PRO | Is your $ETH and $SOL working for you? ⚙️

GM! Welcome to Milk Road PRO — the reason for your growing neck pain. 

(That brain of yours is getting too big).

The crypto market never sleeps.

Which means leaving your holdings stagnant could mean missing out on significant opportunities. 

So it’s time to ask yourself:

Are your assets maximizing their potential, or are they just gathering virtual dust?? 🫣

(You wouldn’t leave all your money in a low interest savings account – so why do it with your crypto?)

👉 The idea is to put your investments to work, so they keep earning returns without you lifting a finger. 

To help you do just that, we’ve launched Milk Road PRO Portfolio V2, which now includes a brand-new page: Yield Strategies.

It shows our playbook on how we power up our major assets, $ETH and $SOL, in order to squeeze as much juicy yield from them as we know how. 🤑 

If that table looks confusing, don’t worry—we’ll walk you through exactly how to read it and use it to your advantage.

But that’s just the beginning – we’ll also be covering:

• Yield strategies: A breakdown of the strategies we use to generate yield.

• Pros and cons: The advantages and drawbacks of each strategy.

• Finding the best protocols: A guide on how to choose the right protocols.

• Our allocations: Where we’ve put our major assets to work.

Are you letting your capital sit idle? Worried about security risks? Not sure what options are best for you?

This report is about to change that. 💡 

We’ll show you how to maximize your returns and crush those security fears, so you can confidently put your assets to work.

Let's dive right in and kick things off with the ‘crowd favorite’ of yield strategies: staking.

THE BEST EXPOSURE TO STAKING YIELD

P.S: We cover staking in crazy detail in this report.

But if you already understand the basic gist, we'll save you a click and give you a brief summary here...

Staking is exclusive to Proof-of-Stake (PoS) blockchains and their associated tokens.

Meaning you cannot gain staking yield from Bitcoin, for example, because it is a Proof-of-Work (PoW) blockchain. 

By staking your tokens like $ETH or $SOL, you receive a portion of newly minted tokens, effectively earning yield while playing a vital role in securing the network.

If you’re not staking, you could be missing out on significant gains, with potential returns ranging from 3% to 18% APY. 

That’s why many investors choose to stake their assets rather than let them sit idle. 😴

Here are the basic stats for a range of popular PoS blockchains:

Staking has become a widely adopted strategy, with staking ratios (amount staked vs. unstaked) sitting between 20% and 80% on most POS blockchains. 

In fact, a staggering $520 billion is currently staked across the top PoS blockchains, underscoring its popularity as a method for generating additional income.

Assuming an average 5% reward rate, that equates to $25 billion in staking rewards. That’s massive! 💰️ 

Despite the appeal of earning extra income through staking, becoming a solo staker can be technically challenging – which is why staking providers like Lido, Rocket Pool, and Jito have emerged.

They handle network validation for the rest of us, while maximizing our staking yield. 

Let’s break down the pros and cons of using a staking provider:

Pros:

✅ Security and efficiency: Our tokens are put to work securely and efficiently, contributing to the network’s security without us having to manage it all ourselves.

✅ Maximized rewards: We earn the majority of staking rewards without needing to handle the technical complexities, making it a hassle-free way to generate income.

✅ Liquidity retention: We receive liquid tokens as proof of our staked assets, allowing us to stay flexible and use them in other DeFi opportunities.

Cons:

 ❌ Fees: These providers typically charge a fee ranging from 8% to 25% for their validation services, which can slightly reduce your overall yield.

 ❌ Smart contract risks: There are inherent risks associated with smart contracts, such as bugs and/or vulnerabilities, that could potentially impact your staked assets. 

By weighing these pros and cons, you can decide whether outsourcing your staking through liquid staking providers is the right strategy for you.

Ok, so if that’s the case – how do we go about choosing the right liquid staking provider?

Here are some key factors to consider when selecting a provider:

1/ Reputation and security

• Track record: Look for providers with a solid track record and a strong reputation in the DeFi space. 

• Security measures: Ensure the provider employs robust security measures, such as smart contract audits.

 2/ Total volume locked

• TVL: Check how much liquidity your chosen provider has attracted.

  TVL is a quick and effective measure of the broader market's trust in a provider, as it reflects the total amount of assets currently staked or locked in their protocol, valued in dollars.
  
  Feel free to use DefiLlama, which ranks all liquid staking providers by TVL.
  
  Simply select the blockchain you’re interested in, and you’ll see the top players in the space, giving you a clear view of where the most assets are being staked and which providers are leading the market.

 3/ Yield rates

• Competitive yields: Compare the staking yields offered by different providers. While higher yields are attractive, they should not come at the expense of security or reliability.

• Fee structure: Be aware of the fee structure. Liquid staking providers typically charge a small fee for their services, which can impact your overall returns.

 4/ Liquidity and flexibility

• Liquid staking tokens (LSTs): Check if the liquid tokens issued by the provider are widely accepted across DeFi platforms and have enough liquidity. The more integration and liquidity these tokens have, the better.

• Redemption options: Some providers offer instant or flexible redemption options for your staked tokens, which can be crucial if you need quick access to your assets.

 5/ Decentralization and governance

• Decentralization: Providers that are more decentralized tend to be more resilient to risks such as regulatory actions or central points of failure. 

• Governance participation: Some providers offer governance rights with their tokens, allowing you to have a say in the protocol’s future direction. This can be an added benefit for those interested in being more involved in the ecosystem.

 6/ Community and support

• Active Community: A strong, active community can be a good indicator of a provider’s health and future prospects. Engage with the community to gauge the level of transparency and support.

🔥 If you’d like to skip this process, we’ve got you covered—we’ve done the work for you and will share our top picks with you at the end.

Now that we’ve covered the pros and cons and selection process, it’s important to explain the different types of liquid staking tokens (LSTs) you might receive.