and swap it P2P to XMR if you want it. YOu may lose a very tiny amount in fees so do it if it only makes sense. Atleast, that’s what I would do. > [@PurpleDime](#): > > I would worry that they have cameras like regular ATMs Wear a hoodie and mask (but don’t appear sketchy either). And just do your business and leave the ATM/store that offers crypto ATM. It’s still possible. But if your threat model is as high as you imply, then you would need professional advice on how to stay private in public. This issue should likely be much lower in your list of privacy priorities. Again, my opinion. > [@PurpleDime](#): > > How do crypto ATMs work in your corner of the world? Do they require KYC? Can you use cash? Do they have cameras? Crypto ATMs where I live are in independent convenience/corner stores mostly. They are not operated by the stores and the stores rent the machine from another company so the store has no control over the equipment/ATM whatsoever. Yes, they do have cameras but so does every store and most of public space in a metropolitan city. Camera’s don’t bother me. They don’t know what I am buying and where I am storing it and for what I will be using it. And that’s good enough for me. They are also non KYC. You enter cash in it, show your wallet QR code, and receive the crypto in your wallet of choice. Easy. --- ## Post 18 by @anon57862721 — 2025-08-15T19:55:48Z > [@anonymous378](#): > > My understanding is transactions from the exchange to wallet are tracked, associated with the sender, and are on the public ledger. For example, in Cake Wallet, every transaction uses or can use a different crypto address. So your transactions can’t be monitored because you can always use a different address for each transaction (incoming or outgoing). So, the tracking you’re concerned about is mitigated if not eliminated with Cake Wallet. But don’t believe me, give it a try yourself. --- ## Post 19 by @Anvil — 2025-08-15T20:03:05Z > [@PurpleDime](#): > > is my privacy somewhat compromised to the extent that is linked to an identity who knows me personally? My understanding is no. Monero does a very good job at obfuscating sending and receiving addresses. But if you’re worried about it, just don’t use that same receiving address for things you want to be extra private. [This YouTube video](https://youtu.be/H33ggs7bh8M) by THO on the subject is pretty succinct and informative. --- ## Post 20 by @No_Name — 2025-08-16T01:12:03Z Use [kycnot.me](http://kycnot.me) to find a site that doesn’t require kyc. You can also swap something like LTC for XMR within Cake wallet as LTC has lower fees than something like BTC. Purchase the XMR while the price is lower. Don’t purchase it when it’s at a peak for the month or year. --- ## Post 21 by @Encounter5729 — 2025-08-16T07:56:32Z Monero isn’t about making an investment, it’s about spending it in real world. As long as you only use monero for a fraction of what you spend overall, I wouldn’t worry too much about price fluctuations. --- ## Post 22 by @PurpleDime — 2025-08-16T07:59:02Z > [@No_Name](#): > > Use [kycnot.me](http://kycnot.me) to find a site that doesn’t require kyc. That site was recommended to me before, but I couldn’t find someone who sole low amounts of XMR ($30 or less) and that I could pay in cash. The easiest way for me was to ask someone I know IRL to buy it for me. --- ## Post 23 by @PurpleDime — 2025-08-16T08:01:58Z > [@Encounter5729](#): > > Monero isn’t about making an investment, it’s about spending it in real world. I hear you. I’ve really been interested in cryptocurrencies as an investment. Only as a means to an end. But I did not expect my money to devalue so fast with having spent it yet. Part of me also feels that as long as products and services are priced in FIAT, cryptocurrencies can only be a means to an end. --- ## Post 24 by @anon57862721 — 2025-08-16T08:04:21Z This is where I feel stable coins are a great way to become independent from centralized finance if only more merchants accepted them. --- ## Post 25 by @user1 — 2025-08-16T08:08:17Z Crypto volatility is a thing and bitcoin is no better than monero in that regard. There are stablecoins but they’re not private and swapping is not practical and expensive. As for now I don’t see a real practical alternative to cash in terms of ownership and privacy but then online transactions are not possible. --- ## Post 26 by @PurpleDime — 2025-08-16T08:15:38Z > [@anon57862721](#): > > This is where I feel stable coins are a great way to become independent from centralized finance if only more merchants accepted them. What are stable coins? I’ve heard that term being used before. I’ve also heard the argument of using cryptocurrencies not just for financial privacy, but to protect yourself against the government or banks that could freeze your account unethically. I’ve heard the story of the Afghan refugees to Germany, I think, who were able to leave with all of their savings because they were in a USB in a cryptocurrency. That’s all fine and dandy. But say your bank accounts were frozen, and you have $50 0000 in cryptocurrency for a rainy day. It’s hard to convert large amounts in FIAT cash if, say, you want to pay 3 months of rent for a place. Also, if you live in a country where cryptocurrencies are not widely accepted not just for digital goods, but physical ones, it’s going to be tricky. I recently found out about Cake Pay from Cake Wallet, which is a service that allows you to buy gift cards from all over the world completely anonymously. The US is obviously the country with the most gift cards for all kinds of