Read our guide to Mithril, its native MITH cryptocurrency and how to buy and sell MITH tokens.
Mithril is a decentralised social media platform designed to reward content creators. Using a process known as “social mining”, each user’s content and social interactions help them earn MITH tokens.
An ERC20 token on the Ethereum network, Mithril tokens will eventually be accepted as a form of payment throughout the Mithril Merchant Network or exchanged for bitcoin (BTC) or Ether (ETH) through the Mithril Vault.
That’s the project in a nutshell, but if you’re interested in buying, selling or storing MITH tokens, read on.
Where to buy MITH
MITH tokens are currently available from a small selection of exchanges, including the following:
A step-by-step guide to buying MITH in Australia
Want to buy MITH tokens but don’t know where to start? Here’s what you need to do.
Step 1. Register for an account on a cryptocurrency exchange that lists MITH
In the comparison table above, you’ll see a selection of exchanges that feature MITH in one or more currency pairs. You can choose one of these platforms or another crypto exchange that lists MITH, and sign up for an account to start trading.
You can typically register simply by providing your email address and creating a password, but many platforms will require additional personal details and proof of ID in line with Know Your Customer and Anti-Money Laundering (KYC/AML) requirements.
If two-factor authentication is supported, make sure you enable this feature on your account.
Step 2. Deposit funds into your account
It’s currently not possible to buy MITH tokens directly with Australian dollars. As a result, you’ll need to first own or acquire a cryptocurrency listed in a trading pair with MITH. Ether and bitcoin are the two most common examples, so check out our how to buy Ether and how to buy bitcoin guides if you don’t yet own either of these digital currencies.
If your crypto coins and tokens are stored away from the exchange, log into your exchange account and copy the wallet address that you’ll need to transfer funds to.
Step 3. Buy MITH
Once your deposit has been confirmed, navigate to the “Exchange” or “Markets” section on your chosen platform. Search for the pair you want to trade, for example MITH/ETH, and look for the “Buy MITH” field.
You can then enter the amount of MITH you want to buy or the amount of ETH you want to spend. Make sure to review the full details of the transaction, including the total cost, before finalising the purchase.
How to sell MITH
If you want to sell MITH tokens, the process you’ll need to follow is similar to the instructions outlined in step 3. You’ll need to look for the link or button to “Sell MITH”, and remember that you may not be able to directly exchange your tokens for the currency you want.
Which wallets can I use to hold MITH?
While you can store your MITH tokens in an exchange wallet if you wish, this will expose you to the risk of hacking and theft. It’s generally recommended that you move your tokens to a secure, private wallet which lets you retain control of your private keys at all times.
As MITH is an ERC20 token on the Ethereum network, you’ll need to look for a wallet that’s compatible with these types of tokens. Examples include MyEtherWallet, Ledger Nano S and TREZOR.
Find out more about storing your cryptocurrencies in our guide to wallets.
How Mithril works
The basic premise behind Mithril is to reward users for posting content on social media platforms based on the likes, comments and shares they earn. While millions of posts, photos, videos and more are uploaded to mainstream social media sites every day, very few contributors actually profit from the content they share.
From the Mithril white paper: “The ultimate goal of the Mithril team is to become the best and most optimised blockchain for social network applications. The first step to achieving this goal is to integrate MITH into all major social networks.”
Mithril, which was founded by Taiwan’s 17 Media, centres on a concept known as social mining, which allows users to earn Mithril tokens (MITH) by using applications within Mithril’s decentralised network. This process aims to automate the monetisation of content, with social mining rewards directly linked to a user’s influence and success on a social media platform. The more value they bring to the platform, the more MITH they will earn.
Built on the Ethereum blockchain, MITH tokens are designed to be integrated into new and existing social media networks. MITH was launched as a utility token in March 2018 on Lit, a social media platform that offers instant messaging, story feeds and friend discovery. At the time of writing (April 2018), the Lit beta version was available for download from the Mithril website.
What to consider when buying MITH
Not only are cryptocurrencies notoriously volatile, often experiencing substantial price fluctuations in as little as 24 hours, but they’re also quite complicated assets. If you’re thinking of buying any MITH tokens, make sure you carefully consider the factors that could potentially influence the value of these tokens in the future.
You should take the following issues into account:
- Supply. According to CoinMarketCap, at the time of writing (April 2018), the circulating supply of tokens was 305,054,520 MITH, out of a total supply of 1 billion.
- Distribution. As outlined in the Mithril white paper, 35% of the total pool of tokens will be available for social mining rewards. The quantity of these 350 million tokens that is available for discovery will be halved annually over the course of a predetermined but unspecified number of years.
- Use. You will be able to use MITH tokens across the Mithril application ecosystem, including apps such as dating services, premium content channels and live-stream applications. The tokens are also designed to be accepted throughout the Mithril Merchant Network as a payment method, beginning with retailers in Taiwan and Hong Kong. Dating platform Minni Interactive was announced as the first app partner to join the Mithril ecosystem in March 2018.
- Network growth. The initial larger MITH social mining rewards are designed to drive the growth of the Mithril network. The team hopes that as the user base and network scales, this will increase the value of MITH and therefore continue to provide an incentive for social mining.
- Limited availability. As MITH is a relatively new token, it’s currently only available on a limited range of exchanges. Until more exchanges add support for this currency, this could have an impact on public perception of MITH’s legitimacy.
- White paper. For an in-depth explanation of how Mithril works, including a closer look at its social mining algorithm, check out the project’s white paper.
- Ethereum and scalability. Though Mithril is currently based on Ethereum, the development team acknowledges that there are significant scalability issues that Ethereum will need to overcome in the years ahead. As a result, it is keeping a close eye on Ethereum’s potential scaling solutions like Plasma and Raiden Network as well as on competing platforms like EOS and Zilliqa. In fact, the Mithril team also mention in their white paper that they will consider launching their own blockchain if this will better address the needs of social network applications.
- Ability to achieve widespread adoption. The Mithril team’s first goal is to integrate MITH into all major social networks. This is an ambitious aim to say the very least, and the team’s ability to form partnerships with a range of platforms will be crucial to the future value of MITH.
Image source: Shutterstock
Disclosure: At the time of writing, the author holds IOTA and XLM.
