Counting 500+ community-operated mix nodes, the Nym mixnet is the largest decentralized mixnet in the world today. The network is maturing: from Nodes.Guru to No Trust Verify, Hermes Stakepool and many others, we are seeing professional mix node operators providing outstanding quality of service. An emerging, broad and active community of stakers pledge their trust in these nodes by delegating NYM tokens to them, making them more likely to mix traffic. This ensures privacy, security, honest behaviour and high quality of service across the entire network.
It sounds simple: if you want to contribute to the Nym privacy infrastructure and earn mix mining rewards for your efforts, just run a good mix node, get recognized by the community and attract delegations. But what makes a good mix node? And how can one gain recognition in the Nym community and earn the trust of delegators?
Welcome to the Nym Delegations Program!
The primary motivation for the delegations program is to encourage further decentralisation of the Nym mixnet in terms of
- VPS providers
- and number of operators.
It is also worth noting that mix node operators in low-income countries often have a proportionally higher cost of setting up infrastructure. This can make running a node prohibitively expensive, especially in the early stages before they get to sufficient stake to start being part of the active set and earning rewards. The Nym Delegations Program aims to bridge this gap.
If you operate a mix node in an underrepresented part of the world, you can apply for temporary delegations from the Nym treasury to ensure your node gets into the active set more often so you begin earning rewards for providing privacy. Importantly, via mentorship from Nym community OGs, the program also aims to support dedicated node operators like you with best practices and know-how to run outstanding mix nodes and attract community delegations.
Key info
- How much: 200K NYM tokens for 25 eligible mix nodes
- Until when: Delegations apply until node reaches 70% saturation
- Deadline to apply: Monday 8th of May 2023
**EDIT: due to popular demand, the deadline for submissions is extended by a week to Monday, the 15th of May.**
Can I apply?
There are five criteria you node has to meet to be eligible for delegations:
- You are running a reliable mix node with good quality of service
- Your node has below 20% saturation
- You do not have other highly saturated mix nodes
- Your node is in an underrepresented part of the world
- Your node is not running at a major VPS provider such as Hetzner, Google Cloud, Azure, or AWS, or an unreliable one such as Contabo.
Additionally, it’s worth mentioning that becoming a successful mix node operator is an involved process, far beyond just setting up and operating a node. When it comes to the Nym mixnet, community and trust is the name of the game — if you are looking to set-and-forget, this program is not for you.
On the other hand, if you are eager to contribute to the most robust privacy infrastructure the world has ever seen and to the community operating and securing it, you will enjoy mentorship in doing so from top Nym contributors as part of the delegations program!
What do I get?
- If selected, the Nym treasury will delegate 200K NYM tokens to your mix node. This will ensure your node gets to mix traffic fairly often, earning you mix mining rewards in the process. The treasury delegation will remain on your node until it reaches 70% saturation organically, through community delegations.
- You will receive a special role on the Nym Discord server. You will also get access to a private channel on Element, where you can hang out and work with other delegations program participants, and receive ongoing support and mentorship from distinguished Nym community OGs and node operators.
- You will learn the ins and outs of operating a Nym mix node to the highest standards: hardware requirements, monitoring, maintenance, and more.
- You will learn about the Nym network, community and ecosystem and how you can establish yourself as a trusted, serious player via contributions.
- If you decide to build something or contribute in some way, you can come on the Nym community call as a guest to introduce yourself and your project (this will be decided on an individual basis).
How do I apply?
If your node meets the criteria above, simply fill in this application form before Monday, the 8th of May.
**EDIT: due to popular demand, the deadline for submissions is extended by a week to Monday, the 15th of May.**
You will need to include:
- Mix node ID
- Explorer link to your node
- Location
- Your VPS/server set up
- Email/telegram
Note: if selected, you will then be invited to a video interview to meet the team and verify the details of your operations.
What happens after the program?
This is just the beginning for the Nym Delegations Program. If successful, in future iterations, the scope and scale of the program will be extended. When you no longer need treasury delegations, the community will be counting on you and your new-found knowledge and skills to reach and empower even more people around the world, and to decentralise the Nym mixnet further!
Resources
All program participants must complete KYC; void where prohibited including USA — more information here.