Axie Infinity is among the leading play-to-earn (P2E) blockchain-based games. Its native ecosystem token, Axie Infinity Shards (AXS), is also one of the largest crypto assets by market cap. This guide details some of the uses of AXS, how to buy it, and why a casual investor may consider investing in the token.
Introduction
Axie Infinity is a Pokémon-inspired blockchain-based P2E game currently with hundreds of thousands of players. It was launched in March 2018 by Vietnamese video game developer Sky Mavis. In 2020, the game conducted a successful crowdfunding exercise through the Binance Launchpad IEO (initial exchange offering), raising close to $3 million.
Players get rewarded in two types of tokens for skilled gameplay and participating within the Axie Infinity ecosystem. These are:
- Axie Infinity Shards (AXS);
- Smooth Love Portion (SLP).
AXS is a governance token that will be the focus of this article, while the SLP is used to facilitate the breeding of digital pets within the game called Axies. These Axies are non-fungible in nature and can be bred, raised, battled, and traded within the Axie Infinity ecosystem. The two tokens can be earned by players as rewards for winning battles, leveling up, and evolving.
However, playing is not the only way to get your hands on any of the two tokens because you can also buy them off crypto trading platforms. They are available on centralized and decentralized exchanges, and in this guide, we will focus on the former option, which is much simpler and more appealing to most beginners.
Why Invest in Axie Infinity (AXS)?
The AXS token is an important ingredient within the Axie Infinity ecosystem for several reasons. As an investor, there are four main reasons to buy AXS tokens:
- Governance – the token was created first and foremost to enable holders to participate in important decision-making that affects the development and maintenance of the game. For example, AXS holders can vote on how the game’s ecosystem funds or the treasury funds are allocated and spent;
- Staking – AXS Staking was launched on September 30th, 2021 allowing holders to earn a portion of the inflation tokens and in-game profits. Staking involves locking a portion of your assets within a smart contract for various reasons, including earning the right to participate in transaction validation;
- Value transfer – AXS tokens are the native tokens used for making payments within the Axie Infinity ecosystem, enabling players to buy Axies, virtual land, and other in-game items;
- Speculation – traders, may also find utility with AXS tokens by buying and selling them for a profit on crypto exchanges or just buying and hodling them over long periods. For instance, their IEO price was $0.10, which ballooned to an all-time high of $165 in November 2021. That is a price appreciation of 165,000% in just one year.
Where to Buy Axie Infinity (AXS)
AXS can be bought in some of the leading cryptocurrency exchanges, which can be classified into two categories:
- Centralized (CEX);
- Decentralized (DEX).
Centralized exchanges are the more common option for buying, selling, and trading several of the available cryptocurrencies, including AXS. These platforms are controlled by a central entity such as a company or an organization hence the term centralized. Decisions affecting the operations of the business are made by this single entity.
In contrast, a decentralized exchange is a platform whose governance and leadership are distributed over a group of entities of individuals. This way, there is no single person or entity responsible for making crucial decisions affecting the operation of the exchange or ecosystem.
When choosing which platform to use to purchase your AXS tokens, consider the following factors:
- Accessibility – you need to make sure that the platform under consideration is available in your jurisdiction and they have customer support that covers your region;
- Regulatory compliance – centralized exchanges need to adhere to local and international laws that protect users against selfish practices and sometimes fraud; therefore, you need to know how an exchange is regulated and which bodies are regulating it;
- Ease of use – this factor is especially important to beginners to the cryptocurrency scene who may be confused by a user interface that is not as intuitive to use;
- Security – the security of an exchange is crucial, especially within the crypto industry, where media reports on regular attacks. Research on the history of a platform to understand whether they have suffered any safety incidents and, if so, what they have done to secure customer assets following that event.
The following section will present a step-by-step process for buying AXS through a centralized exchange. We will use the Uphold exchange as an example, a fully regulated, highly secure multi-asset platform with support for precious metals, US-based stocks, various national currencies, and over 80 cryptocurrencies, including Axie Infinity Shards (AXS).
