AI agents are rapidly becoming integral to the web3 landscape, enhancing user interactions and optimizing decentralized applications (DApps).

Web3 represents a transformative digital ecosystem shift characterized by decentralized networks and enhanced transaction efficiencies. As competition intensifies within this landscape, industry players increasingly seek to harness emerging technologies to gain advantages. A significant trend is the rise of artificial intelligence (AI) agents — intelligent systems capable of performing tasks autonomously and making decisions based on their analyses.

AI agents are seen as transformative tools in web3, enabling users to navigate complexities and enhancing interactions within DApps. With their numerous capabilities, these agents aim to improve community engagement and streamline user experiences, ultimately reshaping the functionalities of web3.

The Functionality and Applications of AI Agents

AI agents operate through steps that include goal definition, data gathering, analysis, decision-making, monitoring and continual learning. They utilize large language models (LLMs) to process vast amounts of data and adapt to dynamic environments effectively. Unlike traditional programs, AI agents can self-learn and adjust their actions based on real-time conditions, making them suitable for complex tasks in the web3 environment.

: AI agents, such as those on platforms like Discord and X (Twitter), facilitate communication and interaction among community members, fostering discussions and connections.

: By aggregating data from various sources, AI agents can track market conditions and emerging trends in order to provide valuable insights to users.

 (DeFi): AI agents in DeFi (termed “DeFAI”) are gaining traction for their ability to analyze data, assist in investment management and automate trading processes, enhancing user experience and decision-making.

: From managing portfolios to executing trades, AI agents are increasingly being used for general task automation, allowing users to optimize their interactions with decentralized platforms.

The following prominent projects are at the forefront of the AI agent landscape.

While the potential of AI agents in web3 is significant, there are several risks that must be addressed.

As advancements in AI technology continue, the risks associated with AI agents may evolve into opportunities for growth. Projects such as 

 are exploring new economic models that prioritize sustainable applications. Overall, AI agents hold the potential to redefine user experiences in web3 and pave the way for innovative applications and services.

Advanced

AI agent banner.png

AI Agent Industry Report: Its Rise in Web3 Amidst AI Hype

Learn all about earning interest on crypto, and the various ways you can earn crypto interest on Bybit for high yields!

Part 1: The Basics of Earning Crypto Interest

Cryptocurrency markets are well-known for their inherent volatility. While this poses nontrivial risks, it also opens up unique opportunities to earn yields and returns that the traditional stock market investor may not even dream of.

These substantial yield opportunities have grown larger and more accessible with the development of the 

 (DeFi) industry. The real game changer has come about with the boom of crypto 

(DEXs), both striving to give customers a diversity of financial products.

In this article, we’ll show you how to earn interest on crypto and, more importantly, how to choose investment opportunities that will optimize your yields.

Jargon to Know to Help You Earn Interest on Crypto

Before diving into the best opportunities to earn interest on crypto, let’s cover some of the most important terms used in the crypto finance industry.

 (APY) is yearly interest that accrues to your investment, taking into account the effect of compounding.

 is the measure of a crypto’s market value, which is derived by multiplying its current market price by its circulating supply.

 (TVL) refers to the total market value of all the crypto funds currently locked in a DeFi platform’s 

 refers to a substantial and usually prolonged market decline. Bear markets are characterized by the dominance of selling rather than buying among market players.

 is a decentralized digital network that stores transactions in chains of blocks. Transactional activity on a blockchain is controlled collectively by all of the network’s participants/users. Most of the activity on a blockchain network — exchange of funds between users, confirmation of transactions, and business operations — involves the use of crypto coins.

 (PoS) is a consensus mechanism used on some blockchain networks for validating block transactions. In PoS blockchains, network users lock a certain amount of their crypto assets on the platform for the right to validate transactions and receive staking rewards.

 refers to locking crypto funds, both on centralized and decentralized platforms, in order to generate income.

 is a process whereby you deposit your crypto assets in a DEX’s 

in order to receive rewards in tokens and fees.

 occurs when the price of a deposited asset in a liquidity pool decreases from the time when you deposited it.