things: clothing stores, restaurants, movies, pet store, shoe store, etc…If you look at gift cards for other countries, there isn’t as much variety. So you are still very much dependent on what you country has to offer. Let’s not forget cryptocurrencies are extremely volatile, which is why I wrote this post in the first place. --- ## Post 27 by @PurpleDime — 2025-08-16T08:17:48Z > [@user1](#): > > Crypto volatility is a thing and bitcoin is no better than monero in that regard. > There are stablecoins but they’re not private and swapping is not practical and expensive. I could be wrong, but I suspect that that stores and people who accept Monero and other cryptocurrencies as payments must convert to FIAT within days if not others, other wise they lose so much money. --- ## Post 28 by @anon57862721 — 2025-08-16T09:31:25Z > [@PurpleDime](#): > > What are stable coins? I’ve heard that term being used before. A simple search for this will yield a better answer than what I can provide - I’d recommend reading a few pages/websites to learn about them. > [@PurpleDime](#): > > I’ve also heard the argument of using cryptocurrencies not just for financial privacy, but to protect yourself against the government or banks that could freeze your account unethically. Yes, this is true. No government sanctions can affect any country or merchant using crypto. > [@PurpleDime](#): > > It’s hard to convert large amounts in FIAT cash if, say, you want to pay 3 months of rent for a place. There are always ways to do it. But like you said, only hard - not impossible. > [@PurpleDime](#): > > So you are still very much dependent on what you country has to offer. Actually, it has more to do with what the merchants and brands in these country can offer than the country itself. It’s more company dependent than country dependent as it is gift cards that should be available in those countries to buy, not necessarily crypto. > [@PurpleDime](#): > > Let’s not forget cryptocurrencies are extremely volatile Most crypto is. But popular crypto like BTC are stable enough for everyday use. Albeit, you never can tell with any certainty onviously, hence stable coins as a better crypto alternative for everyday use. --- ## Post 29 by @jonah — 2025-08-16T15:03:00Z All stable coins can be frozen and will have the same problems as the traditional banking systems in that regard. --- ## Post 30 by @anon57862721 — 2025-08-16T15:15:52Z Apparently I was misinformed with this detail. Thanks for clarifying. --- ## Post 31 by @Encounter5729 — 2025-08-18T17:44:37Z Can they though? You can ban any business from accepting them, but it isn’t the same as freezing them. --- ## Post 32 by @jonah — 2025-08-18T17:51:12Z Yes, the operators of any stable coin can freeze any wallet they’d like any time. If you think about it, it kind of has to be that way inherently since they are holding the money which backs the crypto. --- ## Post 33 by @Encounter5729 — 2025-08-18T17:58:41Z Got it. I didn’t know it was possible because there is a lot of talk on how stablecloins are used to escape sanctions. --- ## Post 34 by @jonah — 2025-08-18T18:16:39Z Well, they have to find your wallet to freeze them. They _are_ probably useful for evading sanctions because someone can quickly convert Bitcoin/XMR to a new USDC wallet and then quickly spend them in more places than Bitcoin/XMR is regularly accepted. They are _not_ useful for holding on to, because funds sitting in a stablecoin wallet are basically funds sitting in a bank. The longer they sit there your risk increases. Basically, only use them for transactional purposes as needed :+1: --- ## Post 35 by @PurpleDime — 2025-08-18T18:23:42Z > [@jonah](#): > > They are _not_ useful for holding on to, because funds sitting in a stablecoin wallet are basically funds sitting in a bank. The longer they sit there your risk increases. > > Basically, only use them for transactional purposes as needed :+1: I guess that answers my question on the risk and value of holding Monero. --- ## Post 36 by @anonymous403 — 2025-08-19T02:12:29Z > [@anonymous378](#): > > Just based on what you told me, if I was you, I would only attempt to buy XMR when you know you are going to spend it relatively soon (ie in the next couple days / week). I agree. I have never used Monero (or any other cryptocurrency), but if I were, I would only buy it in the same computer session that I am using it in. --- ## Post 37 by @anonymous378 — 2025-08-19T15:13:57Z I tend to buy XMR in the same amount every time, regardless of how much I am going to spend. So I typically have a small amount leftover in my wallet. I am not sure for people who avoid KYC exchanges, if this provides any value. --- ## Post 38 by @Bottomfeedr — 2025-08-20T06:04:26Z Keep buying it will go up --- ## Post 39 by @ty89 — 2025-08-20T09:39:17Z > [@anonymous378](#): > > **Hashrate takeover attempt** – Qubic mining pool briefly controlled 51% of Monero’s hashrate, triggering security fears. This is misinformation, Qubic did not briefly control 51%. The math is flawed. Estimated total Monero network hashrate is not a precise instant measurement, it is an estimation based on how fast were the blocks being mined recently with the current mining difficulty. Let’s say both real and estimated total Monero network hashrate is 5 GH/s and some entity begins mining at 3 GH/s. Until the total estimated hashrate is updated to include those additional 3 GH/s, someone might conclude that the entity has 3/5=60% total hashrate which is obviously not the case. The real number would be 3/8=37.5%. Further reading: > **[Reaction to Qubic's