Again, we are faced with a title that leads to a negative answer, it is not possible to mine MANA, the most important blockchain metaverse currency on the market.
In this article I tell you, besides why it is not possible, what MANA is and what are its uses. As we have already clarified on more than one occasion, ” Mineable” coins are those native to blockchains that reach their consensus through the Proof of Work system.
As you can imagine, the above are not features of the MANA token. Therefore, let us understand why MANA is not “mineable”.
Why is it not possible to mine MANA?
For a cryptocurrency to be subject to mining, the first characteristic it must have is that it must belong to a blockchain whose consensus is reached through the “Proof of Work” mechanism.
As for this characteristic, we can say that MANA fulfilled it for quite some time. MANA, the most famous metaverse token in the crypto world, was born on Ethereum, a network that until September 15, 2022 operated under this method.
However, MANA does not meet the second characteristic necessary to be subject to mining:
- Being a native currency of such blockchains.
The simplest, and best known, example of such a currency is bitcoin. At the birth of the network that gave it life, BTC was born alongside the blockchain, as its native cryptocurrency. In the same code for the creation of this network, the method by which each of the 21 million bitcoins would be created was included.
MANA, on the other hand, was created by means of a smart contract which determines a different method of creation of this currency, far from the particularities of mining.
But before we move on to MANA, let’s look at a brief explanation of what it means to mine a cryptocurrency.
What does it mean to mine a cryptocurrency?
The two major groups that divide the waters when classifying a blockchain are related to the method by which they reach their consensus and, therefore, how they issue their native currencies. We have two major groups:
- Proof of work” networks
- Proof of Stake” Networks
It is in the first group, in which mining is the method for creating new coins. This objective is reached after validating the network’s transactions and creating its new blocks.
The mining process
If you are still wondering how these currencies are created, let’s take the Bitcoin network as an example and learn about this process. Transactions within the Bitcoin network are validated by miners. The tasks they perform on a daily basis can be summarized as follows:
- They take the transactions made by users, validate them and sort them into a block.
- With the block, using their computer equipment, they try to solve a highly complex mathematical problem by throwing a series of numbers at random.
- The miner who solves the problem, signs the block and adds it to the Bitcoin blockchain.
- Mining occurs in the first transaction of the new block. In it, the miner creates a transaction to himself of an amount of BTC, currently 6.25, and in this way new bitcoins are created.
In short, we can define mining as the process by which, in chains governed by the “Proof of Work” consensus, miners create or issue new cryptocurrencies by means of the computational power of their mining equipment in charge of solving mathematical problems.
At the time of Ethereum’s creation, this mechanism, similar to bitcoin, was established to give birth to new units of ETH. But MANA, on the other hand, is the fruit of Ethereum’s greatest creation, smart contracts. Therefore, mining does not come into the picture here, but the method of issuing MANA has been determined by a contract. Let’s see what this token is all about.
What is MANA?
MANA is the utility token of Decentraland, the metaverse. the most important in the blockchain world. It is a token, created by a smart contract, under the standard ERC–20. This feature allows it to be easily used in new contracts or platforms. Not long ago, following a strategic alliance, MANA landed on the Polygon network.
When we refer to MANA as a utility token, we are talking about its most common uses:
- Governance token to decide the future of the metaverse
- Currency of exchange within Decentraland
The second feature, tells us that within Decentraland, we will need MANA for:
- Buying a LAND
- Buy NFTs to make our avatar look unique
Now, it is time to learn about the tokenomics of this token.
MANA and its tokenomics
In 2017, the founding team of the project, decided to carry out an ICO, with the aim of raising funds to face development size. As I mentioned before, MANA’s issuance and its numbers were defined in the smart contract that brought it to life.
It is interesting to note that with each purchase of land in the metaverse, 2.5% of the total amount paid is burned. This means that that percentage of MANA is destroyed forever. Known as “burn”, it is a method that makes it possible to control and even reduce the total circulating amount of a currency, making it more scarce.
How to obtain MANA?
Clearly, not being mined, there must be some way for us to get our hands on tokens from Ethereum’s most amazing metaverse. We can list the following ways to obtain MANA:
- Buying it on an exchange, whether decentralized or centralized
- Selling land or NFTs in Decentraland
- Working at Decentraland
Point one may not require any explanation. However, I believe it is necessary to expand the remaining two. The main way to obtain MANA is by buying/selling land or NFTs in the metaverse. Although it is necessary to purchase land with previously acquired MANA to buy land, it is possible to get land from scratch by selling NFTs.
In this metaverse, human beings are represented by avatars or virtual characters. As in real life, these avatars use clothing and accessories. These are represented as NFTs and their creators earn MANA tokens by selling them.
Finally, we came across the work within Decentraland. What types of jobs are we referring to? For example, the following:
- Casino Manager
- 3D Developer
Both positions are in demand in the virtual world and those who carry them out will get paid at MANA.
Conclusion
I have made it my goal, as I began writing this article, that every reader of this article will understand what MANA is, why it cannot be mined, and furthermore, what cryptocurrency mining is.
Much ink has been spilled in recent times over which consensus method is best designed for a blockchain. Undoubtedly, the Merge has fueled this discussion like no other event.
In any case, MANA will continue to fulfill its function regardless of the context in which it finds itself. The Decentraland metaverse has established itself as a leader in its own segment and MANA has played a key role in it.
