All done in one transaction.
Without going to complex trading exchanges.
First of all a mention to @everittdmickey, who asked in a recent post of his for a simple way to convert Steem/Steem (Backed) Dollar to Bitcoin. And @onetree would like to notified by mention when I would post about this 'easy as pie' conversion.
First bookmark these web addresses
- Conversion Exchange Services
1* Blocktrades dot US
2* Changelly dot COM
3.* Shapeshift dot IO
First make sure you have a Wallet (may be an online service) that is able to receive the BitMoney type you want to convert your Steem and or Steem (Backed) Dollar {SBD} to. There are several multi Wallet types that can handle at least Bitcoin, Litecoin and Dogecoin, for instance.
Also there are services that will accept Bitcoin, at least, and send US Dollar to your bank account. There are many of these services worldwide in all different money kinds like Euro, Canadian Dollar, Yen and so on, even creditcard services.
In this post I will mainly focus on the direct and easy online conversion from one BitMoney type into another.
Easy as pie - BitMoney conversions
design cc-by-sa @oaldamster
Step one, check your Steem Wallet
There might be some Steem and or Steem (Backed) Dollar there. First choice is what to have converted into another kind of BitMoney. And it might be a good idea to give it try with a small amount first.
!IMPORTANT!
Always make sure you sent it to the right address and that you use the correct memo!
First thing to decide is which coversion exchange service to use. Normally I do use Blocktrades because that one is quite well intregrated with the Steem blockchain. It can handle Steem, Steem (Backed)Dollar {SBD} and Steem Power {SP}, that last one is a one way road.
When you want to have a lot of choice converting to almost any type of BitMoney then Changelly might be your prefered choice. Their interface is quite slick and very clear in following the whole conversion proces. Very user friendly. Yet Blocktrades is faster.
Last in the row is ShapeShift, now I put that one on hold because my conversion apparantly went wrong. Even though it should not have. And they only support Steem. So be aware to only use them for a conversion of Steem into another BitMoney type! Their interface is nice too, but for the looks and the supported BitMoney types, Changelly is the winner.
- NOTE: At Steem we are spoiled with 1-2-3-DONE transactions for free. Other BitMoney types take their time and do charge for transactions. Bitcoin, for instance can take quite some time for a full confirmation. (It can be like 10 minutes and more, so stay calm and Steem on.)
Step 2, Convert Steem (Backed) Dollar to Bitcoin using Blocktrades
Just a few Steem (Backed) Dollar {SBD} as an example to receive as Bitcoin {BTC}, this is one of the most common used type of BitMoney conversions. For this you first will visit the Blocktrades website.
Choose what to convert from into what
Then choose from the left dropdown menu: Steem Dollar (yes they left 'Backed' out, it is really SBD though). From the right dropdown menu you select: Bitcoin. ( If that is what you want of course...)
Fill out the address to receive the converted BitMoney with, in this case it has to be a Bitcoin address and click on the [Get Deposit Address] button.
The address and memo are the most important parts to get right
Then you will notice that you have to send it to blocktrades (they have an account at Steem, that you can check). And you get a memo you have to use for the transaction. Now this is very important! Double check the address and the right memo. The memo never has spaces in it, so be aware of that when you copy-paste, like I do.
Choose transfer in your Steem wallet
In your Steem wallet you go to the dropdown menu behind the Steem Backed Dollar value of your account. There you choose 'Transfer'. That will show you a transaction form where you have to fill out the right address and memo. First times, check these very well. Have different tabs open in your browser for your Steem wallet and the conversion exchange service.
Make sure all the address, memo and value are correct
When you filled out the form and tripple checked it all, you can [SUBMIT] the transaction. Now you have to fill in your main password to confirm.
Confirm the transaction with your main password
And a jiffy later you should be able to see at the Blocktrades page that it all went according to plan!
Blocktrades does it very fast, but Bitcoin...
Step 3: And then the waiting begins...
Because, well, Bitcoin is one of the slowest moving BitMoney kinds around. Think of it like moving truckloads of real gold around. Just be patient. And if something seemed to go wrong these services do give excellent support.
Follow the Bitcoin blockchain confirmations online
Blocktrades alway gives a transaction ID in return after the conversion has been done. With this the Bitcoin blockchain can be checked for this specific transaction. And it takes 6 confirmations to be completely safe but most of the time one is already considered to be alright.
Basicly that is the way it works
Changelly has a bit different interface but the steps are roughly the same. (ShapeShift is not my prefered one, because it only supports Steem and my last one there seemed to have failed.) In my opinion Changelly and Blocktrades are the best ones to use with Steem and Steem (Backed) Dollar. Blocktrades is fast, has got a lot of supported types of BitMoney and is intregrated in the whole of the Steem realm, including the conversion to Steem Power.
Changelly has a beautifull user friendly interface and huge list of supported kinds of Bitmoney. And it has more use to it than only converting from one Bitmoney type to another, but that is way too much information added I for now I think.
Make sure you take your time, and use just small values to try the first times. Check and double check all data like addresses and the important memo!
The way this works is so much more easy than going to some trade exchange. But if you just want to convert your Steem and or Steem (Backed) Dollar then the conversion exchange services are the best choice. And they will always give you the best conversion rate possible.
All this works for all the conversion types in basicly the same manor. Just take your time at first and you'll be a pro in no time!
Have a good one!
Changelly can do easy SBD to Steem conversions too
All screenshots in this post were made by @oaldamster