alleged 51% attack on Monero (Coindesk)](https://riat.at/reaction-coindesk-research-article-alleged-51-attack-on-monero-pow-network/)** > > Monero was not 51% attacked. This article debunks CoinDesk's report, revealing how Qubic's hashrate claims were faked to mislead the crypto community. > **[The Qubic Minority Report | Parallel Thoughts](https://shai-deshe.gitbook.io/parallel-thoughts/proof-of-work/the-qubic-minority-report)** --- ## Post 40 by @ty89 — 2025-08-20T09:54:05Z DAI stablecoin does not have freezing functionality in the contract. It is partially backed by USDC which does have it, but this risk is spread among all token holders. Individual DAI addresses cannot be centrally blocked. [https://www.stablecoininsider.com/stablecoins-frozen-by-issuers/](https://www.stablecoininsider.com/stablecoins-frozen-by-issuers/) --- ## Post 41 by @ty89 — 2025-08-20T10:01:22Z > [@anon57862721](#): > > Cake Wallet has features and functionality such that using any currency it supports provides a lot of privacy as it is. It cannot provide any additional privacy for Ethereum and ERC20 tokens because the account’s ETH address is always the same. The same fact probably stands for ETH competitors like Tron. Cake wallet might provide **some obfuscation** if it is using new addresses for BTC or LTC each time. This is far from the privacy level Monero provides. --- ## Post 42 by @anonymous378 — 2025-08-20T13:45:25Z Yeah the 51% thing seemed a bit dubious and is partially why I said > [@anonymous378](#): > > (if you believe their analysis) OTOH, regardless if its actually true, if its causing skepticism in the market it can still play a role in decreasing XMRs value. --- ## Post 43 by @jonah — 2025-08-28T19:01:03Z > [@PurpleDime](#): > > I guess that answers my question on the risk and value of holding Monero. Well, Monero is not a stablecoin. > [@ty89](#): > > DAI stablecoin does not have freezing functionality in the contract. It is partially backed by USDC which does have it, but this risk is spread among all token holders. I would personally be wary of associating with potentially far riskier token holders than I in this fashion. I wouldn’t consider it out of the question that USDC wouldn’t freeze these assets just because of the size of DAI, if regulators believed USDC was being abused by some users via DAI. Just my 2¢ though :man_shrugging: --- ## Post 44 by @anon46948132 — 2025-08-30T08:42:34Z bullrun/altseason is every 3-5 years, if you dont want to loose and still be anonymous you can sell at top of bullrun (probably early 2026, but i might be of wrong) for cash and buy at bottom XMR again. But i suggest to compare xmr against btc not FIAT - inflation, money printing it makes fiat less and less worth --- ## Post 45 by @asanyan — 2025-08-31T02:25:04Z Maybe offtopic but even if you decide to buy often (which is sensible), do not buy the exact (or close to) amount that you’ll spend immediately, particularly if you’re buying from a kyc exchange --- ## Post 46 by @Encounter5729 — 2025-09-01T12:40:01Z Buy once in a KYC exchange, then use Haveno. But agreed on the point. --- ## Post 47 by @marthamp — 2025-09-01T15:43:08Z crypto is essentially antithetical to privacy as all transactions are stored forever and bound to whatever KYC or service purchased. You are on the right track purchasing outside KYC as there are a few marketplaces of face to face sales or online versions thereof from jurisdictions who also don’t care about KYC. You would want to vary the merchant as you would spend not extending say a VPN service but creating a new account with each spend and then using this VPN as the inner nested service to a different VPN. There are GC for crypto available at some gaming platforms but the fun there I have experienced rejection of cash prepaid credit cards. SUS. Then the crypto place itself upon GC processing sometimes requires “minimal” KYC of a mobile number. That’s also as egregious as a state ID card. There are crypto remixers but someone else with that experience need weigh in as the risk starts about $220 USD. --- ## Post 48 by @benm — 2025-09-01T19:36:36Z A lot of actual criminal activity is done by buying Litecoin on an exchange, swapping for monero, spending the monero, the seller then swaps monero for a final store of value. Then the only on-record transactions that have happened are buying the litecoin and the swap for monero but no one know who the monero was sent to or for what purpose. Litecoin is preferred for this over Bitcoin because it has lower fees, but bitcoin is preferred as an investment because it has won market dominance. “Stablecoin” itself is a misleading in some ways because the value of fiat currency is not stable. If your currency is inflating, then it is losing value, this just happens invisibly. Downside worry of losing money has to be balanced with the risk of losing money by holding fiat currency and inflating it away. The risk of being down 30% is not that serious if you are talking about $30 in the first place. That’s basically the price of buying lunch twice. Being in the crypto world means thinking more rationally and not emotionally about money, which is difficult to do. Bitcoin is obviously not private, but it’s also the best store of value/protection from fiat, so you have to take this into account given all your available options. Realistically a decent option for a lot of people will be buying and holding Bitcoin for the long game as an investment, buying monero as needed to transact privately, and potentially using a 3rd currency to more easily buy and swap for monero as needed.