In Nigeria, whenever people think about cryptocurrencies, they think about sophisticated trading charts and stressful technical analyses used by day traders. Trading is very popular in Nigeria because it is the fastest way to flip little money into big money by leveraging the market's volatility. However, in this article, I will be discussing alternative ways you can earn cryptocurrency without subjecting yourself to the fast-paced world of crypto trading.
If you're someone like me that lives in Nigeria but can't keep up with the volatile pace of the market, but still wants to earn from crypto then this is for you. In this guide, I'll be discussing different ways you can earn crypto and earn passively from your cryptocurrency.
The crypto ban in the country has adversely affected related activities in the country. The introduction of the ban added an extra layer of difficulty in accessing and swapping crypto to fiat, thus making crypto a bit more risky for a Nigerian.
Despite new information of the government potentially lifting the ban, financial institutions still don't transact crypto. This has led to the use of alternative measures to facilitate crypto-fiat transactions, and while largely successful, it comes with its own risk.
Knowing that there's a way to swap your crypto to Naira and vice versa increases the confidence people have in digital assets and allows them to invest. However, a lot of no coiners get into the scene with the gambler's mindset and think they'll just "buy Bitcoin" and be rich.
Every time people ask me about crypto, it always revolves around how much money I make from trading and speculating in the market. To be honest, I don't think I've made more than $200(100,000 naira) from day trading but what if I told you that my portfolio has steadily grown in the last three years without bringing in money from outside?
First of all, I'm officially regarded as an unemployed person, so I don't have an earning to put into cryptocurrency anyway. In fact, according to my calculations, 95% of my portfolio was generated online.
Generated online? As in you print money? Well, yes, I kind of do. I've been able to dramatically improve my life through making strategic investments in various crypto projects that earn me residual income that covers all my expenses. Here are a couple of ways that I earn crypto without Trading;
Incentivised Social Media
Over the years, social media has grown into an industry that rakes in billions of dollars annually. Companies like Facebook, and Twitter have dominated the industry by monetizing data and generating "algorithms" that track users' data to give them an "improved experience".
In the process, the companies have also been selling this "optimized data" to advertisement companies and that's why the ads that pop up on your screen are always about some interests of yours. Incentivised social media came into the scene to take power from these big corporations and given it back to the people.
Now you can earn from your data and information you post on social media. Here are some platforms where Nigerians can get paid for their social media activities;
Hive.blog/Peakd
Hive blockchain is what I like to call a social blockchain and on it, there are thousands of Nigerians taking control of their data and information. This is a platform where Nigerians blog, interact with each other, and receive rewards through "upvotes".
On Hive, upvotes simply mean "liking" a post, and the value of upvotes is dependent on the amount of hive staked. On Hive-based platforms like Peakd, Hive.blog and many others, users can monetize their data by simply participating in the social media platforms like every other day.
You earn crypto called hive and HBD from your upvotes that you can trade for Bitcoin, Usdt, and many other cryptocurrencies on exchanges like Binance, Bittrex, Huobi, and many others. It is one of the easiest ways for a Nigerian to earn cryptocurrencies without trading.
Leofinance
Leofinance is a front-end on Hive but it gets its own separate mention because it is also a big company that has developed a number of applications that enable its users to earn money.
Creating a Leofinance account is also free and there are many Nigerians using the platform. Unlike other Hive front-ends, Leofinance is designed to accommodate posts that are centered around cryptocurrency, blockchain, money, investment, business, and generally anything that has to do with money. You also earn from upvotes and earn from using it as a traditional social network.
Here is how to create a Leofinance account for free;
- Step 1: go to leofinance.io
- Step 2: Click on signup
- Step 3: Pick a username
- Step 4: Very important: back up your password because it can never be retrieved
- Step 5: Start blogging and enjoying social media to make friends and earn upvotes from them.
Torum
Torum is a short content platform with topics that are similar to Leofinance. So on Torum, you make short content like Twitter and also interact with people. You earn XTM from your posts and while it may not be traded right now, it will in the coming months. Torum is also free to join but there's no mobile application.
Other than these mentioned, there are multitudes of incentivized social network platforms where you can earn crypto. You don't have to be a day trader to earn these cryptos in Nigeria and with these few, or more, you can also start your journey in crypto without any financial investment.
Staking and Liquidity pools rewards
In crypto terms, staking is a term that basically depicts a situation where you lock up a token or coin to earn either hourly, daily, weekly or monthly rewards. There are a number of platforms that enable you to earn staking rewards and I will mention a few.
- Travala: It is a travel agency that enables users to pay for bookings, accommodation, and various activities with crypto. I wrote about it here and discussed the investment opportunities. If you stake AVA, the token of the company, you earn monthly rewards in AVA at a specified percentage
- Hive staking: If you stake Hive and hold it in your wallet, you earn 3% interest for holding it in your wallet. On top of the 3%, your staked Hive also enables you to earn for simply "liking" content on the platform.
Liquidity pool staking: On various liquidity pools like Cubfinance and Pancake swap, you can stake either tokens or farms to earn rewards from the pool. Different pools have a different amount of rewards.
Here is to stake coins and tokens on Cubfinance
- Step 1: Setup a Binance Smart Chain wallet and then connect it.
- Step 2: Locate the tokens or farms you will like to stake
- Step 3: Send tokens to your BSC wallet address
- Step 4: Stake tokens or farms and start earning rewards.
There are a plethora of staking and token lock-up options that enable you to earn from staking. After staking, you can decide to restake your earnings or simply convert it to Naira and use it for your normal expenses.
Crypto Gaming
Another way that Nigerians have been earning crypto without actively trading is through blockchain games like Splinterlands and Rabona. Other than these two games, there a many games that you can play to earn rewards in form of tokens and even NFTs that you can easily sell on the market and exchange for Naira.
If you want to start earning crypto through gaming, here is how to start your journey through a Splinterlands lens.
- Step 1: Create a Hive account
- Step 2: Go to splinterlands.com or m.splinterlands.io on your mobile
- Step 3: login with your Hive account username and posting key
- Step 4: Pay a startup fee of $10 and that's it, you can now start playing, and earning for winning.
This means that you get to have fun and earn some residual income through gaming. To me, this is one of the fun ways to earn crypto and I encourage everyone in Nigeria to give it a shot because it can be very rewarding due to our unique situation with Naira.
Other opportunities
There are still other ways for Nigerians to earn cryptocurrencies without actively trading. Some of them include;
Minting NFT Art
This basically means making a piece of art and then tokenizing it on a specific blockchain. After you create the art, you can sell it in a marketplace. Out of the lot, the cheapest showroom to advertise and sell your art is NFTShowroom on Hive blockchain.
Airdrop
Different crypto projects give our cryptocurrencies and other rewards for free. Airdrops often have some requirements that might require registration, sharing on social media, or something of that nature. However, once you perform the required task, you earn free tokens and can easily exchange them for Naira if you please.
In Summary
The point of this post is to show people that it is possible to earn from cryptocurrencies without trading. I have spent the best part of the last three years earning from these methods mentioned above and that has sustained me through out the period.
Cryptocurrency trading is very stressful and fast-paced, so I don't encourage a newbie to delve into that part. It is the fastest way to earn but also the fastest way to lose your money. If you're not knowledgeable in trading, then I encourage Nigerians to consider using any of these methods to earn crypto and from their cryptocurrency.
