Making money in the crypto world isn't mysterious: you earn based on "difference," rely on "momentum," complete transactions rely on "trust," and amplify gains through "leverage." Let me be clear: All ways to make money in the crypto world essentially boil down to four words: difference, momentum, trust, and leverage. **Differences:** Information gap / Time gap / Cognitive gap / Channel gap / Geographical gap / Execution gap. **Momentum:** Entry point, trend, attention, narrative cycle. **Trust:** Brand, persona, endorsement, community recognition. **Leverage:** Platform commission, economies of scale, capital tools, compound interest model. Once you use these four terms to look at the crypto world, you'll find that: So-called "projects," "technology," and "value" are often just packaging. What truly determines whether you can make money is whether you've grasped the structural opportunities. And the most disheartening reality is: The crypto world isn't dead; it's just that there are fewer and fewer "newbies easily exploited." Therefore, making money in the future will increasingly resemble "strategic maneuvering" rather than "luck." Below, I will explain this thoroughly using "26 ways to make money" (each with examples from the cryptocurrency market). I. Earning from "differences": Where there's a difference, there's money (1-8) 1) Earning from price differences: Cross-exchange/cross-currency arbitrage At the same time, different exchanges and different trading pairs will exhibit price differences (USDT-based vs. cryptocurrency-based). You profit from price discrepancies, but be wary of transaction fees, slippage, slow settlement times, and even withdrawal delays.
2) Earn by Packaging: Issuing the same token, a different narrative, a higher valuation
AI Agents / RWA / L2 / Restaking… If you can tell a story, you can present the same thing with different valuations.
Here's something many people don't like to hear:
Making money in cryptocurrency is not much different between Tsinghua and Peking University graduates and vocational school graduates. But if Tsinghua and Peking University graduates issue tokens, more people will subscribe, and more money will be invested.
It's not education that determines returns, but the trust endorsement behind your education that determines how much capital you can attract.
3) Earn by Timing: It Goes Viral First in English-Speaking Communities, Then in Chinese-Speaking Communities
Narratives often explode in English-speaking communities first, then spread to Chinese-speaking communities.
The earlier you analyze, navigate with tools, and screen projects, the more money you can make from the "heat transfer." Of course, English isn't a barrier, but the overall average level does affect "reaction speed." 4) Earn experience differentially: gain experience in bear markets, sell experience in bull markets. Those who have experienced multiple bull and bear markets know how to allocate positions, when to stop trading, and which pitfalls to avoid. Even when arbitrage, knowing which exchanges are prone to withdrawal delays and which blockchains are congested during peak periods reduces the chance of losses. Experience is pain in bear markets, money in bull markets. 5) Profiting from Monopoly Differences: Infrastructure Concentration at the Top – Those Who Can't Bypass Must Pay Taxes. The strongest aggregators, mainstream wallet entry points, and largest launchpads – once a "top-tier concentration" is achieved, others can't bypass them. These top players can then raise fees and increase bargaining power – this is on-chain "taxation." 6) Profiting from Cognitive Differences: Retail Investors Focus on K-lines, Institutions Focus on Structure. Retail investors watch price movements, while institutions look at: funding costs, lock-up structures, unlocking schedules, and on-chain tokens. But times have changed: In the past, focusing on retail investors was enough; now, you often also need to monitor institutional stop-loss orders, portfolio adjustments, and market-making activities. Market trends are no longer solely driven by retail investor liquidations; significant stop-loss orders from institutions can also trigger reversals. 7) Profit from execution differences: Knowing is worthless, doing is valuable. Everyone knows about hot topics, but whether you can profit depends on whether you can streamline and automate the following processes: Tracking → Verification → Position Building → Risk Control → Review → Content Output. Those who consistently profit in the crypto market rely on execution systems, not inspiration. 8) Profit from scarce resources: You have the "keys" others don't: Primary quotas, market-making resources, audit/exchange listing channels, collaboration with top KOLs, project team business development—and "enough people paying attention to you." These are all scarce resources. Scarcity equals pricing power. You can charge fees, exchange equity, or exchange tokens. Second, rely on "momentum": where attention is, there's money (9-12) 9) Earn from ad bombardment: Full attention, FOMO follows. Exchange banners, news feeds, KOL matrices, AMAs… a short-term, overwhelming campaign; attention density equals price density. And if you are a KOL/media, you're profiting from this "dog food" (advertising). 10) Earn commission: Don't be ashamed, commission is the most stable business model. Copy trading, quantitative custody, strategy subscription, signal services—paid monthly or profit-sharing. Rebate agents (exchanges/wallets/tools) are the same. Realistically: the commission model is one of the most sustainable businesses in the crypto world. 