Autor Cointelegraph By Dilip Kumar Patairya

How to earn passive crypto income with Bitcoin

Bitcoin (BTC), along with other cryptocurrencies, has provided people with a venue to earn passive income, making money without any active involvement. One doesn’t need to take unnecessary trading risks or spend time reading and analyzing reams of information. While the concept of passive earning isn’t new, cryptocurrency has undoubtedly added new dimensions to it. Concepts like compounding interest or reinvesting dividends are also applied in the cryptocurrency market, creating an ecosystem where one can earn passively.Let us discuss various ways to earn passive income with Bitcoin. This article includes interest accounts, lending, mining, trading and liquidity pool.Bitcoin interest accountsKeeping Bitcoin in a cryptocurrency savings account is similar to having regular savings accounts. These accounts offer fixed interest on the crypto assets deposited. One may choose flexible savings plans, which allow the depositor to withdraw assets whenever they wish or fixed savings plans, where the assets remain deposited for a predetermined period.Interest rates are usually higher when one deposits funds for a fixed-term than in a regular savings account. The tenure for fixed term deposits is considerably less than that of conventional bank accounts. On some protocols, there is no minimum deposit requirement as well.One can also rope in a financial adviser to implement investment strategies like dollar-cost averaging (DCA). The strategy involves investing the same amount of BTC in a target security regularly over a definite period, lowering their average cost per share and bringing down the impact of volatility on their cryptocurrency holdings.Bitcoin lendingBitcoin lending occurs when anyone holding BTC lends the cryptocurrency to borrowers through a centralized, decentralized or peer-to-peer (P2P) platform. In return, the borrowers pay daily, weekly or monthly interest. The lending platform usually takes a fee for the service.The three factors influencing the earnings are the total value of Bitcoin being lent, the duration of the loan and the interest rate. Users need to trust a third party for the Bitcoin lending infrastructure and terms on centralized lending platforms. Most platforms require users to deposit their BTC with the lending platform. While this brings expert-level help to users, their Bitcoin lies in the custody of platforms.On the other hand, no intermediaries are involved in decentralized lending platforms. Smart contracts automate the lending process, setting aside any human role. Interest rates are finalized autonomously, and the contract is executed once the relevant conditions are met.On P2P platforms, users can define their individual terms. For example, they can determine the interest rate and the amount of Bitcoin they want to lend. The platform’s role is to provide the necessary infrastructure for completing the deal, and they usually take a fee for their services.Bitcoin miningMining enables one to attain a reward for using computing power to secure the Bitcoin network. Bitcoin is a proof-of-work (PoW) protocol that requires the network participants to solve an arbitrary mathematical puzzle to prevent any unauthorized person or even an insider with mala fide intentions from initiating any changes detrimental to the network.In earlier days, users mined Bitcoin on regular PCs and then on general-purpose mining rigs. With the growth of the network, however, the complexity of mining increased, and miners were forced to use specially manufactured mining equipment called application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), which have integrated chips designed for mining.Miners could set up and maintain mining rigs to bring down their costs. Doing so, however, requires them to have the initial capital necessary along with some technical expertise as they need to maintain Bitcoin mining hardware. This has enabled people to mine Bitcoin without having to invest a great deal of money. Being part of a pool with a lot of computational power gives one a higher chance of generating a winning hash than miners who lack such advanced equipment. Bitcoin tradingAs is the case with all financial assets, the price of Bitcoin is influenced by the laws of supply and demand. Anyone holding BTC can take advantage of the inherent volatility of the cryptocurrency to make money with Bitcoin trading, either by going long or short. Going long refers to selling BTC when prices are going up while going short is the act of selling when prices are going down.To time the market precisely for making profits is practically impossible for anyone. The basic idea, when going long, however, is to buy BTC when one expects its price to go up and sell it later with a profit margin. For example, if BTC is trading at $20,000 and one guesses it could move to $25,000 or upward, they could buy Bitcoin or swap any other cryptocurrency with BTC, wait for the price to go up and then sell the cryptocurrency, making a clear profit of $5,000.A shorting strategy is usually implemented by traders when cryptocurrency prices go down. For instance, suppose the price is currently at $20,000, and the trader expects it to drop to $17,000. The trader may sell their BTC right away and later repurchase it when the prices get to the desired level, making a profit of $3,000. The shorting of Bitcoin can be done through its derivatives like futures and options. One could also participate in prediction markets for shorting Bitcoin.For simplifying trade and minimizing any chances of loss, exchanges allow one to place stop-limit orders. If the prices fall below a certain level, the system will execute the trade independently and limit the losses. To fully automate the trading of Bitcoin, one could use algorithmic trading. Pre-programmed trading instructions are issued based on time, volume and price. When the market triggers the set instructions by the trader, the software executes the orders. Bitcoin liquidity poolLiquidity pools, the lifeline of decentralized exchanges (DeXs), can also be a venue for anyone having BTC to make some passive earning. A Bitcoin liquidity pool refers to a digital pile of cryptocurrency locked in a smart contract, thus creating liquidity for quicker transactions.Users of various crypto platforms, called liquidity providers (LPs), are rewarded with a part of fees and incentives in exchange for the amount of liquidity they have supplied to the liquidity pool. They get paid in the form of LP tokens, which can be used across the decentralized finance (DeFi) ecosystem. UniSwap, SushiSwap and PancakeSwap are some popular DeFi exchanges.A liquidity pool has cryptocurrencies in pairs, such as BTC-USDT, ETH-USDC, etc. Here is an example to help understand how it works on SushiSwap, with one investing $5,000 in a BTC-USDC liquidity pool. The steps are:Keep tabs on the changing ecosystemAn ability to make passive income from Bitcoin enhances the value of one’s holdings. Investing in cryptocurrencies always has a risk quotient because of volatility. Still, a passive income enables one to make money steadily without active exposure to the sharp ups and downs in prices. Before deciding on how to make money with passive earning, one needs to do adequate research on expected returns, risk factors, etc.The cryptocurrency ecosystem is evolving, and new use cases for Bitcoin might emerge, making it imperative for one to keep a constant vigil on the emerging opportunities. Local regulatory sanctions are also an important aspect to consider. Cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin, are under the watch of regulatory authorities, and one needs to be aware of what they approve and disapprove.Purchase a licence for this article. Powered by SharpShark.