The primary methods through which you can earn interest on crypto are staking and lending. Staking involves locking your funds on a blockchain to help validate transactions, in return for which you earn crypto rewards from the platform. Additionally, some centralized platforms — such as CEXs and 

Staking, however, has moved beyond its original intent and now often refers to a plethora of investment products on CEXs and DEXs, in which funds aren’t specifically used for blockchain validation.

 refers to depositing your funds to lending pools (and sometimes to other types of pools as well) with DeFi lending and borrowing protocols, as well as with centralized crypto lending platforms.

When considering lending and staking crypto, of key interest to investors are the security and investment risks involved.

Staking is often viewed as a safer option than lending. After all, staking is a fundamental process on a blockchain network, and is thus well-protected by the overall blockchain security model. If staking fails on a blockchain, the entire blockchain fails, along with all of its 

 (DApps). Due to this critical importance of staking, its safety is secured against all but the most severe hacks.

DeFi lending also takes place on DApps residing on top of the underlying blockchain, which introduces an additional layer of vulnerability. Furthermore, DeFi lending presents some very specific security risks, such as 

Therefore, staking generally poses comparatively fewer security threats to your funds as compared to lending. 

The risk-vs.-return between staking and lending, however, may not be as clear-cut. In general, established lending protocols such as 

 offer lower interest rates for large-cap, popular cryptocurrencies, as compared to standard staking interest rates. However, some smaller lending platforms might offer extremely high-interest rates, usually for highly volatile, small-cap coins.

As with everything in the world of finance, the higher the rate offered, the more risk the investment carries. The downside risks of investing in very new, “dark horse” cryptos available on some lending platforms might be extremely high. Furthermore, when you use DeFi lending protocols, you’ll also face the potential for impermanent loss, due to the volatility of crypto assets. Nevertheless, protocols usually assist with mitigating the losses by distributing a portion of the trading fees to liquidity providers.

Another important factor in the staking vs. lending comparison is collateralization. On lending and borrowing platforms, borrowers are first required to lend funds to the protocol as collateral for their borrowed amounts. Staking, on the other hand, involves no collateral.

Staking on Exchanges vs. Staking on Blockchains

If you decide to stake your crypto funds, your two main options will be via CEXs, and/or participation on a blockchain platform, which can be done directly by running a validator node or by joining a staking pool.

Running a blockchain validator node lets you earn staking rewards directly. However, the technical setup and minimum investment requirements are often significant. For example, to run a validator node 

 you’ll need to download the entire blockchain, be online at all times to avoid “slashing” penalties and run all the requisite software.

Financial requirements for validator nodes are also far from trivial. 

For instance, Ethereum validators must stake at least 32 ETH (around $89,787 as of Feb 4, 2025).

As an alternative to direct staking, you may join a staking pool such as 

 for ETH staking. These staking pool solutions allow users to stake with significantly lower technical and financial commitments. Many ETH staking pools also offer stakers a 

 that represents the staked ETH and its associated rewards, which can be used for various DeFi purposes. However, unlike direct blockchain staking, participating in a staking pool makes you dependent on that pool’s operator.

Instead of staking on a blockchain, whether individually or via a pool, you might consider staking via a CEX. For many crypto investors and users, the CEX route is more affordable, less risky and less technically complicated.

This is largely due to two key factors — the security of your funds, and customer support. Major CEXs are the largest crypto trading platforms in the industry. Their security setups and customer support provide key advantages over blockchains and DApps.

Any potential hacker attacks on a blockchain could lead to potential loss of funds. At the same time, you may use a custodial wallet on a major CEX so that your funds are at lower risk of being hacked. Naturally, CEXs aren’t immune to hacker attacks. However, the larger ones feature cybersecurity as a critical part of their business model. Following the insolvency of one of the world’s leading exchanges, 

, many major CEXs such as Bybit also include 

 (PoR) to make their holdings entirely transparent to the public. Thus, custodial wallets on these CEXs are relatively more secure as compared to noncustodial blockchain wallets.

