Dear Brave Browser: Love You, But...

avatar
You need to drop the Uphold wallet integration, or at least offer some other option. How many of you have been thinking the same thing for a LONG TIME now? Did you know that the Brave browser actually has another wallet option?

I didn't either, to be honest, until today. So I switched immediately.

Why Uphold is NOT the Way...

Simple: it has exorbitant transfer fees!

Dear Brave. Lose Uphold..png

As you can see in the screenshot I fancied up, my 42 BAT token transfer is costing me over 13 tokens to get done... that's over $14 CAD or 30+% of my total balance. You could say that I should wait until I have more BAT to withdraw-- normally a sensible suggestion-- but I earn around 5 BAT per month from my browsing activity.

Do the math: it takes me three months just to earn enough tokens to afford only the transfer fee. Needless to say, I was constantly frustrated to see the lion's share of this passive income stream get siphoned into the Uphold coffers.

Enter Gemini.

I have no idea when this development happened, but I just today noticed another wallet integration option in the Brave Rewards page. It's called GEMINI, and I'm already on board... it took me all of ten minutes to make the switch.

It was a no-brainer. They had me at 'NOT UPHOLD'.

I'm an affiliate already too, so if I can make my fellow Uphold-haters aware of this revelation and they click one of MY LINKS, I earn a little something if they decide to trade on the Gemini exchange.

My first impression is that it looks like a clean, modern wallet and exchange... and they offer interest for the tokens you hold-- including a little better than 1% on BAT-- so it already gets bonus points. If Uphold does offer interest, they never made me aware of it. So on first glance, this new Brave wallet is winning.

The image above will take you to the interest-related page if you want to check it out. Frankly, I'll be holding my Basic Attention tokens in my YOUHODLER account where I earn 3% instead of 1%... but hopefully I'll be sending much more of what I've been earning with Brave.

As a sidenote, YouHodler is also what I've been using to get crypto-backed USD loans for paying bills over the last three or four months. It has been an AMAZING service for me, and I couldn't give a more glowing recommendation... click the link above or RIGHT HERE to check it out for yourself. I've been absolutely loving it.

But I Know NOTHING About Gemini.

It's important that I make that clear: I have no idea what the Gemini experience is like overall, and I don't know if the fees are much better (if at all)... but, come on, it must be better than 13+ #BAT tokens!

I guess I'll know more early next month when my ad-viewing revenue is paid out. I should be able to see the withdrawal fees at that point, and I'll write a follow-up post with my final verdict.

Uphold and Crypto Exchanges for BAT.png

But it will change nothing about my Uphold commentary... I've been cursing the #Brave browser under my breath this whole time because of these prohibitive fees, and I'm crossing my fingers for good news on the Gemini front. Please be right!

Brave is Still My Browser of Choice.

Yes, fine... I still appreciate being paid something for my attention, and it is a solid user experience all around: Chrome-compatible, notably fast and no unwanted ads. This Uphold ordeal was really my only gripe.

So if you're not already a Brave user, do yourself a favour and START NOW... and for the love of all that is fair: make sure you choose GEMINI, then connect it to your Brave Rewards. I can almost guarantee it's the only good option.



Let me know in the comments if you use any of these services and what you like best... did you notice the Gemini option a while ago, or do you actually like Uphold for some reason? Or if I twisted your arm on anything, let me know what you think. Thanks so much for reading! 🙏

Posted Using LeoFinance Beta



0
0
0.000
15 comments
avatar

Still using brave but really thinking about making the switch. Thanks for the info and your experience.

0
0
0.000
avatar

It's not Brave you should switch though... just the wallet integration. I want to be clear about that. All you need to do is sign up for GEMINI, "disconnect from Uphold" on the Brave Rewards page and then reconnect with your new Gemini account.

If you do make the switch, I'd !LUV to know what you think. Thanks so much for the comment! 🙂

!PIZZA

0
0
0.000
avatar

Oh I wouldn’t switch from Brave, lol. Been with them since they started and know the devs. Na just Uphold. I don’t really like Gemini either but they may be a bit cheaper on fees.

0
0
0.000
avatar

I'm really hoping so... or I may owe everyone an apology in my next post. Not that it's my fault, but I am making assumptions. :)

0
0
0.000
avatar

Same here, Brave is my browser of choice. I've had it connected to Gemini for a little while now. But truthfully, I haven't done anything with it. I wanted to trade my BAT for another coin that was going to be for some play 2earn game, but I never did it!

I have been interested in crypto backe dloans these last couple months... Finally got into DeFi, collecting nice yields, the next step is to take out loans! Thanks for the read!

Posted Using LeoFinance Beta

0
0
0.000
avatar
(Edited)

I can relate... so much to do! That's why I like the idea of just letting it pile up a bit and throwing it into a savings account that will compound over time. 👆

There are lots of options out there for crypto-backed loans, but I've had a great experience with YouHodler. They give me 70% value on my BTC collateral with two months to pay it back... decent rates from what I can see, and generous interest rates on my other balances. There are different terms: you can get 90% of the BTC value if you pay it back in a month-- and you can also set it to be sold and take profit at a certain price level. No complaints at all (and they don't pay me to say these things, except the commission if you go through MY LINK and do some trading).

I appreciate you taking the time to read and leave a thoughtful comment, Senor Coconut! 😊
!PIZZA

0
0
0.000
avatar

Hey, thanks for that info and the 🍕. The question I have with crypto back loans is about buying something with fiat currency (after conversion), I don't want to pay taxes on a loan. Anyway around that?

Posted Using LeoFinance Beta

0
0
0.000
avatar

I'm not really the person to ask about that end of it... but I think these loans are actually a way of avoiding getting taxed for selling the crypto. So you let them hold the Bitcoin, for example, and they loan you fiat. When you pay back the loan, you get the full crypto collateral back and no sale is triggered.

Does that make sense?

It would be nice if someone chimed in right now to educate us both about the intricacies. The purchase and sale of crypto seems like more of the tax danger zone... peer to peer transactions to a cold wallet would be clear, but anything on exchanges is business as usual.

0
0
0.000
avatar

Hey thanks for your response, sorry it took me this long to reply!

Yes the collateral bit makes sense. There are a couple people I follow in the self-reliance circle who use crypto back loans, I'll try to find out more there.

Posted Using LeoFinance Beta

0
0
0.000
avatar

The only thing that puts me off Gemini is that their interest earning programme for BAT isn't available here in the UK.

I'm not sure whether to keep building BAT up on Uphold until there's enough there (eventually !) that the transfer fee doesn't hurt too much, or just start using Gemini and mentally write off the balance that's on Uphold. It's a shame I can't just send the BAT straight from Brave to a Ledger or Trezor wallet.

0
0
0.000
avatar
(Edited)

Right?! Brave should have way more options... but I suggest waiting for 15-20 BAT over on Uphold and then withdraw, if you're not too far off. That is a drag too about the UK rule... not sure if YouHodler is the same, but they offer 3% interest on BAT holdings.

I appreciate you chiming in. 👍

0
0
0.000
avatar

Congratulations @thatcryptodave! You have completed the following achievement on the Hive blockchain and have been rewarded with new badge(s):

You got more than 1500 replies.
Your next target is to reach 1750 replies.

You can view your badges on your board and compare yourself to others in the Ranking
If you no longer want to receive notifications, reply to this comment with the word STOP

Check out the last post from @hivebuzz:

Happy 6th Birthday to the Hive Community
Introducing NFT for Peace
0
0
0.000