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What is Blocklords? And how to earn money playing it

Highly anticipated medieval strategy massively multiplayer online (MMO) game Blocklords is out, unraveling iconic characters, pitched battles and engrossing drama. A genre-defining grand strategy game of MetaKing Studio, Blocklords introduces players to a universe where players’ actions have a bearing on their characters, other players and the medieval world around them. A captivating multi-player play-to-earn (P2E) game, Blocklords gives players the freedom to play the way they want. It is a distinct world in which the players drive the story, deciding the destiny of their heroes with their playing skills. Blocklords is not only brimming with fun but also enables the players to earn money passively while immersing themselves in nerve-rattling actions like capturing enemy strongholds or winning a round of fencing. This article reveals information on Blocklords gameplay and how to earn from it, along with a string of other intriguing facts.Blocklords introductionBlocklords was released in October 2019 by Metaking Studios as a novel, historic-themed game. In 2022, Blocklords was released as the first MMO game, with the support of Seascape Network.The founders, David Johansson and Nicky Li, wanted to create a world in which each player had complete control over their heroes (characters representing players in the game) and could also earn a living while playing. As a play-to-earn crypto game, Blocklords gamifies the process of onboarding new players, creating heroes in line with the attributes they choose.How to play BlocklordsBlocklords offers a player-driven narrative designed for players of all sorts, enabling them to play the game as they like. In this play-to-earn strategy game, players are empowered to shape the world around them at any level, gain experiences of their choice and own their digital assets.Related: How will GameFi and P2E blockchain gaming evolve in 2022?Players start from being a Farmer, go up levels like Knights/Raiders, Lords/Ladies and could eventually become Kings/Queens, the highest level in the game. Whether a player chooses to enjoy the life of a King or Queen or wants to be a simple Farmer, Blocklords rolls out plenty of experiences for them as a unique grand strategy game. Players are free to choose a legacy of their own for their heroes and enjoy gaming the way they want.Blocklords gameplay has the following components:HeroesBlocklords characters are minted as heroes, digital assets belonging to the user on creation. Heroes feature unique individual stats and traits. As a player progresses in the game, their hero’s character evolves,ultimately determining their path. Gameplay choices available to a player depending on their role. A player’s utility in Blocklords depends on their efforts and in-game skill.As heroes have a limited lifespan, they must continue their legacy through ancestry. The dynasty feature on Blocklords enables a player to pass on their heroes’ unique traits and attributes to descendants. The feature enables heroes to live on regardless of their fate. The game also allows players to exchange heroes for coveted characters, adding to the thrill. FarmBlocklords universe requires a steady supply of resources to succeed. This supply is ensured by Farmers who undertake tasks like gathering, mining, processing and crafting different materials to create a currency. When a player joins Blocklords, they begin as a Farmer unless they are someone who owns a character. Farmers can choose a region, controlled by a Lord or Lady, in which to settle. Lords/Ladies form groups, compete in battles, the ultimate winner of which becomes King/Queen. Participating as a Farmer, players work, harvest and build houses on farms. One can rent additional Farmers from other players to get helping hands, but be mindful that they consume food too. To award bonuses to a village, one can house the hired hands in buildings.In farms, players have multiple ways to get rewards. These include managing animals and livestock, trading at markets and crafting better items than others. Cooperating with other gamers helps players to garner more rewards.FightPlayers who cultivate enough resources leave their farms and choose between becoming a Raider or a Knight. Raiders are mercenaries who attack Farmers at will, plunder the villages