Hey, in a very recent article, I was describing everything that you can earn with Plutus in 2024, and it was indeed the best crypto card on the market in terms of rewards and value. However, the Plutus team has introduced massive changes in rewards for August 2024.
The main motivation behind these changes is that they performed an analysis of the sustainability of Plutus in the future and found that the rewards were given too easily for it to keep value long-term. The new white paper strategy aims at ensuring this sustainability.
The main purpose of this guide is to help understand what's the impact on existing users and new users and understand a bit why the changes were performed and what this may imply for the future.
Let's see what these major Plutus updates for august 2024 are (a part from the logo change):
What does it mean for existing users who had high levels of rewards like myself?
First of all, it, of course, means that you will get fewer rewards by spending the same amount with your Plutus card. For instance, I was getting 8% on all my purchases (because I was at G.O.A.T level), but now they've downgraded me to earning 4%. I also had 11 perks and now only have 6 perks every month. However, even though I was getting 8% on everything I bought, I was getting this percentage on a coin that was depreciating. For example, since I started investing in Plutus, the coin value went from $11 to $1.8 (last week). That means the value decreased by 85%, so this 8% was effectively just 1.28%. Moreover, to be at G.O.A.T level, I needed to stake 2000 PLU, which previously had a value of €22,000 and now only €5,000.
In general, if the plan for making Plutus sustainable works, it can be very rewarding in the long term. But as of today, many existing users who had high rewards levels, like myself, are naturally disappointed to see the rewards percentage go down. As with any coin or asset, predicting future prices is impossible. I still think the project might be good enough and sustainable (according to what I’ve seen in the E&Y report), so I’ll keep my Plutus card for now.
What does it mean for new users just starting to use Plutus?
Tip: If you're interested in making an account, please use my referral link to register. With it you will get 20€ worth of PLU when you register with it and 25€ more if you use the curve perk until the end of September. You would help me a lot :)
For new users, I think it’s super interesting because the price is very low. New users start with 3% rewards and 1 or 2 perks depending on their subscription level. New users who start staking PLU will get 10% on everything (up to 100 PLU), with a max reward cap of €100 per month (which ultimately means €10 per month until they have 100 PLU).
What’s also pretty nice from the new whitepaper is that the maximum amount of PLU you can earn per month increases proportionally with the amount of PLU you hold, matching the € value. This means that if you have 300 PLU, you’ll be able to earn rewards on €300 per month. I think this makes a lot of sense and should have been implemented before, but it’s a nice motivator for new people to accumulate the coin.
Another nice motivator is the implementation of the new CRY%, which gives you a yearly percentage on your accumulated PLU, similar to the earn programs of crypto exchanges. For example, new users get CRY 3%, meaning if you have 100 PLU, you’ll get 3 PLU extra as rewards at the end of the year.
I also believe that Plutus aims for an intrinsic value of about €10 per coin because they’re offering some perks on famous brands, where you can exchange 1 PLU for gift cards worth €10. If this and the CRY% are implemented soon (as promised), it will likely increase the value of the coin to this level, making everything more sustainable, in my opinion, and according to the E&Y report.
Summary of the main changes of the Plutus Whitepaper
The following table summarizes very well the new levels.
You can also compute how much money you could be making using the calculator at the end of this site or this site.
1. Updated Reward Levels and Compounding Rewards Yield (CRY%)
Plutus has restructured its reward levels to make them more accessible and sustainable. Starting with just 1 PLU, users can now unlock a 10% reward rate. The introduction of the Compounding Rewards Yield (CRY%) allows customers to earn up to 10% in compounded rewards by stacking their PLU tokens over time, with rewards paid out monthly. This system is designed to encourage long-term participation and engagement, with the potential to earn up to five times the original stack annually.
2. Introduction of Sub-Levels and Simplified User Experience
To enhance user engagement, Plutus has introduced sub-levels within its reward structure. These mini uplifts between major reward levels offer additional benefits, gamifying the process and making it easier for users to progress. To further simplify the experience, Plutus has revamped its interface, using vibrant colors and dynamic animations inspired by gaming dashboards. This refresh aims to make the platform more intuitive and user-friendly.
3. Migration to a New Blockchain and Dynamic Supply Model
Plutus has initiated a migration from Ethereum to a new blockchain, selected based on community input. This move aims to better support the platform's long-term mission of offering accessible and rewarding loyalty systems. Along with this migration, Plutus has shifted to a dynamic supply model, where only tokens in circulation count towards the total supply. This change reduces the risk associated with the previous premined supply and enhances the scarcity and value of PLU tokens.
4. FUEL: A Self-Sustaining Mechanism for Rewards
The introduction of FUEL represents a major step toward sustainability. This system recycles PLU tokens back into the Rewards Pool rather than issuing new tokens, ensuring that Plutus can continue offering rewards without inflating the supply. FUEL supports up to 100% of Compounding Rewards Yield and up to 50% of Reward and Perk emissions, making the rewards ecosystem more sustainable.
5. New Utilities for PLU Tokens
Plutus has expanded the real-world utility of PLU tokens, allowing users to redeem them for a variety of tangible benefits. New utilities include:
Plutus Miles: Redeem PLU for Air Miles, providing savings on travel.
Plutus Gifts: Exchange PLU for popular gift cards at discounted rates.
Plutus Travel: Earn cashback on travel bookings, offering significant savings.
Plutus Cashbacks: Redeem PLU for utility-based NFTs with affiliate cashback links, creating a marketplace for practical spending.
Plutus Merch Store: Use PLU to purchase exclusive Plutus-branded items.
6. Launch of PlutusSwap with Tokenised Deposits
Plutus wants to reintroduce PlutusSwap, a decentralized exchange (DEX) that allows customers to swap PLU rewards for fiat currency in a peer-to-peer fashion. This updated version introduces tokenized fiat deposits, stable digital currencies fully backed and redeemable at 1:1 value with the issuer, providing a seamless and secure way to convert PLU into spendable currency.
7. Strategic Impact and Governance
All these updates have been validated through rigorous testing and analysis by Ernst & Young and Haggard’s Crowther, ensuring they are robust and scalable. Plutus continues to prioritize community governance, with these changes subject to community approval, reflecting the platform’s commitment to transparency and user involvement.
Summary
To be honest, I did this guide to have a bit of a clear summary for myself and for anyone that is puzzled about the changes of Plutus happening in August 2024. At the first sight, I was a bit disappointed with the changes and with the value being drastically reduce, which was making that my initial investment was not worth it anymore. But I still have a bit of hope that things can change it, according to the report of E&Y. If the predictions about sustainability are correct, it may be that the new plan is actually better in order to have a higher and stable value of PLU in the future.
While I don't want to recommend directly what to do, I think if I was a new user I would be really interesting, now that the prices are lower and that the plan seems more sustainable. For existing users who keep the card, we basically have to hope that the value goes up over time and that we get back to recover our investments and our gains that we had in the higher % during this years :)
You would help me a lot if you would share this post or would use my referral link to register. With it you can get 20€ when you register with it and 25€ more if you use the curve perk until the end of September.
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