Ledger vs Trezor – find out who wins the battle of the best crypto wallet

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Ledger vs Trezor – find out who wins the battle of the best crypto wallet

The Ledger vs Trezor hardware wallet comparison is THE battle of the crypto wallet kings and one of the most sought after research articles among cryptocurrency newcomers. 

Both of these cryptocurrency hardware wallets have many similarities and specific peculiarities that might appeal to different users. Our research and review looks only at the facts and features of Trezor and Ledger and weighs their pros and cons before making a final verdict. 

Ledger and Trezor are premium manufacturers of secure hardware wallets, the most secure type of crypto wallet due to their security against hackers. With over 1500 coins supported by these brands and the option to swap between endless different cryptocurrencies, it is easy to see why the two wallets have staunch supporters. 

But.. after extensive research on the features of both, we pick the Ledger Nano X in this battle of the hardware wallets.  Here’s why:

Content

  1. What is Ledger?
    • How does Ledger work?
  2. What is Trezor?
    • How does Trezor work?
  3. Ledger vs Trezor – which is better?
    • safety and security
    • supported currencies and third party integrations
    • Android and iOS mobile support
    • Price
    • Mobile and web integrations
    • User experience 
    • Connectivity
  4. Final verdict – battle of the hardware wallets

What is Ledger?

Launched by cryptocurrency experts in 2014, Ledger was created to provide solutions for safe blockchain transactions. Ledger, a company with headquarters in Paris, offers two  cryptocurrency hardware wallets: the Nano X and Nano S. With either of these wallets, you can store the private keys for your cryptocurrencies offline and protect your coins permanently from hackers. 

How Does Ledger wallet work?

There are several reasons that users prefer the security of hardware wallet to other types of wallets. The most significant reason is the fact that they are not susceptible to hackers. When you conduct transactions using cryptocurrencies, you need cryptographic private keys. Usually, these keys are stored online, which makes them a target for hackers. 

Ledger’s hardware wallets use a USB-type secure device to store the private keys to your cryptocurrency offline, preventing anyone with online access from hacking them. With Ledger wallets, you can send and receive cryptocurrencies and also run other applications from the wallet. 

If your hardware wallet is stolen or lost, there is also a 24-word recovery phrase that you can use to recover your private keys and your stolen cryptocurrencies. Ledger Nano S and Nano X are similar in functionality, but the more expensive one, Nano X, offers more features. Ledger’s Nano X hardware wallet is commonly considered the best crypto wallet on the market by many users.

What is Trezor?

Founded by SatoshiLabs in 2013, Trezor has gained a significant boost in its reputation after creating several user-friendly products. Trezor makes two hardware wallets for securely storing your cryptocurrencies: Trezor One and Trezor T. 

While Trezor T uses a touch screen, Trezor One comes with two control buttons. If you’re a beginner, you will not have trouble using Trezor hardware wallets due to the excellent tech support and the detailed how-to guide on their website. Trezor’s recent cryptocurrency wallet, Trezor T is widely regarded as the top competitor to Ledger Nano X for the title of best crypto wallet.

How Does the Trezor wallet work?

Trezor wallet works similarly to the Ledger wallet. It is offline cryptocurrency storage that guarantees the safety and security of your private keys from hackers. All transactions on Trezor are confirmed in the device so that the wallet keeps all private keys away from the internet. Before sending your cryptocurrency, Trezor allows you to check the screen to confirm the address and the transaction fees.   

Trezor T is a significant upgrade on the older Trezor One. Trezor T has a card slot that allows you to insert MicroSD cards and encrypt a security pin code for enhanced protection. Its screen touch feature also makes it easier for beginners to use than the Trezor One, which has control buttons.

Ledger Vs. Trezor: Which Is Better?

While researching the best cryptocurrency wallet, it is hard to look further than these two brands. 

As a beginner, you can’t go wrong with either of these devices for outstanding user experience. Both offer excellent tech support and step by step guides on their respective websites. If you’re finding it hard to decide between the two, here’s a comparison to help you.

We compared Ledger and Trezor over a wide range of important uses, and arrived at a verdict based on the user features of both. In the Ledger Vs. Trezor battle, we considered several features in particular – the safety and security, user experience, interface, cost, complexity, customer support – in order to rank the two. 

Safety and Security

Winner: Ledger Nano X

Whether you’re a beginner or a professional cryptocurrency investor, your first priority is always the safety of your cryptocurrency. Both Ledger and Trezor have outstanding safety features that put them above their peers in the cryptocurrency market. Trezor improved its security significantly by adding new features to Trezor T compared to the older version Trezor One. 

