Masternodes  —  a cryptocurrency pension plan for Millennials?

A recent report by the Office for National Statistics (ONS)showed that despite a higher percentage of people between the ages of 25 and 35 contributing to workplace pensions since 2012, overall savings have fallen from £12.8bn to £12.2bn. According to Professional Pensions, this situation is unprecedented.

Combine diminishing pensions with the wariness the youngest generation of career-starters feel about the volatility of the financial markets and the integrity of ‘bankers’ (a natural consequence of the last financial crisis, plus the housing crisis, plus brexit, plus the environment…)it’s no wonder alternative lifestyle options — makes sense for millennials.

Underpinning a lot of these financial alternatives, is the blockchain. Blockchain tech, originally created to power cryptocurrency, is proving to be the most disruptive and exciting creation of recent years. In fact, retirement investments is one of the few financial sectors that has yet to be disrupted with blockchain.Mining and trading cryptocurrencies has provided income streams for plenty of individuals who have the will, time and interest to get their heads around it all. But for those millennials looking for something a bit less deep-geek that can provide an alternative option for passively earning money to save for old age, investing in masternodes might be just the ticket. (As with all things crypto and outside of the mainstream, the usual warning applies: although returns can be sizable, any investments are risky).

In an article you should definitely read on Medium, Anja Schuetz (@ConnectEconomy), writes, “Our money won’t grow in the bank anymore… On the contrary, the fees and ultimately the negative interest will eat up our money bit by bit…It’s not smart to save money anymore.”

– whether that’s absolutely true or not is debatable, but what is certain is that there are exciting alternatives emerging thanks to blockchain and, as Schuetz herself has done, investing in masternodes is worth looking into. So what are masternodes?

A masternode is a full cryptocurrency wallet (a server, really) that runs on the blockchain performing functions normal nodes can’t. While miners provide proof of work at one level of transactions, masternodes fulfil a second-tier function providing “proof of stake”. They generate revenue for their owners by validating cryptocurrency transactions and performing special functions like: overseeing private/direct transactions, facilitating instant transactions, participating in governance and enabling budgeting and treasury systems. The main appeal is that masternodes require initial capital investment but don’t require involvement by the owner. In other words — you don’t need to be techy to be involved. Although a masternodes can be tricky to set up, once it’s up and running you start to receive a regular passive income.

Where to next? Although we’re not necessarily recommending involvement in Masternodes, after all we are a tech marketing company not a #fintech startup, https://masternodes.online/ is a good place to start. At the very least, given the lay of the land for millennials (and all of us) in the present and on the horizon — we do think it’s a little bit crazy not to explore the alternatives — and thanks to blockchain there are plenty out there. May the force be with you.

Here at mad4digital we will continue to keep you informed on all things tech. It’s what we live for: helping to bring tech alive for humans in businesses.