11) Gain traffic: Gather people first, then sell goods/services. On-chain hotspot radar, airdrop tutorials, security pitfall avoidance, project breakdown accounts—once the traffic is built, advertising, communities, consulting, and tool memberships will naturally follow. 12) Earn from Platforms: Platform Tax is the Key to Compound Interest. Data platforms, investment research terminals, on-chain monitoring, batch task tools... Charge service fees to project teams and subscription fees to users. Platform taxes are stable, counter-cyclical, and can generate compound interest. III. Transaction Based on Trust: Who you are is more important than what you say (13-19) 13) Earn from Investments: Invest in infrastructure to earn long-term valuations. Investing in wallets, chains, data layers, and stablecoin ecosystems during the cold start phase is more like VC logic. Slow, but once successful, it's big money. 14) Profiting from plagiarism: Copy, modify, and innovate to capitalize on short-term hype. If one blockchain's approach becomes popular, another blockchain will simply reskin and copy it. Effective in the short term, but extremely risky in the long term: Homogeneity leads to rapid decline, and liquidity migrates quickly. 15) Profiting from regional differences: Localizing overseas tools. Providing Chinese tutorials, customer service, communities, and payment channels for popular overseas tools generates a stable, small cash flow. 16) Earn a Selling Point: Occupy a Mindset Position While offering wallets: More secure / More cost-effective / Simpler Focus on just one selling point, and users will immediately think of you. 17) Earn by Segmenting Your Audience: The More Specific, the More Expensive Don't be "big and all-encompassing," focus on miners, contract traders, DeFi farmers, blockchain game players, and institutions compliant with overseas expansion… Precise service leads to higher conversion rates. 18) Earn Brand Premium: Not Just Know How to Promote, But Continue to Promote The same research report from a top institution/analyst can sell for a higher price. For the same exchange, a strong brand can command higher fees and lower customer acquisition costs. A brand is essentially "the inertia of trust built through repeated exposure over a long period." 19) Earning from Concepts: Vision + Story = Fundraising Ability "Next-generation on-chain AI operating system," "Redefining finance," "Changing the world"... Concepts can attract funds for speculation. But you must understand: making money from concepts relies on investors believing you can deliver; once that belief fades, the fall will be even more severe.
IV. Leveraging: From Earning Money to a "Money-Making Machine" (20-26)
20) Earning Scale: The larger the volume, the lower the cost, and the stronger the bargaining power.
Market making, OTC, aggregators, commission rebate agents—the larger the volume, the lower the fee rate and the higher the commission, and the snowball effect begins.
21) Earning from Channel Differences: Those who control the entry point can always make money.
Listing on exchanges, wallets, aggregators, rankings…
Project teams pay for traffic entry points, and you earn from the channel difference.
22) Leveraging Position Advantage: Visibility is Money. CoinMarketCap/Coingecko display positions, default DApp recommendation positions in wallets, KOL top placements… Users who see it will click, and clicks will lead to purchases. Traffic = Money. 23) Earning the Future: Cashing in Future Returns in Advance. Node/staking returns are packaged into products; subscription tools charge annual fees upfront; projects sell “future ecosystem returns.” The Risk Lies Here: If returns fall short of expectations, the backlash can be even greater. 24) Building a Persona: A persona is the fastest shortcut to trust. A stable risk control expert, a blockchain detective, an airdrop hunter, a contract veteran, a rich second-generation... Get users to trust you, follow you, buy your products, or accept your commission. 25) Earning from matchmaking: Matching is business. Project team ↔ Market maker, Project team ↔ Security audit, Project team ↔ KOL/Media, Funder ↔ High-quality project. You collect intermediary fees, consulting fees, and equity tokens. 26) Capitalizing on Trends: You Need to Be "Present" When the Trend Rises. Every bull market has a main theme: DeFi → NFT → GameFi → L2 → Restaking → AI… Continuously accumulate capabilities; when the trend arrives, you'll be present, have positions, and distribution channels—only then will the trend's benefits fall into your lap. Conclusion: The crypto market isn't dead; it's just that there are fewer and fewer "easy targets." Previously, making money in the crypto market was like picking up money: newcomers poured in, and any fabricated narrative would find buyers. Now it's different: there are fewer "newbies," money is smarter, and the models are more robust. Therefore, those who will make money in the future are most likely not "gamblers," but rather four types of people: 1) Those who can seize opportunities in areas of "lack"; 2) Those who can distribute resources strategically; 3) Those who can build trust; 4) Those who can platformize and scale things up. Finally, a word for you, and for me: Thinking only leads to problems; doing brings answers.
Catherine
Weiliang
Alex
Miyuki
Kikyo
Anais