and steal resources from Lords. They have limited timeframes for these activities, but if the players play right, they can get great rewards.Knights are salaried associates of a Lord. Their duty is to defend Farmers and villages, and kill the Raiders they come across. Their valor against the Raiders brings them a handsome profit and enables them to rise through the ranks. A Knight with enough resources might then opt for a new role. RuleSuccessful players can assume the role of Lords and Ladies, with a unique set of functions and responsibilities. Lords and Ladies exercise control on large tracts of land. Their actions directly impact the region they rule. They collect taxes and resources from Farmers, pay salaries and rewards to Knights and develop infrastructure.Lords and Ladies use their resources such as Knights, Farmers, and land efficiently and build cities into dynamic centers of trade and commerce. They also have to secure their settlements from Raiders and rival Lords. Having capable Knights and Farmers is key to their success. They can also form alliances with other Lords and Ladies. ConquerLords and Ladies who conquer the path like no other can rise to the rank of King or Queen, the ultimate rank in Blocklords. The way they rule, fairly or with an iron fist, is upon the rulers. The crown is responsible for managing currency, trade agreements, armies and regions. A King or Queen might also start or participate in realm-altering wars.Maps in Blocklords are dynamic and change with the tides of war. The choices of a King or a Queen profoundly affect all their subjects. Because their decisions impact the universe in Blocklords at the highest level, so they must use their power wisely. Smart rulers use diplomacy when faced with challenges and engage in warfare only when they have no choice.How to earn on BlocklordsBlocklords is tailormade for hardcore game aficionados wanting to have a hair-splitting experience in a shared universe. Players can make money playing Blocklords and feeling the adrenaline rush. In-game heroes are economic assets in Blocklords, with the earnings coming from activities like fighting bandits, winning battles, supporting allies, farming and trading.Related: How blockchain games create entire economies on top of their gameplay?The game is a player-owned economy rewarding players regardless of their role. For instance, a player could collect unique items and trade them for a decent profit. Heroes who demonstrate impressive leadership skills and win battles get their hands on unique items that the players can immediately turn into earning opportunities. Tradable nonfungible tokens (NFT) heroes on Blocklords can be potentially sold in any marketplace. Blocklords gameplay enables players to import NFTs in the game and launch battles to conquer territory. Leveraging their playing skills, they level up their heroes, send the NFTs outside the game and then sell them on any decentralized marketplace.Crowns (CWS) is an ERC-20 token used to purchase items within Blocklords. CWS token was introduced by Seascape Network, an incentivized ecosystem of gamers, developers and influencers. Every recharge within the game is distributed among all tokenholders as dividends, a feature that is termed Paywave. Ten percent of the total supply of 10,000,000 CWS has been earmarked for the community.Future of BlocklordsStrategy games have dedicated pools of gamers. From the ancient game of chess to Blocklords, strategy games have infused the domain with thrill and competition. The emergence of blockchain has led to a scenario where games exist with a user-driven economy and players can generate a passive income from their in-game activities.Blocklords gamifies strategy-making and playing at a grand scale. What makes the game astounding is that both the novice and experienced can enjoy the game to the hilt. They begin as Farmers, and as they gain skills and experience, they go through the levels like Knights/Raiders, Lords/Ladies, and ultimately Kings/Queens.Throughout the journey, the gamers learn social skills like team building and engagement, so Blocklords not just brings in a scintillating thrill of battles but also helps one learn some life-enhancing stuff. Due to its multiple features, Blocklords can be considered the standard and torchbearer for the upcoming strategy games.Purchase a licence for this article. Powered by SharpShark.