With Trezor T, users can input their pins, passwords, and seed phrase using the touchscreen rather than on the keyboard used on Trevor One, making the privacy keys secure from attacks on the web. Ledger also requires its users to input passwords and pins on the hardware directly. Because both device’s firmware is open source, users can view the code and report weaknesses. 

Trezor is favoured by many diehard crypto enthusiasts because it’s built on open source code, making it’s security more transparent to users. While this is philosophically in tune with the crypto community it doesn’t mean Trezor hardware wallets are more secure than Ledger ones.

Indeed, while Ledger requires the user to generate a seed phrase while setting up his wallet, Trezor is more flexible with this. The strict approach of Ledger is better for security, while Trezor’s flexible approach makes it more user-friendly. 

Anti counterfeit protection

Ledger’s device authenticity validation makes it stand out against Trezor in the security stakes. In crypto, device counterfeiting is one tactic used to steal your coins. Device counterfeiting is when you unknowingly buy or receive a fake device instead of the genuine article. Once you load your private keys on the fake device, they are stolen and your crypto is gone. Ledger is the only device to protect against this with software. They offer an online device look-up and validation, which you should do when you’re setting up your Ledger (before you send your private keys to the device).

Overall, we like knowing that the hardware wallet we buy online is the real deal and because Ledger provides this peace of mind, we rate it’s security over the Trezor T.

Price

Winner: Ledger Nano X

At the time of writing, the Trezor One was around $59 while Trezor T was around $190 although it’s always best to check the price when you buy.

On the other hand, Ledger Nano S costs $60 while Ledger Nano X costs $119.

You can check the Ledger price here.

Trezor One is the cheapest. But Nano S is also affordable and supports more coins than Trezor One. So if you’re on a budget and want to hold coins like Monero or Cardano, choose the budget Ledger Nano S over the Trezor One. 

Check out the price of Trezor from authorized reseller PrivacyPros here.

The Ledger Nano X generally comes out cheaper than its competitor Trezor T and so wins in this category.

Supported Currencies 

Winner: Ledger Nano X

Ledger (both Nano S and Nano X) supports over 1800 coins and tokens in its hardware wallets compared to Trezor T, which supports 1,649 coins and tokens. Trezor One supports fewer tokens than Trezor T. Because of the higher number of supported coins and tokens, Ledger Nano X wins this stage in the Ledger vs Trezor battle. 

Android and iOS Mobile Support

Winner: Ledger

All Ledger and Trezor wallets support Linux, Macbook, and Windows computers. However, while Ledger supports both Android and iOS mobile devices, Trezor only works on Android. 

If you’re an iPhone user, you would be more inclined to choose Ledger, knowing that Trezor does not support your phone. 

Mobile and web integrations

Winner: Ledger

Although Ledger wallet is a cold hardware wallet storage, its technical team has created a Ledger Live application that allows users to monitor and manage their accounts and buy, sell and swap coins on both mobile and desktop. Trezor does not have an app. Instead, Tresor has the Trezor suite feature which uses Chrome extensions on your desktop to manage your crypto in your wallet, but has no mobile support.

Both Ledger and Trezor support third-party integrations such as with MetaMask wallet or crypto exchanges, but Ledger supports more integrations than Trezor.

User Experience

Winner: Trezor Model T

Although Ledger and Trezor are easy for beginners to navigate, some unique features make Trezor more favorable to users. Trezor T has a small color touchscreen that allows easier navigation and control. Ledger’s Nano X is bigger than the Nano S wallet, but it can still be harder to read than the Trezor T due to its smaller size. 

Connectivity

Winner: Ledger Nano X

Ledger’s Nano X is best for users that value mobile convenience as it has an optional Bluetooth capability that allows the wallet to connect to mobile phones. Trezor does not support Bluetooth connection and depends on USB cable support to connect to the mobile phone. 

Final Verdict – battle of the crypto wallets

From this review, there is very little that separates Ledger and Trezor wallets. While Trezor trumps Ledger in its user experience and open source code, Ledger tops Trezor in its anti counterfeit security protections, number of supported currencies, iOS support, Bluetooth connectivity, price, and supported mobile applications. 

In the Ledger vs Trezor comparison, Ledger Nano X comes out on top as the best crypto wallet.

Buy Ledger Nano X here.

The Trezor Model T is available through authorised Reseller Privacy Pros.

