Masternodes are part of the infrastructure of certain crypto currencies. They are interesting to speculators because they offer yield. This yield is denominated in the underlying crypto currency. Masternodes earn this yield because they provide services to the cryptocurrency infrastructure.

At this time the main role of masternodes is sending coins anonymously and instantly in addition to mining. These services add value to the users, create more security for the masternode network and decentralise the node network.