Staking on a CEX may also help you access investment products with more stable and predictable rates and terms. For novice investors, it could also be a less complicated way to enter the world of crypto staking.

Additionally, staking on CEXs allows you to use coins that are normally not “stakeable” via a blockchain platform. Blockchain staking only works with cryptocurrencies based on PoS networks. For instance, the world’s largest crypto, 

 (BTC), isn’t based on a PoS network, so it can’t be staked on a blockchain.

Best Crypto Staking Coins for Highest Interest

The volatility of the crypto market means that there’s dynamic change when it comes to the best coins for earning interest. Regardless, the best interest rates in the staking game are normally available via CEX staking. Since CEXs offer a wide array of coins and products, there are often great deals available.

CEXs also offer staking for popular stablecoins — such as USDT, USDC, DAI and more — that can’t normally be staked on a blockchain. In addition, some of these coins have great rates on offer. 

For example, Bybit’s current interest rate for USDT staking is 555%, one of the highest rates in general for staking.

The table below shows the top five coins available for staking on Bybit.

Coins are listed in descending order by interest rates. Interest rate and market cap data are valid as of  Feb 4, 2025. (Data source — Bybit.com; Market cap data source — Coingecko.com)

Given the volatility of the crypto industry, the key to earning the best crypto interest rates is to keep an eye on the market and source the best deals as they arise. 

One way to deal with the inherent volatility of crypto markets is to invest using stablecoins. The leading stablecoins — USDT, USDC and DAI — are readily available for staking on exchanges, though not directly on a blockchain.

Some crypto investors, in chasing the best possible rates, move their funds in and out of centralized and decentralized staking and lending opportunities. However, this strategy might backfire, especially with smaller investment amounts, due to the fees involved in withdrawing and depositing your funds on some platforms.

Thus, to earn a higher interest rate in the long term, it’s best to choose a trusted platform in which to stake and hold your crypto, instead of moving your assets around.

Another important consideration for maximizing your returns is the type of interest rate applicable to a staking or lending product. Some of these pay interest based on APY, while others use the APR calculation method.

The key difference is that APR is a simple interest rate calculation that doesn’t take compounding into account. On the other hand, APY is based on compounding interest. All other things being equal, an 

 with the exact same numeric interest rate.

Interest rates on crypto investments do change over time. These changes can be abrupt, and quite substantial. This is particularly true for DeFi lending investments on platforms like Compound, which has algorithmic interest rates that can change within a single day. On the other hand, staking interest rates are comparatively less volatile.

Are You Eligible to Earn Crypto Interest? 

Before making your first investment, check your eligibility, as requirements may vary from platform to platform. As the first, obvious requirement, you need to have some actual cryptocurrency funds on hand.

On most established centralized platforms, you also need to satisfy 

 (KYC) and residency requirements. The residency requirement is particularly relevant for Americans, as some CEXs outside of the U.S. don’t provide service to U.S. residents.

 (DYOR) so that you understand the risks and technicalities involved in crypto staking and lending.

Part 2: How to Start Earning Crypto Interest on Bybit

Bybit is one of the leading crypto trading and investment platforms in the world, offering a wide range of interest-bearing products. To start investing with Bybit, you’ll first need to 

. You can register your new account with Bybit via email and mobile.

Bybit offers you three primary ways to buy crypto on its platform easily. The most straightforward way is the 

 option, which provides a way to purchase cryptocurrency within seconds, and allows you to pay for cryptocurrency using a range of supported fiat currencies. Accepted payment methods for One-Click Buy include bank card payments and third-party payment channels. The latter option includes a range of third-party providers, such as Mercuryo, MoonPay and others.

Alternatively, you can buy crypto using the 

 option, which lets you set up a regular investment plan based on the popular 

 (DCA) strategy. When setting up your Auto-Invest options, you can choose the fiat currency used for the payment, the cryptocurrency of your choice, the total purchase amount and the frequency of regular DCA allocations 

 daily, weekly, bi-weekly or monthly. A great benefit of Auto-Invest is the ability to start your Bybit journey with a defined, conservative and highly popular trading strategy.

 option to buy your crypto at zero fees. Bybit’s P2P Trading platform allows two users to enter a transaction to buy or sell crypto and supports over 60 payment currencies. Transactions are between two users, with Bybit simply acting as the mediator during the P2P order execution.