How to make money with Coin98 mobile wallet

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How to make money with Coin98 mobile wallet

In this post we’re going to answer the critical questions you need to know about how to make money with the new and much lauded Coin98 Mobile Wallet.

Coin98 is a new crypto project from South East Asia building up a suite of DeFi products many of which you can access on the Coin 98 mobile wallet app.

Coin 98 mobile wallet – the ultimate DeFI gateway

The wallet is unique for its multi-chain capabilities as we explain below. These capabilities are designed to make it easier, faster and more simple than ever to transact crypto and interact with DeFi protocols. You can earn crypto from the one wallet regardless of what chain the DeFi protocol is built on. For this reason, its a great starter crypto wallet for anyone new to crypto because the in wallet capabilities save you from making mistakes that might otherwise mean your crypto is lost for good.

Like most crypto projects, Coin98 has its own token C98. You can buy C98 directly on Binance, which is the highest volume crypto exchange and the one we recommend. To get 5% off all spot trading fees on Binance in perpetuity (and this can add up!), set up an account using our link.

C98 token is transacted on three blockchains – Ethereum, Binance Smart Chain and Solana. C98 is a governance token and you can also stake C98 and earn rewards and Airdrops by holding the token. C98 token took off when recently listed on Binance but unlike other new tokens has held its value well, which is a promising sign for the project.

How to download Coin98 mobile wallet

The mobile wallet app is available for iOS and Android phones. Here is a link to the project page and from here you can link to the App. We do this because there are so many fake mobile wallet apps out there trying to part you from your money. We link to the source developer so you have the legitimate developer link to the App.

The first thing to know is that when you go into Google Play or Apple’s App store you’ll see two Apps from the same developer – Coin98 Finance. You need to download the Coin98 Wallet. The other App – Coin 98 insights – is an information and research hub only.

Once you’ve downloaded the Wallet you’ll be prompted to set a pin code to get access. You have the option of enabling face ID after your Pin is set.

Coin98 mobile wallet features we love

When you open the wallet you will be taken to the default landing page. From here, you can open the four menu items – Markets, Swap, Browser and Settings. You can also swipe left or right to access some of the other great features we list out below and that we really like about Coin98 mobile wallet:

  • User interface – the best User Interface we’ve experienced in any crypto mobile wallet app.
  • Set up – you can chose the currency you want to operate in and from 12 languages
  • Exchange connect – You can connect to 9 different cryptocurrency exchanges directly from the wallet, including many of the popular ones such as Binance, Kucoin, and FTX.
  • Native dApps – there is an inbuilt dApp browser in the App which is where you’ll make money with Coin98 wallet. We go into some of the best offers we’ve found using the Native dApps below.
  • Cross Chain bridge – you can convert tokens between 4 blockchains – Ethereum, BSC, Tron, Solana – directly in the wallet. Anyone that uses DeFi knows how valuable this is.
  • Cross chain staking, swaps, earning and yield farming – this is the biggest and best feature of Coin98 and what sets it apart from other fully featured mobile wallet apps. We’ll go into this in more detail below to explain what you get when you download and set up the Coin98 mobile wallet.
Connect directly to some of the biggest exchanges in crypto

The cross chain features that set Coin98 wallet apart

22 Blockchains supported

Coin 98 wallet supports 22 Blockchains as we write this post. That’s more than any other mobile wallet app we’ve come across. Here are the long list of Chains supported within the one wallet:

  1. Supported chains
  2. Bitcoin
  3. Ethereum
  4. Binance Smart Chain
  5. Solana
  6. HECO chain
  7. Near
  8. Avalanche C Chain & Avalanche X Chain
  9. Tron
  10. Polygon
  11. Fantom
  12. Polkadot
  13. Kusama
  14. Cosmos
  15. THORChain
  16. Terra
  17. BandChain
  18. Kava
  19. Persistance
  20. Binance Chain
  21. TomoChain
  22. Celo

This is such a great feature when it comes to trying to get the best returns from your crypto assets. You can easily switch between DeFi protocols with the best APY and APR rates. The wallet makes it easy to be an active crypto investor with very little experience.

Tips on using the cross chain functions

Before you start accessing DeFi protocols and transacting your coins you will need to activate your wallet/s. This is where the real convenience and simplicity of Coin98 mobile wallet app shines. You can create a single multi-chain wallet to store assets for all supported blockchains. The great thing is the wallet and all its assets can be accessed with a single passphrase. This saves you tonnes of time each time you want to transaction on different Chains, but it also means you have to keep the multi chain wallet password extremely secure.

