Staking KEY tokens acts as a barrier for malicious actors and safeguards the integrity of the SelfKey Marketplace. When a service provider has financial incentive to maintain the integrity of those services, they are far less likely to perform malicious acts within the ecosystem. By having a staking mechanism for service takers, we can prevent spam, manipulation and nefarious acts of abusing the system. By staking KEY tokens, you are unlocking and participating in the SelfKey Marketplace to access a broad range of financial, corporate, and immigration related services.
KEY tokens can be retrieved after 30 days, but you will lose access to that service provider. To avoid this, you can simply leave your stake to retain access to the SelfKey Marketplace. In the future, service providers will be able to determine how much users have to stake in order to register. For now, there will be a minimal standard amount applicable to all service providers.
How It Works
Now that we know what staking is, and what value it provides to the SelfKey ecosystem, let’s discuss how you will be able to start staking your KEY tokens.
Step 1: Download & Install the SelfKey Identity Wallet
First, head over selfkey.org and download the free SelfKey Identity Wallet. Not only will the wallet allow you to manage Ethereum, ERC20 and KEY tokens locally, but it will also give you access to the Marketplace. This is available on Mac OSX and Windows operating systems 64-bit systems. We currently do not support Linux, although that may change in the future.
The wallet should take less than five minutes to download and install. All files are saved locally on your machine, not in a centralized server that can be at risk of security hacks.
Step 2: Import An Existing ETH Address (Trezor, Ledger, Keystore, Private Key) or Create A New Address
If you already have KEY tokens on an existing Ethereum address, you can import it into the SelfKey Identity Wallet via Keystore File, Trezor, Ledger, or Private Key (not recommended). Remember that Ethereum wallets are simply interfaces for communicating with the blockchain, so all addresses are essentially interoperable.
If you do not own KEY tokens, you will have to acquire some from the various exchange KEY is listed on, and send it to your Ethereum address within the SelfKey Identity Wallet. You can acquire KEY tokens from the following exchanges: Tidex, Lykke, RightBTC, KuCoin, OkEX, Gatecoin, Trade.io, and Binance.
Our KEY token contract address is: 0x4cc19356f2d37338b9802aa8e8fc58b0373296e7
Step 3: Confirm KEY Tokens Are On Your Ethereum Address
Not only does the Wallet have a knockout design, but it’s also very light-weight and more secure than a typical online wallet because there is no centralized server that can be a risk of security hacks. KEY is added by default into the balance displays. If you’d like to add other ERC-20 tokens to the dashboard, you’ll need to add it by the token contract address in the settings of “My Crypto”.
Step 4: Navigate to the SelfKey Marketplace
To get started with staking, you will have to navigate to the menu on the top right of the wallet, and click on Marketplace. Now you will be directed to a screen showing different verticals such as crypto exchanges, incorporations, and more. Click on the “LEARN MORE” button displayed in the Crypto Exchanges box. You will then see a list of exchanges. Pick the one you wish to sign up with and click on the “VIEW” button.
Step 5: Choose A Product or Service to Unlock
The next screen will show a detailed description of the exchange (as an example below), as well as the required KYC documentation. To unlock the service provider, click on the “UNLOCK MARKETPLACE” button.
Keep in mind to complete the KYC submission, you will need to navigate to the SelfKey ID section and fill out the required information and upload the necessary documents. Eventually in the long run, we expect documents to be replaced by blockchain verified claims. Having a reusable KYC process is a bridge that will get us there.
Step 6: Stake KEY Tokens
Once you’ve clicked the UNLOCK button, you will be asked to stake your KEY tokens. At launch, the staking amount will most likely be set to 1000 KEY but this may change in the future. Each Marketplace vertical will have different amounts to unlock products and services. For example, Passports & Residencies will have a much higher requirement than Crypto Exchanges or Translations.
There is a small network transaction fee payable in Ethereum (ETH) to post your KEY stake. Please remember to have some Ethereum inside your address for this transaction to process.
Step 7 (Optional): Return Your KEY Stake
As mentioned previously, the staked tokens can be withdrawn after 30 days. In order to return your tokens, simply head back to the service provider and click on the designated button to get your KEY tokens back. There is a small network transaction fee payable in Ethereum (ETH) to post your KEY stake. Please remember to have some Ethereum inside your address for this transaction to process.
Congratulations, now you know what it will be like to stake KEY tokens. We’ve put a great deal of effort into making it as smooth and intuitive as possible, and we can’t wait for you to try it. The staking feature as well as the marketplace are ready to be deployed. Now we’re working on onboarding as many service providers as possible to ensure you have a great selection available on the marketplace. Thanks for reading, say “Hi” on Twitter and don’t forget to download the wallet 
