Glossary

Mining as a Service (MaaS)

Easy

Cloud mining or mining-as-a-service allows users to rent the mining capacity of hardware in companies.

What Is Mining as a Service?

Cloud mining offers a way to mine cryptocurrencies without having to deal with the physical hardware. If you want to mine Bitcoins, you'll have to buy powerful mining rigs, and mining pools aren't cheap. If you don't want to make the investment, but still want to participate in this exciting market, cloud mining is one of the solutions.

Cryptocurrency mining-as-a-service allows you to purchase computing power that is used to mine coins like Bitcoin and LiteCoin. You can then exchange these coins for fiat currency or another cryptocurrency. Some of the benefits of this feature include:

  • You don't have to worry about extensive upfront costs because it's a pay-as-you-go plan that charges you based on how much computing power is used.

  • You don't have to worry about downtime because the service provider maintains all the hardware and software needed for mining.

  • You can choose how long you'd like to mine and can switch it off at any time.

Some cloud mining companies even sell contracts for future delivery of the coins you've mined. This way you can lock in an exchange rate and guarantee your returns before having any risks involved with hardware or software failures.

Mining as a Service certainly has some downsides too.

Cloud mining companies, by nature of their operations, have to rely on outside sources to provide hardware and maintenance. The problem is that most cloud mining companies are not upfront about who they use as their service providers and other critical information. This makes it hard to know whether you can trust them or not.

Mining is not stable. The first problem with cloud mining is that the promised income is constantly fluctuating. Cryptocurrencies are highly volatile and their value can drop overnight without warning. Even if you've been promised a set daily income, there's no guarantee that you'll receive it in full or at all.
cloud mining service may not have the best mining algorithm, or users may not be allowed to choose the algorithm of their choice. This means that you are forced to mine what the company chooses for you, regardless of your preferences. Even if you do mine coins that interest you, due to the difficulty rate involved, there is no guarantee that you will ever actually see those coins in your wallet. Many people who have lost money investing in cloud mining did so because they never received any payout at all.

Cloud mining services have been known to shut down without warning, abandoning all their customers without compensation or explanation. While many platforms claim to offer high-yield investment options, they might not be real at all. 

A little research and cautiousness can go a long way in identifying a potential fraudulent MaaS company.