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Who accepts Ethereum as payment?

Taking payment in Ethereum brings in a gamut of advantages for both users and entrepreneurs. Transitioning to a blockchain-based ecosystem brings in a string of advantages for users as well as entrepreneurs. Here is a drop-down detailing why accepting payment in Ethereum works well for the customers of an enterprise: Additional payment option In a world that is fast adopting cryptocurrencies, providing customers with an additional payment option gives businesses an advantage over their competitors. Cryptocurrency gateways enable merchants to accept digital payments and receive the amount in fiat. Transparency A decentralized ecosystem is inherently transparent, giving customers more confidence while making the purchase. Crypto transactions get executed on a blockchain where they are written irrevocably, without any prejudice of a centralized authority. Less fraud Ethereum transactions in such purchases get routed through a smart contract, making fraudulent activities less likely. When smart contracts are audited, scamsters have negligible chances of succeeding. Quick transactions  Global transactions in Ethereum are considerably quicker, compared to conventional international payments. Crypto transactions get executed in minutes, while fiat transactions routed through banks might take days to reflect in the account. Enterprises too have a set of strong reasons to begin accepting ETH. Finality Finality refers to a transaction’s status when it is part of a block that cannot change. In Ethereum, conventionally working on proof-of-work (PoW) consensus algorithm, the average time for achieving finality is six minutes (25 confirmations) while the average time to mine a single block is 15 seconds. This is considerably lower than Bitcoin (BTC), the largest cryptocurrency, which takes 60 minutes (six confirmations) to attain finality with the average time of 10 seconds to mine a block. When the Merge (the implementation of Ethereum’s consensus layer) is complete, the time it takes for an ETH transaction to reach finality will further decrease. Data coordination  Ethereum has a decentralized architecture designed to allocate information and trust without prejudice, eliminating any need for a central entity to coordinate data. The decentralized system seamlessly manages the system and processes transactions. Incentive layer  The ecosystem facilitates the development of mechanisms that reward supportive activities like verification and availability, while punishing activities that negatively affect the blockchain and surrounding mechanism. Incentives to promote honest behavior help to meet security requirements. Tokenization  Any asset that has been registered in a digital format can be tokenized on Ethereum. Tokenization helps fractionalize previously cumbersome assets such as real estate, which had become simply too expensive and unravel new economic models such as crowdsourced data management. Decentralized domain  Merchants with no prior exposure to crypto assets could find it overwhelming to send and receive cryptocurrencies. Crypto wallet addresses are a long string of digits and letters. Moreover, one requires a different address to collect each cryptocurrency payment. Thanks to the Ethereum Name Service (ENS), users can create a universal nickname for all their public addresses. Rather than using an unreadable array of keys for receiving crypto payments, they could have a single ENS domain, like ‘Joseph.eth.’

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What is a decentralized money market and how does it work?