The benefits of Coin 98’s multi-chain wallet features compared to Single chain wallets

If you don’t want to use the multichain wallet convenience, you can set up a wallet for each chain you want to use, for example – an Ethereum wallet, a Binance Smart Chain wallet etc. This means taking a note of your passphrase and private key for each wallet. Once you have set up a wallet for each Chain you want to transact on, you can skip seamlessly between Defi Protocols and the wallet will automatically swap to the right Chain for that Protocol.

This may seem like a small thing, but to new DeFi users, it takes away the fear of losing your coins because you’ve selected the wrong Blockchain Network for your transaction. This is priceless.

We love this feature because it helps to bring non tech savvy users to crypto.

How to make money with Coin98 mobile wallet

The best thing about the Coin98 mobile wallet is that it has an inbuilt dApp browser. Now this is an inbuilt browser the likes of which we haven’t seen in other mobile wallets because of its cross chain functionality. You can choose to view and use dApps on different networks with the click of a button, making it super easy to transact in the DeFi world

The dApp Browser is also how you make money staking and farming with with Coin98 wallet all from the one place.

Native dApps across multiple chains is why you want to download and start using Coin 98 mobile wallet

dAPP coverage

Coin 98 wallet has native integrations with many of the larger DeFi protocols – SushiSwap, UniSwap, PancakeSwap, Aave, Compound, Yearn Finance. This means you can stake, farm, lend, borrow, earn – all from the one wallet. There are also native Gaming dApps like CyrptoKitties and GodsUnchained.

We did notice that of the dApps supported by Coin 98 wallet most built on Ethereum and Binance Smart Chain. There’s very few yet that are built on Polygon. We think this is one area that the Coin98 team could expand. Polygon is a popular network because of the low fees and bridging capabilities with Ethereum. It would be great to see integration with some Polygon dApps. If you’re a Polygon user, then at present we’d recommend sticking to your current wallet. we have heard that QuickSwap on Polygon and JulSwap on Tron will soon be integrated following the Coin98 Wallet version X. Good news.

Best money making opportunities with Coin98 wallet

Here are three of the best opportunities for high returns that we found at the time of writing, using the Coin98 mobile wallet dApp integrations:

  1. Staking – earn 77% APY by staking CAKE on PancakeSwap and get paid in C98
  2. Earning – up to 23% APY lending stablecoins like USDT, DAI and USDC on DeFi Yield Protocol.
  3. Lending – 15.15% APR lending USDC and Chainlink on SushSwap.

Another cool feature is the native dApp Zapper, which lets you see your entire net worth staked across multiple different Chain-native DeFi protocols, all in the one screen.

Will the dApp Browser last?

The dApp Browser looks a lot like the in built Browser from the Trust Wallet, which we have reviewed here. You’ll see in our Trust Wallet review there is a 9 June 2021 update reporting that the App Store had required the removal of the dApp Browser in Trust Wallet. Android users were unaffected by this. We covered the issue in detail in this article.

The question is, if the App Store required the removal of integrated dApp browser in Trust Wallet, how long will it be until Apple users face the same with Coin98 Wallet? It will be a real shame if this happens as the cross chain capability plus dApp browser integration make Coin98 mobile wallet stand out amongst it’s peers and we’ve loved what we have seen so far from the Coin98 Finance team.

The verdict

A great new mobile wallet with loads of in-built convenience. The wallet solves the problem of complexity for new crypto users by automatically and seamlessly switching between chains and by offering up the very convenient multi-chain wallet. It also provides new functionality for seasoned crypto investors through the in-wallet bridge. Provided the browser is here to stay we will write a full review of Coin98 mobile wallet app in coming months. We hope it sticks around and cements a place at the top of the crypto wallet field.

What makes cryptocurrency prices rise and fall?

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What makes cryptocurrency prices rise and fall?

If you’re crypto curious and looking to better understand how cryptocurrency works before you put your hard earned money in, then this post is for you. Crypto is the wild wild west of investing. While cryptocurrencies are traded like stocks in the stock market, the crypto market is nothing like the Dow Jones, Nasdaq or S&P 500. Crypto is unique, with prices driven by factors that don’t exist in other money markets. If you want to make money with crypto it’s critical you know what makes cryptocurrency prices rise and fall.

