Staking is a way to earmark, or quite literally lock up, crypto holdings for a period of time and earn rewards like interest for doing so. Staking is contributing to the process of creating new blocks on the blockchain, and the amount you earn is commensurate with the amount you stake.
The list of staking cryptocurrencies is only growing, especially as gaming projects begin to enter the fray, giving players yet another potential income stream. Some of the popular staking coins include:
So far, tens of billions of dollars have poured into the Ethereum staking contract even though the cryptocurrency’s transition to PoS is not yet complete. There is a 32 ETH minimum to become what’s known as a full validator, and each coin is currently trading at about $3,600.
Terra, the symbol for which is LUNA, is another cryptocurrency that can be staked. LUNA is the native cryptocurrency on the Terra network, which is a blockchain network for payments and creating stablecoins that are pegged to fiat money like the U.S. dollar and South Korean won.
is a rival blockchain to Ethereum whose native cryptocurrency is also proof-of-stake. That means you can earn passive income by staking Solana for locking up your coins for a while.
Cryptocurrency prices are inherently volatile, and there’s no way to predict exactly what will happen in 2022. If 2021 is any indication, however, DeFi could be the place to be yet again in the new year. As with any investment, be sure and do your own research (DYOR).