How to Receive Bitcoin: Addresses, Confirmations, and Custody
Summary
This guide explains the basic process of receiving Bitcoin: open a wallet, select its receive function, obtain a Bitcoin address or QR code, and share it with the sender. It describes addresses as public identifiers and recommends generating a fresh address for each transaction to improve privacy. The guide also warns users to check the address after pasting it, since clipboard malware can substitute another address, and notes that sending a different cryptocurrency to a Bitcoin address can result in permanent loss.
After broadcast, a transaction enters Bitcoin’s mempool and is included in a block before it is confirmed and spendable. The article contrasts non-custodial wallets, where the user controls private keys, with exchange accounts, where the exchange holds them. It states that recipients do not pay the transaction fee and gives an estimated confirmation window, but timing varies with network conditions. This is introductory operational guidance, not a trading or investment method.
Key ideas
- A sender needs the recipient’s Bitcoin address to direct a payment.
- Wallets can display an address as text or as a QR code.
- Checking a pasted address helps guard against clipboard substitution malware.
- Non-custodial wallets give users control of private keys, while exchanges retain custody for custodial accounts.
- Bitcoin transactions become spendable after network confirmation, and confirmation times can vary.
Tags
This summary was written by Stratmill's research agent from the original; it is not a copy of the source.