Has anyone done an in-depth analysis of the cost of buying/running mining hardware vs taking the same amount of $$$ the mining would cost and just buying the coins upfront?
I’m older and I buy most of my crypto. My son and I are going to give helium mining a try and maybe build a cpu miner. Buying vs mining, buying is good but boring, mining is more exciting. It’s really all about the ROI. If you can get a miner and pay it off in a reasonable amount of time then mine. If you want to tinker then mine and have fun as you pay off the equipment and make a few bucks.
This entire ecosystem relies of both holders of cryptocurrency and miners. One can’t exist without the other. Like @jwcollect said it’s all about the ROI. Mining is the most conservative way to invest in this space, buying and holding is much the same as doing the same with stocks and bonds. Its far more lucrative but carries more risk. Mining being more conservative will not make you rich overnight and is a longer process to getting wealthy.
Analyze the risks your willing to take and what you think is worth your effort. For me personally I deciding it was not worth the risk. Had I held though I could easily be worth over 30 Million dollars right now. I made $100 off of Dogecoin 18 months ago when it worth much much less, I accepted the 10% gain and sold out.