Forbes Advisor has provided this content for educational reasons only and not to help you decide whether or not to invest in cryptocurrency. Should you decide to invest in cryptocurrency or in any other investment, you should always obtain appropriate financial advice and only invest what you can afford to lose.

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Floki Inu (FLOKI) started life as a memecoin based on the name of Elon Musk’s new Shiba Inu dog. However, it has since evolved into a fully-fledged cryptocurrency, spanning decentralised finance, non-fungible tokens (NFTs) and the metaverse.

Floki is a multi-chain token that runs on the Ethereum blockchain and the Binance Smart Chain (BSC) network. This means that Floki holders can use either blockchain to store and use their tokens.

One Floki is currently worth around £0.00003 and there are 10 trillion tokens in circulation.

A tax of 0.3% is charged on buying and selling Floki tokens but not on the transfer between the two chains. These funds should be used to develop an NFT gaming metaverse and marketplace, together with an education platform.

Floki is looking to compete with other memecoins but remains smaller than many of its peers. Its current market capitalisation is £260 million, compared to £5 billion and £8 billion respectively for Dogecoin and Shiba Inu.

As with other cryptocurrencies, Floki is a highly volatile asset. The UK’s financial watchdog, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), advises potential cryptocurrency investors that they should be prepared to lose all of their money.

Remember: investment in any cryptocurrency is speculative and all your capital is at risk. You could lose some or all of your money. Cryptocurrency trading in the UK is unregulated and you will have no recourse to compensation if something goes wrong.

However, if investors are aware of the risks and still considering buying Floki, the step-by-step process is set out below.

1. Choose a crypto exchange

Investors will need to buy Floki using a crypto exchange where buyers and sellers meet to exchange currencies. 

There is a wide choice of exchanges, from mainstream exchanges (such as eToro and Coinbase) to many smaller exchanges. We’ve produced a guide to our pick of the best crypto exchanges in the UK.

It is worth comparing the following features:

• Payment methods: whether the exchange accepts a preferred payment method and any associated fees. Many exchanges don’t accept PayPal, for example, and some may charge 3.99% for debit or credit card payments.
• Integrated wallet: whether the exchange offers an integrated wallet to securely hold Floki. If investors prefer a third-party wallet, they should check if withdrawals are allowed and whether any fees apply.

•  Currencies traded: check that Floki can be traded on the exchange in question.

2. Choose a payment method

Bank transfers tend to be the most widely-accepted and cost-effective way to pay for cryptocurrency. Although many exchanges accept debit and credit cards, they typically charge a high fee of around 3.99%. Very few exchanges accept PayPal, and fees are also charged for this form of payment.

Investors should avoid relying on credit to pay for cryptocurrency as it’s not advisable to take on debt to pay for a volatile investment such as crypto. In addition, card issuers may treat the payment as a cash advance (rather than a regular purchase) and charge a higher rate of interest on the transaction.

3. Place the order

The next step is to navigate to the Floki page on the website or app and enter the amount to be invested.

4. Choose a storage method

Many exchanges have integrated wallets in which to store Floki, but investors may prefer to store it in a third party wallet. If the exchange allows transfers out (for which they may charge a fee), there is the choice of a ‘hot’ or ‘cold’ wallet.

A cold wallet is a physical storage device (like a hard drive or flash drive) that isn’t automatically connected to the internet, whereas a hot wallet is a virtual wallet held online. There is a trade-off between ease of access and security for these wallets.

Cold wallets are more secure in terms of hacking but can only be accessed by the individual. This means that investors would be unable to access their crypto if the access key was lost or  forgotten. 

Hot wallets are less secure against hackers as they’re held online, but the wallet provider may be able to offer assistance if individuals lose the access codes to wallets.

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Cryptocurrency is unregulated in the UK. The UK regulator, the Financial Conduct Authority, has repeatedly warned investors that they risk losing all their money if they buy cryptocurrency, with no possibility of compensation.