Besides the abovementioned methods for buying crypto, you can also directly deposit crypto funds into your Bybit account from a variety of centralized and decentralized sources — for instance, accounts on other exchanges, 

 page on your Bybit account’s homepage. From there, choose the

section. The available cryptocurrencies will be shown in this section. Click on

next to the crypto you’d like to transfer to Bybit. Note that you’ll need to specify the asset being deposited and the decentralized network — for example, Bitcoin (BTC), 

 (TRX) — from which the funds are being sent. 

, you’ll see Bybit’s deposit address for the chosen crypto. Simply use this as the destination wallet address in your wallet or account on another exchange.

Part 3: 7 Ways to Earn Interest on Crypto With Bybit

There are seven key ways to earn interest or income on your crypto with Bybit. Let’s take a closer look at each one.

1. Earn Interest on Crypto with Staking (Bybit Savings)

 product that lets you earn competitive APRs over either fixed or flexible investment periods in a range of popular cryptocurrencies, including BTC, ETH and USDT. For flexible-term investments, the hourly interest accrued is distributed to you once a day at 12:30 AM UTC. You can unstake your funds at any time, making this a very flexible option for investors. APRs are determined by the type of coin used and the existing market conditions.

For fixed-term investments, APRs are determined on the day you start staking, and depend upon the type of coin and the chosen investment tenure. Bybit doesn’t charge any management fees for this product.

Bybit Savings users with a VIP1 or higher membership designation are also frequently offered special deals for these investments, such as high APRs on popular 

 pairs and region-specific campaign offers.

Staking crypto via Bybit Savings is suitable for those who would like to have guaranteed yields from popular coins, and — in the case of the flexible-term alternative — would like to retain the ability to get their funds back quickly. This is an excellent product for various types of investors, particularly beginners who are seeking guaranteed returns, and those who prefer secure, passive forms of deriving crypto income.

Beginner

how to earn interest on crypto.png

How to Earn Interest on Crypto With High Yields

Chainlink has launched the DeFi Yield Index (CDY Index) to provide real-time lending rate data, aiming to become crypto’s leading index provider.

The S&P 500 dropped 0.76% despite Trump delaying tariffs. Investors await earnings and jobs data. Gold rebounded 0.96% as Trump’s tariffs fueled safe-haven demand, despite pressure from a strong U.S. dollar. Prices remain near record highs, with analysts expecting a push toward $2,850 amid economic uncertainty. Coindesk Indices, an index measuring broader cryptocurrency market performance was up by 6.00%, with Bitcoin rising by 3.55% and Ether dropping by 3.03%, in the past 24 hours. Trade these markets and more with up to 500x leverage on Bybit MT5 using this 

Today's top performer is ENA, which surged nearly 23.2% following Ethena & ConcreteXYZ Launch $100M Vaults with 20% APY in MOVE Rewards.

Ethena Labs (ENA), founded in 2023, introduces USDe, a synthetic dollar on Ethereum, offering a decentralized alternative to traditional stablecoins. It features the 'Internet Bond' for global savings, using delta-hedging to manage volatility and aiming to transform the financial ecosystem by enhancing Ethereum's utility. Ethena Labs is 

 USDe and sUSDe into DeFi ecosystems with new vaults on ConcreteXYZ for the Movement Labs ecosystem. Each vault is capped at $50M and launches on Feb 3. Users can earn Ethena rewards, Concrete Points, and ~20% APY in MOVE tokens. Deposits open soon, with more details from Concrete and Movement.