The seamless flow of capital between borrowers and lenders is a key aspect of a vibrant economy. Anyone with an extra asset can lend it to put their idle capital to work, while people needing it to grow business or meet operational costs can easily access it.Money markets are the platforms where borrowers and lenders can meet. Throughout history, money markets have been generators of economic activities. Though the structure of money markets has altered with time, their role has remained unchanged.How does the money market work?Conventionally, money markets were centralized structures facilitating the deals between lenders and borrowers. Borrowers would approach money markets to get a short-term loan (under a year) that might be collateralized. If the borrowers can’t pay back their loans, the lenders can sell the collateral to recover the loaned funds. When the loan is repaid, the collateral is returned.Borrowers are required to pay interest to the lenders (for providing them working capital) and a fee to the money market (for facilitating the deal). The interest rate provides adequate liquidity for borrowers as well as lenders. The fee paid to the money market helps them meet their operating expenses.There is a problem with centralized structure, though. It simply puts too much power and influence regarding user funds in the hands of a single entity that can change the terms and conditions for other stakeholders in an arbitrary manner. Worse, they can even siphon off the funds in their custody gains. A decentralized structure provides a robust alternative to centralized money markets.What is a decentralized money market?Working atop a blockchain, a decentralized money market is a self-propelled structure run by a smart contract, a software program. Once it is running, a smart contract cannot be interfered with, thus making it free of human prejudices.Managed by a global community of stakeholders through a highly decentralized network of nodes, the market rules out any role for intermediaries. In popular lingo, the money market is placed under the domain of decentralized finance (DeFi).Related: The DeFi Stack: Stablecoins, exchanges, synthetics, money markets, and insuranceLet’s understand the functioning of a decentralized money market through an example. Fringe Finance ($FRIN) is a decentralized money market that unlocks the dormant capital in all-tier cryptocurrency assets by rolling out collateralized loans. The platform facilitates decentralized lending and borrowing. Fringe Finance is a primary lending platform where anyone can lend extra funds and earn interest or collateralize altcoins to take a stablecoin loan. As mentioned, decentralized finance lenders and borrowers operate through on-chain programmatic code controlled by decentralized nodes, thus ending the monopoly of a single entity in control and reducing the points of failure. Here are a few benefits that decentralized money markets bring in:PermissionlessIn a decentralized environment, users don’t need to ask permission from a central authority before engaging in any money market activity. Anyone online can earn interest on their capital and/or borrow funds for their needs seamlessly. The decentralized protocols have an inherent censorship-resistant structure.NoncustodialIn centralized money markets, users’ funds lie in the custody of the central gatekeeper. However, DeFi protocols like money markets are noncustodial, and funds are directly in the control of borrowers and lenders. On-chain smart contracts, running on pre-defined logic, assure funds that cannot be compromised while users have full control on them.OvercollateralizedCentralized financial markets have usually functioned in an undercollateralized and fractional reserve manner. These markets, under peer pressure to gain more business, allow borrowers to withdraw more funds than what they have deposited as collateral. Decentralized money markets follow overcollateralization, bringing stability to the system. The smart contract simply liquidates the collateral of the borrowers who fail to pay back the debts.ComposabilityComposability is a design principle that allows for components of a system to interoperate with one another. Various applications and protocols can interact seamlessly in a permissionless way. DeFi apps are composable, creating a blank canvas with endless possibilities for novel mechanisms like yield extraction and complex derivatives.How upcoming decentralized money markets are stepping into unexplored territoryIn the initial years of DeFi, money market protocols were tilted in favor of better known cryptocurrencies with large market capitalizations and high liquidity. Upcoming money markets, however, are looking to try new models. Fringe Finance, for instance, focuses on altcoins having smaller market capitalizations and lower liquidity. Most DeFi money market protocols do not support altcoins and this is where Fringe Finance moves in.Related: What is an altcoin? A beginner’s guide to cryptocurrencies beyond BitcoinAs altcoins apply to a niche use case, they tend to be more speculative than large cap digital coins. However, as few decentralized finance lenders and borrowers were catering to such altcoins, the capital locked in them had gone untapped. Despite that, Fringe Finance has altered this scenario. Please be aware that altcoins are inherently more volatile, which does bring in some associated stability risks that the potential of profit can balance.How does an altcoin money market maintain financial stability?To neutralize volatility in altcoins, the money market protocol uses a slew of borrowing parameters and relevant mechanisms. Let’s continue the Fringe Finance example to better understand it. The parameters applied by Fringe Finance include a platform-wide maximum borrowing capacity for each collateral asset and automated computation of the LVR (loan to value ratio). For adequate implementation of these mechanisms, the system takes into account the asset’s available liquidity, historic volatility and other non-subjective metrics. The platform offers a sustained model of economic incentives for all participants like lenders, borrowers, altcoin projects, stablecoin holders, stakers and liquidators. For instance, it rolls out incentives for liquidators to help stabilize the platform like allowing native $FRIN token holders to stake coins to earn rewards from fees. To widen its operational base, a DeFi money market could include cross-chain collateralization, lending against NFTs, fixed-interest loans, embedded insurance and a decentralized UI as the platform grows.The future of decentralized money marketsIn an environment where people have become wary of self-serving biases in centralized money markets, the DeFi protocols have given them a lucrative option. The latter usually provides governance rights to all holding native coins and presents a blockchain-based ecosystem in its true decentralized ethos.Similar to the money markets that used to focus on popular cryptocurrency projects with significant market capitalization, novel projects are now focusing on altcoins, unlocking the value stored there. Going forward, it can be expected that upcoming DeFi money market protocols will explore territories previously untouched.

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