Bitcoin and WBTC in MEW: Cross the Blockchain Divide

MEW is widely known as an Ethereum blockchain interface providing a user-friendly solution for managing ERC20 tokens and interacting with Ethereum contracts.

The Ethereum ecosystem provides a wide range of assets, products and dapps to engage with and that list is growing every day, but Ethereum is not the only blockchain out there.

Investors in the crypto space are likely to benefit from diversifying their interests. MEW aims to make such diversification as easy as possible for users, and the best place to start is surely the biggest blockchain of them all (so far) — Bitcoin.

Via our partnerships with Changelly, Bity and Kyber Network, you can get both actual Bitcoin and the Bitcoin-backed ERC20 token WBTC, right from your MEW wallet. Here’s why you might want to and how you can do it!

ETH/ERC20 to Bitcoin

While Ethereum’s advantage, for many users, lies in its smart-contract capability, Bitcoin is often seen as the best store of value in the crypto space. After all, it’s the original blockchain cryptocurrency, it’s been around for a while, and it still has the highest conversion rate to fiat currencies.

MEW allows you to invest in Bitcoin without leaving the wallet. Of course, first you need a Bitcoin wallet address where your new Bitcoin will be sent.

While you can’t generate a Bitcoin wallet with MEW, there are a few non-custodial Bitcoin wallet options available. We like Blockchain.com, as well as any hardware wallet that supports Bitcoin, but do your own research to find the right wallet for you. Please take the same precautions with a Bitcoin wallet as you do with MEW: keep your mnemonic phrase or private key secure, and don’t share your personal information with anyone.

If you already have some ETH in your Ethereum address, or even tokens like BAT that you may have accumulated by using decentralized services, you can use MEW to exchange them for Bitcoin.

To do so, go to the Swaps page in the wallet dashboard, choose ETH or one of the supported tokens on the left, select Bitcoin on the right, put your Bitcoin address in the “To” field and follow the prompts to complete the transaction.

Bitcoin to ETH/ERC20

What if you already have some Bitcoin? You can also swap Bitcoin directly for tokens, without swapping for ETH first and having to pay fees twice.

On the Swaps page, select Bitcoin on the left and find the token of your choice on the right. Put the address where your tokens will go into the “To” field, and the address where the Bitcoin will come from in the “BTC address for refund” field (if transaction is not successful, the Bitcoin will return safely to that address).

While you’re here, you can also use your Bitcoin to add ETH into your wallet to pay gas for any future transactions with your new tokens. Just choose ETH on the right when swapping.

ETH/ERC20 to WBTC

If you would like to take advantage of Bitcoin’s stability and liquidity without leaving the Ethereum blockchain, you can swap your ETH and ERC20 tokens for WBTC via the Kyber Network in MEW.

WBTC is an ERC20 token backed 1:1 with real Bitcoin. This “wrapped” Bitcoin can help decentralized exchanges and dapps increase volume and participation, while also allowing for the development of Ethereum smart contracts that involve Bitcoin transfers.

Give it a try!

We hope this brief guide encourages you to explore the possibilities of using MEW beyond sending transactions on the Ethereum blockchain.

We are always working to introduce new features that you can access right from your wallet dashboard — and we are always excited to see users try them out!

Sincerely,
Team MEW

MyEtherWallet.com
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