How to set up a Keplr Wallet
Keplr, the Interchain wallet, is an intuitive browser extension cryptocurrency wallet for networks in the Cosmos ecosystem. The wallet is officially supported on Google Chrome and can also be used on the Brave browser. If you are coming from the Ethereum ecosystem, Keplr is the Metamask equivalent in the Cosmos ecosystem, which displays all the chains you can interact with. In this guide we will be going through the step-by-step process of installing the Keplr wallet and then outlining its core features towards the end.
Let’s begin!
Installation
Step 1)
We start off by installing the Google Chrome/Brave extension. You may also access the Google Chrome store and we recommend to search the Keplr extension to confirm that it is the original one.
Step 2)
Access the Keplr browser extension page and click the Add to Chrome button.
Step 3)
Confirm that you want to proceed and add the Keplr extension by selecting the Add extension option.
Step 4)
On adding the extension to your browser, navigate to the extension tab to confirm Keplr was added by accessing the extensions tab which is in the form of a puzzle piece icon, located beside your Google profile avatar on Google Chrome or the music controller tab on Brave Browser. On selecting this you will see that Keplr is listed, with the option to pin it among other options.
Step 5)
Next, click on Keplr from the extension list and you will be directed to the page shown below:
Step 6)
We will proceed with the Create new account option. If you are not using a ledger device, please skip to step 7.
The following only applies if you are using ledger:
If you wish to use a ledger device(currently Ledger is the only hardware wallet that is supported by Keplr), click on the Import ledger option, give your account a name and create a password for your wallet.
A browser pop-up will appear requesting to connect your ledger(ensure pop-ups are enabled). Plug the ledger device into your system navigate to the Ledger Cosmos App. If you do not have the Ledger Cosmos App installed on your Ledger you must install it by connecting it to Ledger Live.
Click on Next and then click on connect to connect your ledger device.
Your ledger device is connected!
Step 7)
Enter an Account name which will be the name of your wallet and set a password.
Step 8)
After clicking on next you will be prompted with a mnemonic seed confirmation tool which verifies that you have stored and taken note of the 12 words by having you set them in the correct order.
Once you are done setting up your Keplr wallet you may access your wallet at any point in time by clicking on the extensions tab on the top right hand corner of your Chrome browser.
Step 9)
Now you can send and receive any token to your Keplr. On opening the wallet you will see Cosmos listed on top and below it is the wallet name you have given your wallet. Since Keplr is a wallet for the Cosmos interchain ecosystem, you have created several addresses including an Akash address.
We will be using $AKT in our example, however Keplr supports several networks. You may click on the drop-down and select the Akash network.
Deposit
In order to deposit your $AKT, click Deposit. The address is your Akash wallet address. Transfer $AKT from an exchange, by simply withdrawing using this address. Clicking on the wallet address will have it automatically copied.
Receive
In our case, we will be withdrawing a small amount of $AKT to our Keplr wallet from the Osmosis DEX.
Once sent, verify that the balance on the wallet has been updated.
Once you have confirmed that the $AKT was received and displayed in Keplr, click on Stake or proceed to your dashboard by clicking here.
Stake
On clicking Stake, which is a term used interchangeably with “delegate”, you will be directed to the Keplr dashboard on the website. A list of validators will show up.
1. Select the validator of your choice.
2. Click on the manage button and enter the amount you want to delegate.
3. Click on the delegate button to carry out and finalize the delegation process.
Redelegate
Redelegation means switching to another validator. Therefore you are transferring your delegation from your current staked-to validator to another validator. To do so:
1. Click on Stake on the respective network from the Keplr Extension panel.
2. Click on the Manage button on the panel of the current validator.
3. Select the down arrow and click on Redelegate.
4. Select the validator you want to redelegate to.
5. Enter the amount you want to redelegate and click on the Redelegate button to confirm the transaction.
Using the Redelegate feature instantly stakes your assets to another validator, provided that any prior redelegation cooldown period has elapsed.
This refers to the minimum amount of time required that you must wait until the next redelegation. In the case of Akash, the redelegation cooldown is of 21 days.
You will be only able to undelegate or delegate to the valdiator. You just won’t be able to redelegate from the specific validator within this time period.
Undelegate
Undelegating refers to the process of having your tokens frozen for a pre-determined amount of days before having them available/liquid. The amount of days is set by the network itself and can only be changed through on-chain governance. More information on on-chain governance here.
In order to undelegate:
1. Click on Stake on the respective network from the Keplr extension panel.
2. Click on the Manage button on the panel of the current validator.
3. Click on Undelegate.
4. Enter the amount you want to undelegate and click on the Undelegate button to confirm the transaction.
Once you have carried out the undelegation transaction, also known as unbonding, you must wait for the entire duration as your tokens will be frozen for a pre-determined amount of days before they will be available.
Important:
Note that to carry out the above-mentioned operations, delegate, redelegate and undelegate, you must have enough tokens available in your account balance to be able to execute such operations.
Concluding remarks
That’s it! That is all it took to set up and utilize the Keplr wallet. It will take some practice to get accustomed to using it, however, the process is the same for every network that it supports.
At the time of writing Keplr has achieved a new milestone of having reached half a million users. Keplr amongst others is one of the key tools that is serving the IBC community during this remarkable increase of IBC-enabled chains and growth of the ecosystem.
Stay tuned to Simply Staking for more Keplr related guides and documentation:
- Website: https://simply-vc.com.mt
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/SimplyStaking
- Discord: https://discord.gg/Kpzc58Gu9a
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