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Hey everyone and welcome to the HODLer’s Den!

Here you will find information on my crypto investment portfolio straight from a HODLer’s perspective.  This section will focus on HODLing cryptos and interest-earning platforms.

Celsius Network

This week we will focus on the Celsius Network platform. As a HODLer I constantly try to find the best platforms to hold my investments. I remember back in Fall 2018 when C1S sent me information about Celsius Network. I was extremely skeptical because this was almost a year after the BitConnect fiasco of 2017. Even though I did not lose or make money with BitConnect, it was a traumatizing realization that I could potentially lose all of my investments. Hence, I was still nervous about putting my investments onto platforms and kept most of them on my cold wallet.

I watched the animated YouTube video of Celsius Network with animals in suits advertising the slogan, “Unbank Yourself” and set it aside for a while to do more research on the platform. It took about a month of research and information provided by C1S before I started to move my investments onto Celsius Network. At that time, it was the only platform—that we were aware of—that paid interest for holding cryptocurrencies. The rates were decent—much better than banks, hence “Unbank Yourself”—but not too ridiculous and unsustainable like BitConnect. Basically, I just needed confirmation that Celsius Network was sustainable before I invested into the platform.

Looking back, I think Celsius Network is one of the main reasons I became a devout HODLer. Earning interest on deflationary assets is a win-win in my opinion.

Celsius Token (CEL)

I think many interest-earning platforms are modeled after Celsius Platform in terms of token utility. Initially, I thought it was a gimmick to have a platform-specific token but after C1S’s explanation I understood why it was necessary.

By holding a certain percentage of your Celsius Network portfolio in CEL, you get better interest rates. Basically, the more vested you are in CEL, the better the benefits and rewards. Think of CEL as a share in the Celsius Network platform and it serves to calculate your loyalty level.

As you can see, the greater the percentage of your CEL Ratio, the better benefits you will reap from the platform. Note that the bonus interest yield only applies to CEL pay out. For example, if the APR (Annual Percentage Rate) for Bitcoin (BTC) is 10%, a Platinum user will earn 13.5% APR interest paid out in CEL, or 10% APR paid out in BTC.

I have not taken out loans from Celsius Network, but a Platinum user will pay 30% less interest compared to other users. So if the interest rate for a loan is 10%, a Platinum user will only have to pay 7% interest on their loan.

Interest Earned

After HODLing for almost two years, I have earned 5200 USD—not bad for literally doing nothing. Please note that I initially held a majority of my crypto portfolio on Celsius Network because it was the only platform that paid out interests on cryptos. The initial APRs offered by Celsius Network were top-notch and did not fluctuate on a weekly basis.

The release of other interest-earning platforms such as Nexo, Blockfi, Crypto.com, and Bitrue allowed me to disperse my investments across multiple platforms. When platforms compete, HODLers win because they are constantly trying to edge out the competition with attractive APRs and other benefits.

Conclusion & Prospect

As of writing this report, CEL reached an all-time high exceeding 0.40 USD per coin. US customers are unable to earn interest paid out in CEL and can only earn interest paid in kind. With the rise in CEL price, I do expect more users will switch over to CEL pay out rather than kinder pay. Even though my loyalty level places me as a Platinum user—my CEL Ratio is greater than 15%—I cannot reap the benefits as a US customer.

After the release of Crypto.com, Nexo, and Bitrue, most of my cryptos have been moved from Celsius Network. Celsius Network only offers a few coins for deposit to earn interest and the rates are not the best in the industry. Regardless, the platform does a what it set out to do and that is to pay interest to HODLers—this is evident by the fact that they recently released a HODL Mode.

When HODL Mode is activated, certain outbound features of your Celsius wallet will be unavailable until you choose to deactivate HODL Mode:

• You will not be able to withdraw your funds

• You will not be able to send funds via CelPay

• You will not be able to change whitelisted withdrawal addresses

• There will be a 24-hour wait period before reinstating the above functionalities upon deactivation of HODL Mode

HODL Mode is a great security feature, but I wish it offered additional incentives such as higher APRs—hopefully they will add this in the future.

As mention, I have moved most of my funds from Celsius Network because I am unable to reap the full benefits of the platform as a US customer and because they pay out weekly while most newer platforms pay out daily. I still have a sizable position on the platform and I hope that they will make adjustments for US customers in the near future.

Each week I will report on a different interest-earning platform that I use—mainly, Celsius Network, Bitrue, Crypto.com, and BlockFi

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