Check Out the Latest Prices, Charts, and Data of 

 to provide real-time lending rate data, aiming to become crypto’s leading index provider. Using its oracle network and data from Space and Time, the index enhances transparency and accessibility in DeFi, where lending has surged to $47 billion TVL. By aggregating on-chain yields, Chainlink seeks to establish itself as the standard for verifiable financial benchmarks, aligning with growing investor interest in DeFi yield opportunities and potential ETF offerings that could integrate these returns into traditional finance.

Yesterday, BTC Spot ETFs had a net outflow of $56.8M, with a $8M inflow to GBTC and a $64.8M outflow from non-GBTC funds.

, a decentralized platform for creating AI training datasets, has launched its testnet v0.1. Users can earn Fractals (points) by joining the testnet and qualify for the future FRAC token airdrop. To get started, connect an EVM wallet, create an agent, and deposit test ETH. The longer your agent runs, the more Fractals you collect. The project has raised $6M in funding and confirmed the FRAC token.

3.png

Chainlink Launches DeFi Yield Index to Set New Benchmark for Crypto Lending Data

Vine Coin is a meme coin created by Vine co-founder, Rus Yusupov. This token is notable for its deep-locked liquidity and support from several celebrities.

 is the way they can capture the public consciousness. Well-designed coins that people are truly enthusiastic about can lead to plenty of fun and rewarding opportunities within the crypto space. A great example of this concept is the new Vine Coin project. By appealing to nostalgic fans of 2010s internet culture, this meme coin's price was able to double in just a few short hours. To learn more about this coin that’s taking the investment world by storm, explore our Vine Coin guide.

 is a meme coin created by Rus Yusupov, the co-founder of Vine. It’s a 

-based token that’s notable for its deep-locked liquidity and support from several celebrities. As with many other meme coins, VINE's main purposes are entertainment and amusement.

Vine is a now-defunct social media platform that operated between 2012 and 2017. Like TikTok, it allowed people to share videos with each other, but it only supported videos of six seconds or less. Before it was shut down, it was a popular site for creating memes.

Vine Coin’s straightforward operational system runs through the 

. This standard consists of a set of protocols governing things like account mapping and token addresses. The creator of Vine Coin was able to use this system to quickly set up a meme coin that follows standardized rules and could seamlessly be integrated into exchanges and other 

Like other coins based on Solana, Vine Coin uses a joint 

 (PoS) and proof of history (PoH) consensus method. These validation methods allow each new VINE token transaction to be confirmed both by validators staking funds on transactions, and by validators checking a historic record of the blockchain. They support both excellent security and high scalability, which is a major reason why Yusupov chose Solana for Vine Coin. Even when Vine Coin is being rapidly rapidly, Solana ensures that transactions are fast and affordable.

Vine Coin's creator hasn't yet released a lot of detailed information on this token. There aren't any available tokenomics, which is fairly common for these sorts of meme coins. Even without precise metrics, there are several things people know about Vine Coin. It currently has a maximum supply of 1 billion tokens, with no plans to implement token 

 or other deflationary mechanisms. The current circulating supply of Vine Coin is set at 999 million tokens, indicating that most of the coin's distribution is focused on liquidity.

Vine Coin has had an exciting journey. It was first announced on Jan 22, 2025 in a 

 in which he encouraged his followers to relive the fun of Vine through a crypto token. After an initial starting price of $0.16, Vine Coin prices reached $0.42 in less than 24 hours. These impressive gains made it one of the hottest up-and-coming meme coins. Thanks to news like a trader 

, many people started looking into this crypto.

The initial enthusiasm for Vine Coin reached new heights once Elon Musk commented on the coin on Jan 26, 2025. Vine was previously owned by Twitter/X, and Musk mentioned that his team is looking into reviving the Vine app. This helped to push the VINE coin price to a new all-time high of $0.4699 and a market cap of $469 million. 

Social media is currently filled with speculation that the Vine app may become a replacement to TikTok, so many people feel that investing in Vine Coin will help show support for bringing back the Vine app.