How to Buy Axie Infinity (AXS) on Uphold (step-by-step)
Step 1 – Sign up or log in to Uphold.
First-time Uphold users will need to sign up to the platform. This is a simple and easy-to-do process. First, visit Uphold.com and click on the Sign-Up button on the top right of the main navigation.
Provide your email address and create a strong password for accessing your account. Next, you will be requested to undergo the mandatory KYC (know your customer) process, where you will provide further details about yourself and verify your identity.
If you already have an Uphold account, you can skip the above process and head straight to the login page at wallet.uphold.com. Provide the email address you used to signup and the password.
Step 2 – Explore the user interface.
Once you log in to Uphold, there are three columns with which you can interact. For this tutorial, we will focus on the third column labeled “Anything to Anything,” but do check out our full Uphold review to understand the essence of the first two columns.
The column title ‘Anything to Anything’ signifies that with Uphold, you can convert or trade between any of the supported assets. For instance, you can trade Gold for Bitcoin, Silver for USD, or even Apple stock for AXS, etc.
Pay attention to the three tabs within the trade column:
- Transact – allows users to buy, sell and trade any of the supported assets on the spot. The transaction settles immediately subject to the payment method used;
- Repeat – enables users to set up recurring trades to buy, sell or trade between various assets at predetermined times and dates;
- Limit – with this feature, a user can establish a price target to execute a buy, sell or trade order, and the request will be completed automatically if the price is met.
Let’s begin with a simple spot transaction using the first tab outlined above.
Step 3 – Specify a payment method.
This step assumes that you want to purchase AXS using a debit card or bank account instead of exchanging from an already held asset such as Gold, Silver, or any of the supported national currencies on Uphold. Therefore, first, you need to add a payment method to your account.
Click on the [From] field to display the available options.
Click on either of the two [+] signs next to ‘Banks’ or ‘Debit cards’ options depending on which option you want to use.
Adding a debit card is very simple as once you click the [+] symbol shown above, Uphold will load a card addition dialog box where you are only required to input the card details, and you are done.
To add a bank account, first, you will need to specify which deposit method you wish to use between a bank or wire transfer.
Note: Bank transfers are instant, while wire transfers take a few days to settle, meaning that if you opt to deposit funds using the latter method, your transaction will only be credited to your account once the funds have been received by Uphold.
Next, specify the currency denomination of the funds you will be depositing to your Uphold account.
Finally, you can then use the bank account recipient details provided by Uphold to make the deposit from your bank account’s user interface.
Once you add a payment method you are done. The option will then be listed as an available option for future transactions where you do not have to redo the process all over again.
Step 4 – Specify the asset to buy.
Click anywhere within the [To] form field to open a dropdown list of all the available assets supported by Uphold. Select [Cryptocurrencies] on the top slider bar to jump to the cryptocurrencies list, then scroll down to locate the AXS asset. Alternatively, you can use the search box to search for AXS.
Next, specify how many tokens in AXS you wish to buy or the equivalent in fiat currency using the middlebox between the [To] and [From] form fields.
Step 5 – Confirm the transaction.
Click the [Preview] button to continue to the confirmation stage. Here Uphold will display the transaction details, including the quantity of AXS to buy and the rate at which the platform will be selling the tokens to you.
Additionally, you will be able to confirm your chosen payment method wherein case you have multiple cards or bank accounts linked to your Uphold account; you have a chance to confirm that you have selected the right one.
Click [Confirm] to authorize the transaction. Your Axie infinity tokens will be deposited into your account instantly unless you have used the wire transfer option, whereby the tokens will be deposited as soon as the deposit is received.
How to Use Repeat Feature on Uphold to Buy Axie Infinity (AXS)
Uphold enables its users to set up a repeat transaction for any asset they wish to buy, and the purchase transaction can be repeated as many times as the user demands. To set this up, follow these simple steps:
Step 1 – Activate the Repeat feature.
On the main navigation of the transaction column, select the second tab labeled [Repeat], which opens extra options specific to the Repeat functionality.
To activate this feature, click on the [Repeats] option or the [Never] title, or the forward-facing arrow next to it. Next, choose how frequently you want to execute your AXS buy order which could be daily, weekly, or monthly.
