Switch Polkadot and Ethereum Tokens with Polar Path

Published in

kilt-protocol

4 min readOct 10, 2024

The KILT team is pleased to announce a new “Polar Path” feature that allows users to switch tokens between Polkadot parachains and the Ethereum network. Polar Path is a pallet for Polkadot parachains, already implemented on the KILT chain, that allows parachains to make their native token accessible on the Ethereum network.

The Snowbridge-based web app uses the Polar Path pallet to provide a front end that lets you visually switch tokens between parachain and ERC-20 tokens and transfer switched tokens between Ethereum and parachain networks via Snowbridge.

Project Polar Path is funded by the Polkadot community and developed by the KILT core team. This guide shows how to use the KILT parachain, but the web app will support other parachains in the future.

Prerequisites

To use Polar Path and Snowbridge, you need a Polkadot wallet and Ethereum wallet extension added to your browser. You need to set up the accounts and have sufficient funds in each account to cover the transaction fees.

Set up wallets

Metamask

Install the metamask extension
Create an account
Import the KILT token by clicking + Import tokens, paste “0x5d3d01fd6d2ad1169b17918eb4f153c6616288eb” into the Token contract address field, and click Next.

Polkadot Wallet

Install a Polkadot wallet, e.g polkadot{.js} extension, Talisman, Subwallet etc.
Create a new account if you don’t already have one.

Switching and Transferring

Switching between Asset Hub and KILT

To switch from KILT to Asset Hub, you need:

Any Polkadot wallet which allows an Asset Hub account with a connected KILT account, KILT tokens, and DOTs on KILT and Asset Hub to pay XCM fees.
Asset Hub account, with the same address as your KILT account and DOTs for the existential deposit.

To switch from Asset Hub to KILT, you need:

Any Polkadot wallet with a connected Asset Hub account, KILT tokens on AssetHub, and DOTs to cover transaction fees
Asset Hub account, which is the same address as your KILT account and DOTs.

Transferring tokens between Asset Hub and Ethereum

To transfer from Asset Hub to Ethereum, you need:

Asset Hub account, which is the same address as your KILT account and enough DOT to cover transaction fees, KILT tokens on Asset Hub
Ethereum Wallet, with an account added

To transfer from Ethereum to Asset Hub, you need:

Ethereum wallet, with an account added and enough ETH to cover transaction fees on Ethereum mainnet
Asset Hub account, with enough DOT to cover the existential deposit

Switching Tokens

Go to app.snowbridge.network

To switch between KILT and ERC-20 tokens, select the Polar Path tab. Click Connect Polkadot to connect the app to your wallet extension.

Choose the source and destination networks, and the app loads accounts from the connected wallets to show the Source Account options. The Beneficiary account is always identical to the Source Account. As you change the source or destination network, the other drop-down menu adjusts accordingly to match the appropriate opposite source or destination.

Finally, set the amount. The app now estimates the transfer and XCM fees. If you don’t have sufficient DOT on KILT to cover the XCM fees, don’t worry — clicking the submit button opens a pop-up that lets you transfer some of your DOT from Asset Hub to KILT.

Click the Submit button, sign the transaction in your wallet, and wait for the switch to complete.

Transferring Tokens

Go to app.snowbridge.network

Select the Transfer tab to transfer switched tokens between Ethereum and Asset Hub. Click Connect Ethereum to connect the app to your wallet extension and set the Source Account.

Select the Beneficiary account via the dropdown, which populates from the connected Polkadot wallet.

Finally, set the amount and select KILT as the token you want to transfer. The app now estimates the transfer fees. If you don’t have sufficient ETH to cover the fees, don’t worry — clicking the submit button opens a pop-up that lets you transfer some of your ETH.