Using the LTC:STEEM Diesel Pool + an Inktober image.
At the beginning of the month, I decided to raise my STEEM POWER to a level where my base upvote would be worth more than $0.02. I believe that this happens when one's SP is worth more than $480. I needed to buy about $400 in STEEM
I live in the United States and did not want to give my bank account information to an international firm. It so happens that I created a coinbase account several years ago.
I received a HIVE account during the STEEM/HIVE schism.
I didn't want to create any new accounts for my funds transfer; so I decided to use HIVE Engine.
The first thing I noticed when trying to move funds was that the volume of traffic on the STEEM:HIVE trading pair was extremely low and that there was extremely low. The total volume on this pair is under a dollar a day.
Even worse. There was a huge gap between the buy and ask price on the exchange and that the buy and ask bids were jealously guarded by a bots. I would take a huge haircut if I tried moving $400 through the exchange.
I then decided to look at the LTC:STEEM deisel pool on tribaldex.
I discovered that there was only $78 dollars invested in the pool and that there was huge slippage on transactions. Processing a single STEEM through the pool would result in a percentage drop in the price.
So, I decided to invest in the pool so that I could move more LTC through the pool.
I now own 44% of the shares of this pool. I have received $0.237 in fees from the pool so far.
STEEM Diesel Pools on Hive-Engine
There are 5 STEEM pools on Hive-Engine. These are pools were users can swap or invest their STEEM. One receives a fee each time a person uses the pools. I invested 0.25 LTC and 250 STEEM in the LTC:STEEM pool.
The table below shows each of the pools. Columns show the name of the pool, the liquidity in USD, the STEEM portion of the investment. The 30 day volume and 30 day fees collected.
| Pool | Liquidity | STEEM Amt | 30 Day Volume | 30 Day Fee |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| HIVE | $14,083 | 63,791 | $11,110 | $13.90 |
| BEE | $7,667 | 34,931 | $3,353 | $4.20 |
| BLURT | $6,766 | 30,722 | $6,017 | $7.52 |
| BTC | $366 | 1,655 | $155 | $0.19 |
| LTC | $103 | 467 | $569 | $0.71 |
The pool delivered 71 cents on a 103 dollar investment in 30 days. I guess that is about an 8% APR
The Inktober Picture
The 19th prompt for #intober was "arctic." I saw a documentary that claimed that igloos were designed to keep polar bears out. The classic igloo has a dome made of ice with a small arch doorway. The arch door is large enough for an eskimo but too small for a polar bear.
A small portal allows Eskimos to sleep comfortably.
Conclusion
Buying STEEM on Hive Engine is a bit like trying to get a polar bear through the opening of an igloo.
The diesel pools provides ways to swap STEEM for HIVE, BEE (which is the native coin of Hive Engine), BTC and LTC.
Unfortunately, the effectiveness of the pools is determined by the liquidity of the pool. The HIVE, BLURT and BEE pools are well funded. The BTC and LTC pools are a bit problematic.
The pools provide a mechanism where you can invest STEEM and receive a portion of the fees from the pool