There are many more ways to earn money in the crypto space than just by HODLing — check out our list here.
If you’re like most people involved in the cryptocurrency space, then you’re likely exploring ways to maximize the amount of cryptocurrency you earn.
Whether it be by leveraging the numerous new blockchain-based protocols to unlock additional revenue streams or finding the best ways to put your idle funds to work and earn a yield, it can be a daunting task to stay abreast of all the best opportunities available.
You’ve probably dabbled with sharing your various referral links (referral marketing) and found that it’s just not for you. Maybe simply sticking your funds in a cryptocurrency savings account isn’t quite lucrative enough.
Well, we’ve got four unusual ways to earn a yield using blockchain-based platforms — many of which may be completely new to you and can be quite lucrative under the right conditions.
Join an Altcoin Launchpad
The cryptocurrency market is brimming with opportunities. Major cryptocurrencies often experience impressive returns during a bull market and even many lesser-known coins see considerable growth.
But there’s nothing better than being first. First in the sense that it’s often possible to invest in most blockchain projects well before they list on public exchanges (often at a sizable discount too). The simplest way to achieve this is through so-called launchpads — platforms that democratize access to potentially promising early-stage investment opportunities.
There’s now essentially a launchpad for every blockchain, but we’ll focus on a single option: Solanium.
As a launchpad dedicated to the Solana blockchain, Solanium is well-positioned as an entry route to gain exposure to some of the most promising early-stage projects launching in the Solana ecosystem.
The way it works is simple. By staking SLIM tokens and holding xSLIM, you become a tier holder on the platform. Your tier then determines how you participate in IDOs launched through Solanium. Tiers 1, 2 and 3 (100, 1000, and 5000 xSLIM respectively) participate in a lottery to potentially win an allocation, whereas those in tier 4 and 5 (10,000 and 50,000 xSLIM respectively) get a guaranteed allocation.
If you are an investor looking for early-stage gems, launchpads like Solanium represent an incredibly efficient way to cut through the thicket of duds to find genuinely promising projects. So far, every launch on Solanium has performed incredibly well (e.g. Port Finance and Cyclos), making the overall risk of a net negative return exceedingly low. (This is not financial advice.)
Sell Your Data
When using or browsing the internet, one thing is almost certain — your data is being harvested.
Whether it’s your browsing habits, your shopping history, your favorite videos or something else, websites are set up to collect, sort and sell your data wherever possible. This is one of the primary revenue streams for many websites, despite the fact that this practice rarely provides any value for the end-user.
Thanks to the advent of blockchain technology and a clever hardware solution, a new platform known as Cirus is flopping this model on its head — allowing you to selectively monetize the data you generate while using the internet.
The platform comes in three main parts, a plugin, a marketplace and an optional full-featured router. These allow you to configure exactly which types of data you are comfortable with being collected and aggregated into datasets that will be sold on the Cirus marketplace. When these data sets are purchased, you receive payment in the form of CIRUS tokens.
Cirus’ hardware-based router is an entirely optional component that can be purchased separately or unlocked as a reward by using the platform. It allows you to maximize the amount of data you can collect and sell, significantly boosting the income the platform generates for you.
If you spend a lot of time online, Cirus could be an attractive way to generate a side income with little to no additional work.
Earn While Playing Games
For the gamers out there, it might be time to start paying attention to the rapidly evolving play to earn sector — which, as its name suggests, includes a variety of games that allow you to earn while playing.
Depending on your skill and luck, as well as the amount of time, investment and effort you are willing to put into the game, some of these games can be a lucrative revenue stream for players. Generally, early adopters tend to benefit most, but many continue to provide an attractive source of income even to newer, less established players.
Most of the time, these rewards will come in the form of project tokens and in-game non-fungible assets, which can then be traded and sold for a yield.
In the last year, the play to earn space has exploded with popularity, and there are now dozens of games that provide play to earn functionality. Though Axie Infinity is without a doubt the best-known title, it has a relatively high barrier to entry (due to the costs incurred by purchasing the NFTs needed to play), making it a challenge to get started.
A wide variety of other play to earn games feature a much lower barrier to entry, such as Plant vs Undead, My Neighbor Alice, Monsta Infinite and Metalands — but still vary considerably in the potential yield you can earn. We’ve compiled a list of potentially promising options, but also recommend staying on top of newer releases if you want to maximize your profits.
Share Insurance Risk
In case you’re not aware yet, insurance isn’t just available from traditional insurance providers — there is now a range of blockchain-powered insurance platforms available which provide insurance for decentralized services.
It’s now possible to take out insurance against practically any potential risk, whether that be smart contract exploits, insider theft, stablecoin depegs, rug pulls and more. Depending on the expected odds of such an event, the insurance premium can range from rather high to extremely low.
Being decentralized, these platforms use pooled user funds to back this insurance coverage. If any of the conditions covered in a policy taker’s insurance plan are met, these funds are then used to pay out their claims.
As you might have already noticed, this provides a potential revenue stream for those looking to take on insurance risk. Many platforms, including Nexus Mutual, InsurAce, Bridge Mutual and more allow users to contribute funds to the platform to earn a share of the premiums paid by cover takers.
Now, you might think this is incredibly risky — after all, you could lose money if there are enough paid out claims. While this might be true for more risky coverage options, these platforms generally allow you to contribute liquidity only to specific covers/plans. This means if you believe a platform has essentially zero risk of suffering any sort of attack/breach, then you can make an almost risk-free profit.
That said, the riskier plans tend to offer a higher yield — if you’ve got the risk appetite for it.
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