Cryptocurrency markets

Cryptocurrency is traded between parties in markets. The demand and supply of a particular cryptocurrency in a specific market will set a baseline for its price action, whether that be upwards or downwards. But did you know that unlike stocks, there are both centralised (CEX) and decentralised (DEX) crypto trading markets? It’s important to know this because the price is determined differently in each type of exchange.

How is the price of crypto set on centralised exchanges?

On centralised crypto exchanges, the price of a crypto asset is determined between two parties using the traditional order book model that conventional exchanges like the S&P 500 or ASX use. Order books are just a record of all open buy and sell orders for a particular crypto. The spread between buy and sell prices determines the depth of the order book and the current market price.

In this model, the CEX acts as an intermediary to clear trading transactions and provides custody services for your crypto assets.Trades occur on the CEXs server rather than directly on the blockchain.

The leading centralised exchange by volume is Binance. It’s also the one we recommend you get started on as covers more small cap coins than its rival Coinbase. Binance has a hot mobile wallet with all the bells and whistles you could wish for – check it out here.

If you’re in the US and you want to set up on Binance you’ll need to use BolsaDX which is a Binance brand that operates in Latin America and can be used by folks in the US. Binance is not available in the US.

How is the price of crypto set on decentralised exchanges?

Peer-to-peer trading occurs on DEXs through automated smart contracts (programs) that execute trades without an intermediary. DEXs use liquidity pool protocols to determine crypto pricing. These exchanges execute trades or ‘swaps’ between users directly and instantly from wallet to wallet. There is no intermediary like in a CEX.

Swaps are made in one of two ways: through an order book that interacts with the blockchain, or through an automated market maker (AMM) approach. Since we already know what order books are, lets talk about AMMs. AMMs remove the need for counter-parties to set the price. Instead, AMMs us algorithms to set the price, which means that you can trade a particular coin or token regardless of whether there’s someone on the other end of the trade. To facilitate this, “liquidity pools,” are needed. These pools pay users to keep some of their funds in a smart contract that can then be drawn on for trades to occur.

With AMMs there are no prior orders in an order book. There are only takers (buyers) looking to exchange a specific cryptocurrency pair.

DEXs are non-custodial, which means you are responsible for managing the safety of your crypto. You keep your crypto secure whilst trading on DEXs by using a hardware wallet and seed phrase recovery wallet. You can find the best hardware wallets to keep your crypto safe right here and the best metal seed phrase storage wallet for your private keys here.

UniSwap and SushiSwap are the two biggest DEXs in crypto at present.

Both CEX and DEX rely on the demand of buyers and the supply from sellers (or liquidity providers) to set the price of a trade or swap. So if crypto prices are determined by demand and supply in these markets, let’s look at the factors that influence the commitment of those buyers (demand) and of sellers or liquidity providers (supply) themselves.

11 market movers that cause cryptocurrency prices to rise and fall

What drives people to buy and sell their assets in different markets is a complex discussion. People can be influenced by the market sentiment, news, their own personal circumstances, market analytics, trading signals, etc etc. So lets look with more granularity at 11 factors that can move the crypto market and cause cryptocurrency prices to rise and fall.

  1. Bitcoin
  2. Whale manipulation
  3. Trading patterns
  4. Trading bots
  5. The news that moves the market
  6. Airdrops
  7. Coin burns
  8. Pump and dump groups
  9. Major exchange coin listings
  10. Rebranding
  11. Project partnership announcements

1.Bitcoin

Bitcoin is the king of crypto and its price action in both directions moves the rest of the market. If you want to know more about when Bitcoin moves the price of other coins up or down, have a read of this great article on the crypto market fundamentals you need to know before investing.

2. Whale manipulation

Whales are crypto holders with very large bags of a particular coin. You can get Bitcoin whales, Ethereum whales etc. Whales can use their coin share to move the market with large buy or sell orders. Whales can do this in conjunction with options trades, to make profits. It is particularly easy in small cap coins as it doesn’t take much trading volume to spike or drop the price. One example of price manipulation might be if there is a lot of trading volume on a particular coin but the price is going sideways or downhill. It may be that whales are waiting in the water as the price sinks and weak hands hit the sell button.

3. Trading patterns

Crypto traders trade assets according to the same trading rules and patterns. They all use the same indicators. This makes the patterns they use to signal buy and sell trades self fulfilling. Everyone sees the signal and makes the trade. Trading patterns constantly influence whether the price will move up or down, depending on the volume of trades and traders.