Looking to trade Vine Coin tokens? Bybit now offers the VINEUSDT Perpetual contract. To get started, you’ll first need to create a Bybit account, then fund it with cryptocurrency and navigate to the 

There's no denying that VINE is a promising meme coin. It's currently sitting in the 

, and is attracting a lot of attention on social media. Despite a decline from its all-time high, VINE's market cap is still sitting at $131 million as of Feb 3, 2025. The coin's price seems to be closely related to news concerning Yusupov, Elon Musk and TikTok bans, so users might be able to expect more price jumps in the future.

However, keep in mind that the volatility that makes Vine Coin so exciting also makes it risky. Bad news or distraction within the crypto world could easily bring prices down. The coin doesn't have much utility, and its creators haven't discussed any future plans, so no one knows what's next for Vine Coin. The VINE token has a high-risk, high-reward profile, which isn’t a great motivation for highly conservative traders. 

For best results, traders need to be willing to accept some risk, 

 and avoid tying up all their funds in VINE before buying or selling it.

If you're in the market for trending meme coins right now, Vine Coin is worth checking out. This meme coin doesn't have much information or utility, but it’s backed by one of the original founders of Vine. Furthermore, there's a growing interest in reviving the Vine app, which has helped push Vine Coin prices to new heights. If Vine does relaunch its app, Vine Coin could continue to attract a lot of excited fans.

Intermediate

vine crypto.png

Vine Coin (VINE): A Meme Coin Tribute to Vine's Video Legacy

Bybit Learn

Daily Bits

Justin Drake, an Ethereum Foundation researcher, proposed a major overhaul of Ethereum's consensus layer called "Beam Chain" during a presentation at DevCon in Bangkok.

Ripple_(XRP)_1.png

Ripple_(XRP)_2.png

Ripple_(XRP)_3.png

The S&P 500 fell 0.29%, led by declines in materials, healthcare, and real estate, while tech and consumer staples rose. Investors are awaiting economic reports, including the Consumer Price Index, which could influence Fed rate expectations. Coindesk Indices, an index measuring broader cryptocurrency market performance was down by 0.91%, with Bitcoin rising by  2.77% and Ether dropping by 1.40%, in the past 24 hours.

Today’s top performer is XRP, which surged 13.3% following the release of insights on how institutional custody solutions can transform crypto exchanges.

Ripple (XRP), launched in August 2012, is a blockchain technology company focused on improving international payments with its cryptocurrency, XRP. Institutional crypto custody is poised to transform crypto exchanges, enabling them to securely and compliantly manage tokenized assets. As tokenization grows, 

 emphasizes that exchanges adopting institutional-grade custody solutions can attract institutional clients, comply with evolving regulations, and unlock new revenue opportunities in digital asset markets.

Justin Drake, an Ethereum Foundation researcher, proposed a major overhaul of Ethereum's consensus layer called "

" during a presentation at DevCon in Bangkok. The Beam Chain would replace the existing Beacon Chain, modernizing Ethereum's staking mechanism, block production, and cryptography. Key changes include reducing the validator bond from 32 ETH to 1 ETH, enhancing censorship resistance, speeding up transaction slots, and integrating zero-knowledge (ZK) proofs to improve scalability and future-proof the network against quantum computing threats. Drake emphasized that Beam Chain would be implemented as a single major upgrade rather than incremental changes. The overhaul aims to accelerate Ethereum's evolution, with plans for development beginning in 2026 and testing in 2027.

Yesterday, the BTC Spot ETF data shows a total flow of $39.2 million, with $17.8 million in GBTC and $57.0 million in non-GBTC investments.

" airdrop checker, allowing community members and industry participants to verify their eligibility for XION token rewards ahead of the mainnet launch. The airdrop, which allocates up to 5% of the total $XION supply, recognizes long-time supporters and contributors to the XION ecosystem. 69% of the tokens are dedicated to the XION community, with 31% going to broader supporters from other Web3 ecosystems. The initiative aims to reward those who have shown unwavering belief in XION’s vision and Web3's transformative potential.

Justin Drake Proposes Beam Chain Overhaul to Modernize Ethereum's Consensus Layer

Grab Up to 5,000 USDT in Rewards

Grab Up to 5,000 USDT in Rewards