Staking Pool

Crypto staking pool explained

Let's look at the concept of a stacking pool using the most popular Ethereum network as an example. But first, we define staking.

What is staking?

Staking is the process of assigning a certain amount of tokens to the blockchain's governance architecture and thereby locking them out of circulation for a predetermined duration.

The protocol of a specific network secures an investor's holdings, comparable to placing money in a bank and agreeing not to withdraw it for a given length of time, which helps the network in a couple of ways.

What is crypto staking pool?

Crypto staking is similar to depositing money in a bank, in that an investor locks up their assets, and in exchange, earns rewards, or "interest."

The mining pools concept might be familiar to many from Bitcoin, where computing power is combined and increases the probability of mining a block, then dividing the coins according to the efficiency of each participant. The PoS algorithm allows the same trick, only instead of processors or video cards, coins are pooled together to form a Proof of Stake pool.

In the Ethereum 2.0 blockchain, the minimum entry amount to participate in Proof of Stake (PoS) validation is 32 ETH. By pooling efforts, users can profit from staking without complicated organizational training for the role of a validator. Staking pools allow anyone to interact with validators and lock in some crypto to work with them, making gains and paying only a tiny commission for validation services.

Why staking pool?

First, by restricting the supply, this might drive up the price of a token. Second, if the network employs a proof-of-stake (PoS) mechanism, the tokens may be utilized to regulate the blockchain. A proof-of-stake (PoS) system, as opposed to a proof-of-work (PoW) system that includes "mining," may be somewhat difficult, especially for crypto newbies.

Coins are staked in PoS systems to establish new blocks in the blockchain, for which players are rewarded. Winners are chosen randomly, ensuring that no single entity has a monopoly over forging.

It might be tough to set up a staking system on your own. You must manage and administer a node on your own. Furthermore, you must be familiar with the cryptocurrency's architecture, which may necessitate prior expertise that many investors lack.

By forging, a staker can get a proportionate return based on how much of their total assets are staked and how long they are staked for. Stakers can also combine their assets into a "staking pool" to meet any required minimums. It is also possible to "cold stake" on some networks, which requires staking cash or tokens maintained in a "cold" wallet, or one that is kept offline.

How staking pool works

The validator is screened and the network allows it to participate in transaction validation. To do so, it must provide a dedicated server 24/7 to perform the necessary calculations on it. By reserving a large amount of cryptocurrency, he starts solo-stacking. It’s profitable for each validator to open a service and attract even more coins to the stacking: this will increase his reward and he can get additional income from the commission that will be paid by the attracted users.

This is how the pool appears. Any user can transfer his coins to the validator's contract address and join the mining. The minimum amount for staking and the commission percentage are fixed and known in advance.

The proof-of-ownership algorithm is designed so that as the total amount of staking increases, the annual percentage of the reward decreases. At the same time, the emission decreases. Therefore, do not worry too much if instead of 15% per annum at the beginning of the contract you see that the network now pays 5% per annum. The amount of interest in dollars does not decrease from this.

Staking pool example.

Vitalik: Imagine Vitalika has a wallet with 1000 SOL coins. He doesn’t want to stake his coins within a pool, he wants to do it solo. There are slim chances that Vitalik’s wallet will be chosen to validate the block. Say a block chain has 1,000,000 SOL staked, then Vitalik has 1 chance to 1000 to be chosen under our perfect conditions.

Satoshi: Satoshi understands how staking pools work. He participates in the staking pool by putting some of his money into it. His wallet is the same 1000 SOL. However, instead of acting alone, Satoshi joined a staking pool. It has 100 people, each having 1000 SOL. Totaling in 100,000 SOL. Which gives 1 to 100 chances of being picked as a validator. By taking part in staking pool, Satoshi has a higher chance of earning more profit. The reward is divided among the pool participant. Satoshi will also pay small service charge fees.

Staking pool advantages

The entry threshold is a major plus. You don't have to have dozens of ethers or thousands of crystals. It’s elementary to place a cryptocurrency in a few mouse clicks, and it starts generating income. This is very handy if you plan to invest in it for years to come - you will get additional growth.

Since the pool always monitors the state of its servers and the validation process, its participants can safely count on a stable, round-the-clock profit. And often withdraw it at will at any time. Although there are also contracts with a freeze for a certain period of time.

Staking vs liquidity pool

To understand the difference between a rate and a liquidity pool, let's bring together three closely related terms, which are the following.

Liquidity 

The term "liquidity" means how easy users can convert one crypto to another. In other words, liquidity means how easy it is to sell and buy cryptocurrency without losing value. 

DeFi projects need as much liquidity as possible. For example, a low-liquidity credit platform can’t issue new loans simply because it runs out of funds. Liquidity is the essence of any DeFi protocol.

