A complete video guide on how to cash out from Steemit (converting SBD to GBP, but works for other currencies too!)

Hi Steemians.

I've only been part of the Steemit community for around 3 weeks, and I've found the experience very user friendly and straightforward.

But when it comes to how to cash out from steem-backed dollars (SBD) to real world currency (it's fancy name is fiat currency, stuff like pounds and dollars) that's when things get really confusing. Although this video and accompanying guide is specifically about converting to GBP, it also applies to other currencies. It'll make more sense once you watch the video.

Before I go on, I want to clarify something. It's great to keep steem inside Steemit. Not only does this increase your influence when you power up to Steem Power, it's an investment in the future of the platform itself. Personally I'm splitting 50/50 between steem power (SP) and SBD/Steem.

I'm a freelancer so I need a steady cashflow; that's why I will be taking some of my SBD and cashing out to pounds sterling.

To convert SBD to GBP I used two external sites:

Bittrex.com
Cryptopay.me

I set up a free account for each site. Note that Cryptopay has a virtual/ATM card you can buy, but you don't need this if you just want to send money straight to your bank account.

My Bittrex account was fairly quick to set up. For Cryptopay I uploaded an HD photo of my passport and a PDF of my latest bank statement in order to validate my account. This took under an hour though it can take longer. There are loads of other sites you can use, but a bit of research suggested these were popular and trustworthy.

Here are the stages involved in cashing out:

1. Transfer SBD from your Steemit wallet to your Bittrex account
2. Sell your SBD for Bitcoin (BTC) via Bittrex
3. Transfer your BTC from Bittrex into your Cryptopay account (this will automatically convert your BTC into GBP)
4. Send your GBP balance to your UK bank account

A confusing quirk of Cryptopay is that when you add a GBP bank account you only have the option to transfer money in Euros (EUR). I go into more details in the video. You will get GBP at the end of the process but there is a conversion charge of just under 1%. This is on top of a flat rate 1% conversion fee for exchanging BTC into GBP. Also, there's a transaction charge for converting SBD to BTC in stage 2, but none of the fees are really that high imo.

Please note, I'm not an expert in Steemit or cryptocurrency and I don't have a background (or particular interest) in trading and investing. I'm just an artist looking to be rewarded for my creative works and to help others where I can.

If there is an easier or cheaper way to do any of this, please let me know in comments. If I've made any errors, let me know. I made this video and wrote this post because I couldn't find a comprehensive guide to cashing out from Steemit. So I decided to help others learn from my experience. I hope you find it useful.

If you have any questions, let me know in comments and I'l try and answer them all the best I can.

Your humble steemian,

@thebigdelay

P.S, It took me around 7 hours, all told, to film and edit the video (adding the blurs took AGES) and write the accompanying post, and that was after 2 week's research into the topic. If you found this post helpful, please upvote it and resteem it to your followers. Thanks for your support :)

Update: I've just been informed the minimal withdrawal limit from Cryptopay is €10. FYI!