Starting to invest in cryptocurrency does not necessarily require connecting with a bank account or spending fiat to purchase Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH). Another way to earn cryptocurrency and build a portfolio is to complete a variety of tasks on various Web3 platforms.
Using decentralized applications and decentralized finance (DeFi) platforms, users can earn cryptocurrency and then swap, sell or hold it in centralized or decentralized wallets without even having to spend money.
Let’s look at a few ways to build a crypto portfolio without connecting a bank account.
Interact with Web3 browsers
A person without cryptocurrency knowledge might be intimidated by the process of downloading wallets and performing on-chain transactions. An alternative is simply interacting with technology, and currently, there are multiple ways to experiment with different crypto platforms. One is replacing Web2 technology with a Web3 counterpart browser.
Google dominates the web browser and search engine space, making money off users by selling data to advertisers. The Brave browser is an alternative platform where users earn Basic Attention Token (BAT) and fully own their data while searching. Users earn from their activity on advertisers’ websites, and Brave does not sponsor search engine posts, which provides users with a more decentralized search experience.
Currently, Brave shares 70% of its advertising revenue, and some users choose to sell their earned BAT on centralized exchanges or through Web3 wallets like MetaMask.
Social media content creation and free NFT mints
NFTs continue to grow in popularity, and potential crypto investors can use a variety of free software to analyze the wallet addresses of successful NFT investors that minted high-value NFTs and also try to find free NFT minting and whitelist opportunities.
Colin Helm, CEO of a free-to-play metaverse platform Caesarverse, noted the importance of free NFTs in the space:
“If users follow social media and community channels closely, they can always find very generous raffles, gain some assets that improve their gameplay experience and build their crypto portfolio just from playing games they may enjoy.”
Some users that have worked the free minting system have generated NFTs that eventually reached a 10 ETH floor.
Related: How to do mobile cryptocurrency mining?
Similar to how NFTs require a social media base for advertising, new blockchains and protocols also require immense amounts of testing and a user base in order to ensure sustainable growth at launch.
Some blockchains like Arbitrum do not have a token, but the hint of an eventual airdrop tends to attract users to the protocols within the Arbitrum ecosystem.
On Sept. 6, 2022, 1inch users on Optimism received an airdrop of 300,000 OP for their prelaunch usage of the blockchain.
For users without the technical knowledge to use new blockchains, social activity-based airdrops could be an easier way to earn cryptocurrency. With social airdrops, users may have to follow, like and share certain accounts on social media. Users will most likely need to use a decentralized wallet like MetaMask in order to receive social airdrops.
Bug bounties and beta tests
Many crypto and DeFi projects have set tokens aside for marketing, bug finding, beta testing and content creation tasks. Many crypto investors earn tokens by auditing, testing, and creating brand designs, marketing materials, music and other content. Lending one’s skills to crypto projects is a perfect way to get started.
Jenny “DJen” Schorsch, founder of GlamJam, shared her experience regarding how she built a brand and started in crypto without upfront costs:
“Start by creating value for the community for free first. After you have your community, you start generating profit and assets with them. I started using NFTs for ticketing and allowed Web3 companies sponsorships for my favorite projects. Before I knew it, people were offering me crypto for participation in events.”
While most users think that a bank account and fiat currency are necessary for interacting with blockchains and cryptocurrency, this is not the case.
With a little effort, aspiring crypto investors can earn cryptocurrency and NFTs without any upfront cost, other than time.
The views, thoughts and opinions expressed here are the authors’ alone and do not necessarily reflect or represent the views and opinions of Cointelegraph.
This article does not contain investment advice or recommendations. Every investment and trading move involves risk, and readers should conduct their own research when making a decision.