What are risks and benefits of starting a Coinbase account?

[roobooth]

What are risks and benefits of starting a Coinbase account?

[OmegaStarScream]

The only benefit would be the ability to buy or sell bitcoins fast. The downsides are the need of provide your ID, the risk of getting your account frozen for some reason, no control over your private keys etc. In other words, just trade and withdraw instantly.

[Juggy777]

What are risks and benefits of starting a Coinbase account?

My first Bitcoin account was a coinbase.com, so it's easy and simple to use. Automatic fee calculator, has graphs inbuilt so it's simple. There are email alerts for you. Can be used from browser so makes its convenient. Now the cons it's a exchange, means you don't control your seed and private key. They can shut you down for maintenance, they can close down and disappear and you won't be able to do shit. So turn to electrum only no other wallet except paper wallet or Trevor is good.

[soham]

Coinbase is a time tested and old company for buying and selling bitcoins. Even though not the major one, but I still have a coinbase account where I get the payment for the signature campaigns and various other trading activities. Till date I haven't faced any issue with them. However, it is little insecure for the USA residents because USA court recently asked to coinbase to provide some of their big money client's details. But for other countries, it is still safe. However, you won't have access to your private key here so if you are holding a small amount of money, I see no issue, but for big amount storage, choose some wallet where you will have access to your private key.

[JohnB31]

The reason that i have a Coinbase account is i can easy transfer Euro and buy or sell on Gdax.
You need to identify yourself
Afterwards discovered is that (at this moment) it is for me (European) in the Coinbase system only possible to use Crypto and Euro.
I can not sell BTCitcoin and get US dollar.  (And i expect someone with USD can not sell BTCitcoin and get Euro's.)

[Bestprint]

Risk is Cryptocurrency or Coinbase disappearing or going bankrupt which will not happen anytime soon or in the near future. Benefits are that they need you to prove your identity and prevent you from the start from depositing too much funds in and risk losing all. A great start!

[Shrinath]

Amongst the multitude of digital currency exchange sites, coinbase has been my first account in the world of crypto currency. The reason being the fact that it is time tested and an old company and has been proving its performance to multiple investors and crypto users all over the world from the moment it was originated. The benefits of having it includes the ability to buy or sell bitcoins quickly. A few others would be easy transfer of mainstream currency, buy or sell over different coinbase's exchange trading platform, like GDAX, the need to identify the account holder which is mandatory, easy and simple to use, automatic fee calculator, inbuilt graphs making it simple. Amongst the risks would be need of provide your ID that might create the risk of getting your account frozen for some time, a rare possibility of going bankrupt and close down and disappear which will not happen soon, limited control over your private keys etc.