This action not only activates the Repeat function but also specifies the regularity of executing the order.
Step 2 – Specify Start and End period.
Next, you want to define the start and end of the repeat purchases. To do this, click on the [Starts] tab to open up a calendar pop-up box where you can choose the start date. Below that, you can also specify the end date by clicking on the [Ends] tab to open up the same calendar and choosing the date of the last order.
Alternatively, you can opt to specify the number of occurrences instead of choosing a hard date. To do that, select the [Occurrences] tab as shown below, then type the number of times to repeat the order or use the + and – symbols to add up or subtract for the ideal number.
The end date will be automatically displayed, taking into account the number of occurrences selected.
You have the option to also label each Repeat order to easily identify it within your order history. The rest of the transaction details can be filled in, as shown in the previous section of this guide.
How to use the Limit feature on Uphold to buy Axie Infinity (AXS)
The third way to buy AXS on Uphold is to use the Limit order transaction whereby the user has the option to set a target price at which they intend to buy their favorite asset giving users extra control for their purchases and trades.
Step 1: To set it up, select the [Limit] Order tab as shown below:
You can set up the transaction details as though you are setting up a normal transaction using the [Transact] tab shown earlier. In the [From] field, provide a payment method, while in the [To] field, choose AXS token.
Enter the number of AXS tokens you desire to acquire in the [To] area, as well as the fiat amount in the middle form field. To acquire Axie infinity tokens at a certain price, use this method.
Next, you will specify how long you want to keep the order open before it can be canceled in case the market price does not fall to your target level. The three options include manually canceling it, automatic cancelation at the end of the day or at a specific future date.
Click on the [Duration] tab to choose amongst the three options. Once you specify your cancelation method, click the [Preview] button below to continue to the confirmation screen.
The difference between this Spot and the Limit order types is that on the confirmation page, Uphold will display a default rate on the former while displaying the user’s target rate with the latter. Everything else should be similar.
Once the market price reaches the target price for your AXS tokens, the order will be automatically executed. Otherwise, you can cancel the order manually or set up the system to cancel it automatically.
Final thoughts
That is the simple process to buy Axie Infinity (AXS) tokens. As detailed in this guide, there are several other places through which you can buy or trade AXS, but Uphold is currently one of the leading regulated, credible, and secure crypto brokerage platforms.
For the gamers, there is always the option to participate within the Axie infinity universe and earn some AXS by playing, but even then, circumstances may dictate that you purchase some tokens. If that happens, we hope that this tutorial will come in handy.
Tip: Anyone new to the cryptocurrency space may look up all of the supported crypto exchanges to buy EOS and other asset-related metrics on the largest cryptocurrency market aggregator Coinmarketcap.
Disclaimer: The content on this site should not be considered investment advice. Investing is speculative. When investing, your capital is at risk.
Frequently Asked Questions on Buying Axie Infinity (AXS)
What is Axie Infinity (AXS)?
AXS is an Ethereum-based asset native to the Axie Infinity, a play-to-earn (P2E) game where players breed, raise, battle, and trade digital creatures called Axies. AXS, which is one of the two tokens that can be earned by the players during gameplay, is used as a governance token within the Axie Infinity ecosystem.
Where can I buy AXS tokens?
Other than earning AXS during an Axie Infinity game, the token can also be bought off centralized and decentralized cryptocurrency exchanges. In our tutorial, we used an example of how to buy AXS using Uphold. However, there are several other platforms at your disposal. Always research a platform before using it to invest in any digital asset for security reasons.
Why invest in Axie Infinity?
Three reasons to buy AXS are:
- To participate in the governance of the Axie Infinity ecosystem;
- To stake the tokens for passive rewards;
- To purchase Axies within the Axie infinity marketplace;
- To speculate by trading the tokens for potential profits.
Where can I store Axie Infinity (AXS) tokens?
Axie Infinity Shards (AXS) can be stored in any crypto wallet that supports Ethereum and ERC-20 tokens or through the platform on which they were bought.
