In this article, we will explore Flow a bit further, go through the staking process in more detail, and will look at some of the amazing projects and NFT’s on the blockchain. If you don’t know much about Flow, you can check out my previous article Introduction to — Flow Blockchain. Once you have familiarized yourself with how to setup a wallet and buy the token, you can continue with discovering all Flow has to offer.
Let us first start with Flow Port and how you can stake your tokens on chain.
There are two different ways of staking, the first one being through a Custody provider such as Kraken, Coinlist and Finoa, where you will need to go through their staking process and follow the provided guide. More info about Custody provider staking can be found on this link.
On other hand if you wish to manually stake your tokens, you will be able to do that by: Staking a node or Delegating.
Assuming you have decided to stake on your own and not through a Custody Provider, you will need to connect your Blocto wallet and proceed to stake by pressing the “Stake & Delegate” button in the top left corner of Flow Port.
Staking a node:
This requires staking with your own node where you will be responsible for running and maintaining a Flow node. For this option, you will need to provide a minimum stake amount (135,000 FLOW ) for running your own node and will need to have some technical knowledge and enough bandwidth to operate everything. This might be a bit difficult for most people, but if you wish to take this route, I would highly encourage you to read the full staking documentation provided by Flow here.
On Flow port, choose “Stake a node” option and select the type of node you will be running. After inputting the desired amount, you will need to run the bootstrap instructions and finish setting up the node.
Delegating:
This is the easier way of staking your tokens because you won’t need to run your own node, or have the minimum staking amount required. By delegating any amount of Flow you have to an existing node operator, you will have the option to earn rewards as well. Once you navigate to the Flow staking/delegating page on Flow Port, just click on delegate option, specify the amount of tokens and chose the node operator you wish to delegate to. A list of all node operators can be found here. After inputting all of the info, just execute the transaction.
Now that you have successfully staked your Flow, you will need to wait for the next epoch until it is processed, which is currently weekly, and then start claiming your rewards.
If staking is not your thing, and you just want to dive straight into all of the different NFT’s, head on over to Flowverse. There you will be able to find your favorite projects and best marketplaces.
As I am not able to cover all projects in just one article, I will be featuring Ballerz as an example. A basketball inspired NFT set, one of the most popular PFP projects on Flow with sales of about $2.0M and a secondary market of more than $10.0M. Ownership of this NFT comes with a list of benefits, including access to future collections, utility across Web2 and Web3 and real-world experiences and gameplay that leverage the Ballerz unique traits. If you head over to their official website you will have a direct link to the Marketplace where they can be bought.
There is a great filter feature on the marketplace so be sure to use it if you wish to easily find the ones you like.
If PFP’s are not your thing, you can check out all of the different NFT projects directly on Flowverse. The project page should give you all of the links you will need to find out more and check out the respected marketplace.
Hopefully I have helped you a bit in learning about Flow and enabled you to find a project that peaks your interest, as this blockchain has a lot to offer.
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“Disclaimer: This article is not trading or investment advice. The above article is for informational and educational purposes only. Please do your own research before purchasing or investing in any cryptocurrency or digital asset.”
