Skip to main content

Crypto Strategies Beyond Trading

· 6 min read

In this post, I will talk about the ways to earn with cryptocurrency that require medium or large capital.
These strategies go far beyond just trading or staking, which many beginners think of first. Each of them has its own features, requirements, risks, and potential profitability.

1. Portfolio Investing​

The first method for medium and large capital is portfolio investing.
The goal of portfolio investing is to buy strong, fundamental assets for the long term — starting from three to five years or more.

The profitability of such a portfolio depends on:

  • The chosen assets
  • The current market phase (bull or bear)
  • The skill of proper portfolio rebalancing

Why Medium or Large Capital Matters​

Imagine you only have $1,000, and you use it to buy some strong, fundamental assets.
Even if your portfolio grows five or ten times in three years, you’ve made around $9,000 profit. Spread across 36 months, this isn’t significant.

Now imagine you have $200,000 in capital.
A fivefold portfolio growth over three years would bring you $1,000,000+ profit — a life-changing amount.

That’s why it’s better not to start portfolio investing with small sums.
Instead, use other methods (like testnets, ambassador programs, or airdrops) to grow your capital first — then allocate into long-term assets.

Two Approaches​

  1. Lump-Sum Investing – invest a large amount into BTC, ETH, or other strong assets at once and hold long term.
  2. Gradual Accumulation (DCA) – consistently buy assets (e.g., BTC, ETH) every month for a set amount. This is one of the best methods to build a portfolio from scratch, as it smooths out volatility.

💡 Portfolio investing works best when combined with DeFi (see below).

2. Decentralized Finance (DeFi)​

DeFi currently offers the widest range of tools and opportunities for those with medium or large capital.

Earning in DeFi means allocating assets across multiple instruments and building strategies to generate passive income while also growing your portfolio.

Examples of DeFi Tools:​

  • Lending and borrowing platforms (e.g., AAVE, Compound)
  • Liquidity provision on DEXs (e.g., Uniswap, Curve, Balancer)
  • Yield farming and liquidity mining strategies
  • Stablecoin lending for consistent returns

Why Combine DeFi with Portfolio Investing​

If you only hold an investment portfolio, it will grow in value during bull markets.
But if you put these same assets to work in DeFi, you can generate additional yield even in sideways markets.

📌 Profitability depends on:

  • The chosen protocols
  • Your risk profile
  • Market conditions

3. Mining​

Mining can be considered a long-term earning method.

  • After Ethereum switched to Proof-of-Stake (PoS), it is no longer mineable with GPUs.
  • The only realistic coin worth mining today is Bitcoin.

Why Mining Requires Large Capital​

  • Mining requires specialized hardware (ASICs) that costs thousands of dollars.
  • Hardware takes years to pay off.
  • If BTC price drops, you may mine at a loss.

📌 Example:
Many miners rushed to buy ASICs and GPUs on credit during bull markets.
When the market turned downward, they had to shut down and sell equipment at a loss.

👉 Mining should always be viewed as a long-term strategy — not for quick profits, but for accumulating BTC over years.

4. Staking​

Staking is a method of earning suitable mainly for those with very large capital.

Many beginners misunderstand staking.

  • Not staking: locking coins on Binance or another centralized platform for 3–8% yields.
  • Real staking: delegating coins to validator nodes in blockchains like Ethereum, Solana, or Cosmos.

How It Works​

  • Your coins are locked on validator nodes.
  • They help verify transactions and secure the network.
  • In return, you receive staking rewards.

Returns​

  • Network staking yields: 3%–15% annually, depending on the blockchain.
  • Protocol staking yields: vary, sometimes higher (DEX revenue sharing, governance tokens).

💡 Staking is one of the lowest-risk strategies in crypto.
Your balance of strong assets (ETH, SOL, ATOM) grows steadily.
The main risk: the chosen asset itself may lose long-term value.

5. NFTs​

NFTs are a very risky earning environment, mainly driven by speculation.

The Speculation Illusion​

Stories about someone buying an NFT for $100 and later selling it for $100,000 gave many newcomers the illusion that it’s easy money.
In reality, NFT trading is extremely risky, and most collections lose value quickly.

Methods of NFT Earning​

  1. NFT Flipping – buy below market price and instantly resell at a profit.

    • Requires speed, skill, and luck.
    • High competition.
    • Extremely risky.

  2. Launching Your Own Collection – create and promote an NFT project.

    • Requires community management and strong marketing.
    • Possible to succeed, but very difficult.

  3. GameFi & Metaverse NFTs – tokenized in-game assets or play-to-earn systems.

    • 99% are financial pyramids disguised as games.
    • Most never release a working product.

⚠️ Risks are extremely high. Most NFT and GameFi projects are created only to raise money from naive investors.

👉 Unless you deeply understand this space, it’s better to avoid speculative NFT flipping.

6. Arbitrage​

Arbitrage means exploiting price differences for the same asset across exchanges (CEX vs CEX, CEX vs DEX, or DEX vs DEX).

The Reality​

  • Arbitrage is real and does work.
  • But markets are dominated by bots scanning and executing trades instantly.
  • Profitable strategies are never shared publicly. Once public, they lose relevance within days.

Risks​

  • Scams: YouTube and Telegram are full of fake “arbitrage bots” that simply steal deposits.
  • Paid Courses: Selling “secret strategies” is often more profitable than arbitrage itself.

👉 Arbitrage works, but requires your own custom-built strategies and bots.
It’s not a beginner-friendly method.

7. Trading​

Finally, we come to trading — perhaps the most famous, yet most dangerous way to earn in crypto.

Why Trading is Risky​

  • Most newcomers lose money quickly.
  • Trading requires years of experience, emotional discipline, and personal strategies.
  • Buying “signals” or $50 courses online is guaranteed to end in losses.

📌 The world’s best traders show 15%–70% annual returns — not per month.
Anyone promising 300% per month is a scammer.

Advice for Beginners​

  • Don’t treat trading as a shortcut to wealth.
  • If you truly want to trade, learn independently, practice with small amounts, and slowly develop your own system.
  • Be prepared for years of losses before consistent gains.

Summary of Strategies​

  • Portfolio Investing + DeFi: best combination for medium/large capital.
  • Mining & Staking: long-term, relatively stable, but capital-intensive.
  • NFTs & GameFi: highly speculative, avoid unless you understand the risks.
  • Arbitrage: real but requires private, self-built strategies.
  • Trading: risky, not recommended for beginners.

Closing Note​

This was the last post in the first module: Basics of Cryptocurrency.
In the next module, we’ll explain:

  • How to buy cryptocurrency
  • Different ways to withdraw to wallets
  • Which wallets to use
  • And which are the safest wallets for your funds

Disclaimer: These materials are created for educational purposes only and do not constitute financial advice.