We all know that Ethereum is the largest and oldest network of all the networks used to build smart contracts, develop Decentralized Apps, and process peer-to-peer transactions. The large amount of DApps built on the top of the Ethereum network makes it bulky and overloaded. This results in high transaction fees and slow block time.
However, there are networks available in the crypto space that are high-performing and cheap when compared to Ethereum. But the transfer of assets from one network to another is not that easy. You have to first transfer your assets back to the Ethereum network and then you can move them to your required blockchain.
Doesn’t this seem time-consuming and expensive?
Well, yes it does. Switching assets from one network to another requires time and money.
But that was before the arrival of cross-chain bridges!
Cross-chain bridges are designed to make your crypto life simple. They provide you with a hassle-free platform to seamlessly transfer assets from one chain to another blockchain at low fees and in less time.
One such bridge that allows easy switching of assets between BSC and Polygon network is xpollinate.io
Developed by 1 hive DAO and powered by Connext, this bridge enables easy transfer of assets from one chain to another.
Now, let’s dive in to see what it is and how it works?
What is Xpollinate.io?
Xpollinate.io is a cross-chain bridge that allows you to Swap DAI, USDC, USDT tokens among xDai, Polygon, and the Binance Smart Chain networks.
In the backend, xpollinate uses Connext to enable fast, non-custodial transfers between different EVM-compatible blockchains. You can see the available liquidity for each token on each network while navigating through the website. You can only swap the assets from one chain to another if the liquidity for that token on the specified chain is available.
Before getting to the topic of transferring tokens between the BSC network and the Polygon network using xpollinate.io, let’s take a quick look at the Binance Smart Chain Network and the Polygon network.
What is Binance Smart Chain Network?
Binance Smart Chain is a different blockchain that runs in parallel with Binance’s native chain i.e., the Binance Chain. It is primarily developed to introduce programmable applications onto the Binance network like Smart Contracts.
The main objective of building this network was to overcome the issues that most De-Fi users experienced with Ethereum based DApps which have higher transaction fees and slow block time.
However, the developers made the Binance smart chain network EVM compatible. EVM refers to Ethereum Virtual Machine. EVM compatible means that Ethereum based DApps, tools and other components can easily be migrated to the Binance Smart Chain Network without much modifications.
BNB is the native utility token for the Binance network. It is the same for both Binance Chain and the Binance Smart Chain Network. Binance tokens follow BEP-2 standard while BSC tokens follow BEP-20 standard which is the same as that of ERC-20 standard on the Ethereum Network.
Any transaction carried out on the Binance Smart Chain Network requires a nominal transaction fee (known as the gas fee to complete the transaction). This has to be paid in the form of BNB only.
What is Polygon Network?
Polygon is a multichain scaling solution for Ethereum. The network aims to solve the problem of Ethereum’s large transaction fee and time by using a layer 2 sidechain that runs parallel to Ethereum blockchain.
Polygon helps to increase the final throughput from the Ethereum Blockchain by using plasma technology that processes transactions off-chain before finalizing them on the Ethereum mainnet.
MATIC is the native token for the Polygon network which is built using the ERC-20 protocol. Users can use it to pay the transaction fee and stake them to make the polygon network secure. You can buy MATIC from any of the centralized and Decentralized exchanges listed here: Coinbase Pro, Binance, and 1inch Exchange.
How to use Xpollinate.io?
It’s pretty simple to navigate and use this website. All you have to keep a wallet ready to use with the BSC network and Polygon network entact in it. In this article, I am using my all-time favorite wallet, Metamask.
Scroll down to learn how to add these networks to your Metamask wallet.
If you don’t have your Metamask account ready to use please refer to our article on How to install and use Metamask? Here, I am directly proceeding with adding the networks to the Metamask account.
To add Polygon Network, follow these steps:
- Open Metamask.
- Click on the Hamburger icon on the right-hand side.
- Click on Settings.
- Scroll down to click Networks
- Hit ‘Add Network”
- Enter the details as listed below in each column
Network Name: Matic Mainnet
New RPC URL: https://rpc-mainnet.maticvigil.com/
ChainID: 137
Symbol: MATIC
Block Explorer URL: https://explorer.matic.network/
- Click Save
- Now you are successfully connected to Polygon Network.
To add Binance Smart Chain Network follow the below steps:
- Follow the same steps from 1 to 5 as guided for the polygon network
- Enter the details listed below to add BSC network
Network Name: BSC Mainnet
New RPC URL: https://bsc-dataseed1.binance.org/
ChainID: 56, or 0x38 if 56 doesn’t work
Symbol: BNB
Block Explorer URL: https://bscscan.com/
- Hit Save to add the network.
You can also add the third and the last network that xpollinate.io supports as at the time of writing this article – xDAI STAKE.
Enter the information provided below to add the xDAI STAKE network to your Metamask account.
- Follow the same steps from 1 to 5 as guided above and then enter the details provided below followed by hitting the Save button to add the network.
Network Name: xDai STAKE
New RPC URL: https://rpc.xdaichain.com/
Chain ID: 100
Symbol: xDai
Block Explorer URL: https://blockscout.com/poa/xdai
Now, let’s move on to see how to transfer your assets between the networks:
- Go to https://www.xpollinate.io/
- Click to connect your wallet.
- Select Metamask and hit connect.
- A pop up appears asking you to connect your Metamask wallet to xpollinate.io
- Click next and then connect to interact with xpollinate.io
- Once you are connected, your account address and the selected chain will appear at the top-right of the website.
- Select the chains “from which” and “to which” you want to transfer the assets.
- Make sure to switch the network to copy the receiver’s account address to avoid any loss of funds.
- Enter the receiver’s address.
- Now, select the cryptocurrency that you want to transfer from the list of available options.
- Once you have entered all the required details, check them again to verify they are correct because if any one of them goes wrong you can lose your funds, and no one responsible for it other than you do. So, take my advice and make sure that the details are correct before you proceed.
- Click on the blue button which says “Cross-chain transfer”
- Now, you will receive some requests in your Metamask wallet asking you to use your tokens at xpollinate.io
- Click to confirm and proceed.
- Now, it’s time to enter the amount that you want to transfer.
- Once you enter the amount you wish to send, the website will automatically show you how much money the recipient gets after the completion of the transaction. It will also show you the estimated fees that will be charged during the process.
- Now, click on the Swap button to transfer the tokens from one chain (say BSC) to another chain(say Polygon).
- The process might take 20-30 secs of time to complete the transaction meanwhile please do not refresh the page or push any button.
- Once the transaction is complete you can switch and see the balance on your account on a different chain.
- It’s done.
- Similarly, you can use any chain and currency to transfer the assets among them.
FAQs
Can I transfer any asset from one blockchain to another using this bridge?
Currently, xpollinate.io supports the transfer of USDT, USDC, and DAI only. You can only play around with these assets only. If you want more blockchains and currencies to be added to the network you can send a request to the xpollinate community using their DISCORD channel.
Before you go…
Now, you see how easy it is to transfer your assets from one chain to another using a cross-chain bridge. We should definitely thank these developers for making our crypto journey a lot easier.
The future lies in connecting blockchains using such techniques that pave an easy path for transferring assets from one chain to another with low transaction fees and low response time.
The website is still under the Beta phase, so users are requested to use the website at their own risk. Please do your own research or consult your financial advisor before taking any action in the crypto space.