Liquidity providers (LP)

Users who contribute funds to the liquidity pools. Projects regularly pay providers part of the service fees, issue governance tokens, and conduct airdrops in some cases. 

Liquidity pool

DeFi's liquidity pool is modeled on a "smart contract" that simultaneously stores two tokens and allows fair-price transactions. The exchange value of crypto increases when liquidity levels are high, which is why the liquidity pool is considered the backbone of cryptocurrency.

For example, a USDT/XTZ pool stores USDT and Tezos coins. When a DEX user exchanges USDT for XTZ, the exchange adds USDT to the USDT/XTZ pool and returns XTZ to the user from that pool. The exchange rate depends on the proportion between the tokens in the pool. The fewer XTZ are left in the pool, the more USDT you have to pay for the exchange and vice versa.

How you can benefit from staking pool

There are many so staking opportunities that they can easily bake your noodles. Let’s scrutinize it on a practical example to kickstart your earning through staking.

How To Stake COLX In 3 Steps

COLX is a PoS privacy-based crypto that you can stake. Follow these steps to start earning using COLX staking

1. Go to the COLX website. Click on the Download COLX Wallet button and choose your OS to keep going. Once you choose, you’ll be asked to unlock your wallet.

2. Protect your wallet using encryption. Navigate to settings and encrypt the wallet. You will be asked to set a password if your wallet is not encrypted. Do not lose this password as it’s required to access your wallet. Restart your wallet after that.

3. Edit Your Keystore file. Open the Keystore File by selecting Tools > Open Keystore File. If prompted, choose your preferred text editor. In the configuration file, add "staking=1". After that, save the file and restart your wallet.

4. Get Your Wallet Unlocked. Navigate to SETTINGS and choose the UNLOCK WALLET option. Enter your password and make sure the option labeled "For anonymization and staking only" is checked.

Now that you’re all set up for staking all you have to do is wait (8 hours) to get staking rewards. Once you see the arrow in the bottom corner of your wallet turn green you will be staking.

You can also calculate your rewards in advance. Here’s what are COLX Calculator looks like.

Where T is a total number of COLX staked at the moment.

P  — your staked COLX tokens, B — daily number of blocks. 

You can also stake your coins on major crypto exchanges such as Kraken and Binance. Both exchanges offer reasonable fees and a broad pool of crypto to lock in.

Conclusion

The dynamic realm of cryptocurrency has witnessed remarkable innovations and mechanisms that aim to maximize user participation and enhance the overall ecosystem. Among these mechanisms, staking, particularly through staking pools, has emerged as a pivotal component.

Staking is an integral part of the blockchain's governance model, where users lock up a certain quantity of their tokens to support the network's operations. By doing so, they not only contribute to the stability and security of the blockchain but also earn rewards, akin to interests, for their staked assets. Drawing a parallel to the banking system, it's somewhat like depositing money in a fixed deposit scheme, but with cryptographic assets.

Staking pools have been a game-changer in this sphere. To elucidate, these pools function similarly to mining pools in the Proof of Work (PoW) consensus mechanism. However, instead of pooling computational resources, staking pools aggregate individual stakes to increase the chances of being chosen as a block validator, especially in networks like Ethereum 2.0. This approach offers an equitable solution for those who might not possess the requisite quantity of tokens, like the 32 ETH minimum for solo staking on Ethereum.

There are undeniable advantages to staking pools. Primarily, they democratize the staking process by lowering the entry barrier. Users don't need vast amounts of cryptocurrency to participate. Moreover, these pools offer consistent and round-the-clock rewards, ensuring that participants benefit even when they're not actively engaged. A typical example showcasing the effectiveness of staking pools can be seen in the contrast between individual stakers like Vitalik and pool participants like Satoshi. By joining a pool, Satoshi optimizes his chances of reaping rewards, all while sharing minor service fees.

Nevertheless, as crypto enthusiasts delve deeper into the financial realm of decentralized platforms, they encounter terms like liquidity and liquidity pools. These are not to be confused with staking pools. Liquidity is essential for the seamless exchange of assets without significant value loss. Liquidity pools, underpinned by smart contracts, hold pairs of tokens to facilitate decentralized exchanges. This mechanism ensures that the cryptocurrency ecosystem remains fluid and users can trade assets with minimal friction.

It's also important to note the growth of staking opportunities across various tokens and platforms, with COLX being an exemplar. The ease with which one can engage in staking, especially with user-friendly interfaces on platforms like Kraken and Binance, underscores the growing accessibility and allure of staking in the crypto space.

In summary, as the crypto universe evolves in 2023, staking pools play an increasingly crucial role in promoting participation, ensuring network security, and providing a lucrative avenue for users to maximize their crypto assets. While the landscape is ever-changing, the principles and advantages of staking pools remain robust and significant for both novices and veterans in the field.