Since putting together the FAQ a while back, we've seen significant changes to the Steem ecosystem and have had many new users join us, so I think an update is overdue. Given that the full document is 56 pages long, I'm breaking it up into smaller sections so it's not overwhelming for readers. I'll be updating and posting it one part at a time. Included in this post is "Money."

My following posts will include the categories:

• Posting
• Voting
• Security
• Technical Questions
• Other

If you have any questions about Steem, let me know and I'll try to get them answered or add them to the updated FAQ.

Money

How can I invest in Steemit?

For clarity, you would be investing in Steem the system, not Steemit the company.

You can invest by purchasing or earning STEEM and Steem Power. Investing in Steem Power is similar to buying restricted shares of a company, or in this case, the Steem blockchain. Increase your Steem Power and you’ll have more influence on the network (with a more powerful vote). You also have the option to invest your time to earn Steem Power by commenting, curating and posting.
See: How do I get more Steem Power?

How do I get more Steem Power?

If you have Steem Dollars, you can convert them to STEEM from your wallet. Once you have STEEM in your wallet, click Power Up to turn it into Steem Power.

If you don’t already have STEEM or Steem Dollars in your wallet, you’ll first need some Bitcoin or another cryptocurrency. You may purchase Bitcoin on various exchanges. A couple popular Bitcoin exchanges are Coinbase.com, and Localbitcoins.com. Once you have your bitcoin:

• Click the three horizontal lines in the top right corner of Steemit.com
• Click “Buy Steem”
• Send the amount you want to purchase to the address on the screen.

Here are a few other tutorials on how to buy Steem and transfer it to Steemit:
https://steemit.com/steem-tutorials/@psylains/steem-tutorials-2-how-to-buy-steem-and-transfer-them-to-steemit

How do I withdraw money?

You can withdraw money many ways. Here are step-by-step tutorials for several different options:

Sell Steem Dollars via Poloniex

https://steemit.com/steemit/@ash/steemit-how-to-sell-steem-dollars-via-poloniex-newbie-friendly

Withdraw Steem Dollars to a bitcoin address

https://steemit.com/steem-help/@piedpiper/how-to-withdraw-your-steem-dollars-in-less-that-a-minute

Convert Steem Dollars to a country’s currency and withdraw to a bank account

https://steemit.com/tutorial/@beanz/how-to-get-my-usdteemit-money-into-my-bank-account

Convert Steem Dollars to bitpay debit card (USA ONLY)

Convert Steem Dollars to WIREX debit card (USD EURO & GBP Supported)

https://steemit.com/money/@b0y2k/convert-your-steem-dollars-to-physical-money-to-spend-or-withdraw-anywhere

Convert STEEM to many other cryptocurrencies via ShapeShift

https://steemit.com/steemit/@shapeshiftio/official-announcement-shapeshift-has-added-steem-to-the-exchange

Why should I Power Up and not cash out?

Everyone has different priorities. Some may want to power up to increase their voting influence and curation rewards. Others may want to cash out. It’s strictly a personal choice.

If you believe Steemit has the potential for significant growth, you might think it wise to power up. Not only will you immediately gain more influence in the network, but it also has the potential to increase in value.

Consider this, if Coca-Cola decides they want influence on Steemit so they can promote company-related posts, they will have to purchase a significant amount of Steem Power to do so. In this hypothetical example, Coca-Cola alone will increase the price of Steem significantly. Now, imagine if dozens of companies followed suit.

Is it true that payout money is coming from new investment in Steem?

It is highly misleading to say so. When someone cashes out, he effectively decreases his investment in Steem. At the same time, another individual increases his investment in Steem. Therefore, it is not fair to only mention the "new investment" and skip the fact that simultaneously a current investment ceases to exist.

Payout money is always in the form of Steem tokens. For your convenience, and to hedge against price volatility, those tokens are packaged as Steem Dollars and STEEM when the blockchain pays you.

STEEM has value since they are like shares in an enterprise which has a real market value. When you cash out, you sell those tokens (shares), and somebody else buys them from you. Therefore, these are just shares of a company changing hands: one person exits, the other takes their place.

Let's consider an example: If Mark Zuckerberg wanted, he could reward the most popular Facebook pages with shares of the Facebook. Those users could then cash out by selling their shares, and somebody would surely buy them. This hypothetical scenario is akin to the daily happenings in Steem, just on a different scale.

What determines the price of STEEM?

Much like how the price of a stock goes up and down, the value of STEEM varies, determined by buyers and sellers on exchanges.

Will I make a profit by powering up?

Powering up does not ensure that you will automatically earn a profit. Profit is contingent on how the price of Steem changes over a given period as well as how much Steem Power you earn as a content creator or curator.

Powering up (converting STEEM to Steem Power)

• Increases voting power and curation rewards
• Protects against dilution (15% protection compared to the running inflation rate)

How do I send money to another user?

• Click on your avatar to get the drop-down menu, and select ‘Wallet.’
• Click the down arrow where your STEEM or Steem Dollars are displayed
• In the drop-down menu, click ‘Transfer.’
• In the box ‘To’, type in the username of the account you want to send the STEEM/Steem Dollars to.
• Type your password to authenticate.
• Check your history to confirm your transfer.
  https://steemit.com/steem/@steemrollin/steemit-how-to-send-another-user-steem-dollars

What are fees for transferring money between Steem’s three currencies and between other users?

There are never any fees for transfers within the Steem network. However, if you transfer Steem to an exchange and convert it to another currency, you will incur a small fee.

What are Vests?

To put it simply, Vests are your investment tokens whose value is represented by Steem Power. Steem Power is akin to Steem held in a fund. Vests are Shares in that fund.
https://steemit.com/steem-help/@hisnameisolllie/what-are-vests

Please let me know if you see anything here that's inaccurate or misleading. Follow me to see the rest of my FAQ updates in the coming days. Posting is the next category I'll be taking on.