4. Trading bots

This one is linked to trading patterns. Programs are now available so that traders can execute trades using bots (or automation) and based on conventional trading patterns and rules. For example, it’s common for trading bots to be set up to buy up a certain cryptocurrency when the price retraces to .618 of its previous high. This is based on the Fibonacci retracement rule and its application to market trading. Sometimes its possible to actually see trading bots provide price support at this level in trading charts and order books on centralised exchanges.

5. The news that moves the market

Crypto markets are very news sensitive. Project news and development milestones can and routinely do cause particular coins to pump or dump. Hardfork, testnet and mainnet release announcements will generally move the price significantly. In many cases the price of a coin will run up before the project testnet or mainnet date, and sell off just before the testnet or mainnet release.

Similarly, the price of a coin will tumble if a published milestone is missed or the project is hacked, experiences a development failure or is exploited in any way.

Coin Market Calendar is a great site to see if there is any upcoming project news for a particular coin or token.

6. Airdrops

Airdrops are a promotional event in crypto to raise awareness of a particular project or coin. They usually involve the project group sending free coins to the wallets of existing coin holders. So it’s basically a free money giveaway to reward project faithfuls. When it happens, the price of a particular coin can go thermal nuclear.

7. Coin burns

A coin burn is a process of intentionally destroying or ‘burning’ coins to make them unusable and reduce the total market supply of that particular coin and increase the value. It’s the crypto market version of a stock buyback in conventional markets. Coin burns are used to stabilise the value of a coin and they are often scheduled ahead as an incentive for buyers to hold the particular coin (and benefit from price rises when coin burn occurs).

8. Pump and dump groups

Pump and dump schemes are not specific to crypto but they are pretty common price manipulation attempts. Pump and dumps are a scam so beware. They go something like this. A group of investors (organisers) – usually on Telegram or other social platforms like Discord, WhatsApp, Twitter, and Facebook – collude to buy a low cap coin slowly over time so as not to raise its price. The same group then pays an inner circle to promote the bejeezus out of the coin, convincing other investors it’s going to the moon. When those investors (the outer rim) jump in, the organisers sell causing the price to dump immediately. It’s the quick or the dead, the organises versus the bagholders.

9. Major exchange coin listings

This is a well know strategy for some traders – to buy smaller coins and tokens on DEXs or unknown, low volume exchanges and wait and hope that the coins are listed on large exchanges like Binance, Coinbase or Kucoin where most of the trading volume is. Because of the larger volume on these exchanges, newly listed coins can pump hard at the time of listing. This is when existing holders will sell, often causing the coins to dump again straight after. It’s a risky strategy but can be high reward if you know what you’re doing.

10. Rebranding

Rebranding can cause the price of a cryptocurrency to rise if there is significant social media to raise awareness of the event. Rebranding is seen as a move to popularise a particular project and cryptocurrency, driving demand for its coins and tokens and pushing the price up.

10. Project partnership announcements

When small crypto projects announce partnerships with established mainstream brands, the price will often pump. For example when Steller Lumens announced a partnership with IBM, boom the price when through the roof. The fastest way to find out about these announcements is by following the project on Twitter or on a site called cryptopanic. If you find out early enough you may be able to pick up some coins before the price pump and make a decent profit.

BlockFI told to cease and desist – three US Regulators now targeting popular crypto wallet app

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BlockFI told to cease and desist – three US Regulators now targeting popular crypto wallet app

If you are holding any of your crypto assets in a lending and borrowing crypto wallet app like Celsius, Nexo, or BlockFi, you may have heard the news in recent days. Three US state securities regulators have filed ‘cease and desist’ or ‘show cause’ notices against a popular crypto wallet app.

If you’re using or thinking about using these types of apps, should you be worried?

Let’s take a look at what has happened with state securities regulators and what it means for your crypto.

Who are US State regulators targeting now?

In one word – BlockFi.

Three US states – New Jersey, Texas and Alabama – have filed cease and desist orders, or at least provided notice of their filing, in the last week. All filings have been against BlockFi.

You can take a look at the latest action by the Texas State Securities Bureau here.

The main gripe of regulators is their concern that BlockFi’s Interest Account (BIA) product is a security under state rules but is not registered as such.

If the filings are successful BlockFi will be banned from offering interest bearing crypto accounts in each of those states until their interest account is properly registered. That in turn raises the question of how likely it is that BlockFi would meet the requirements of securities registration. Would they be approved?

The allegations will need to be heard by a judge in coming weeks.

BlockFi’s official response to the fillings has been to asset the legality of their interest accounts in those states:

BlockFi’s response to recent US state regulator allegations

What is BlockFi?

BlockFi is a lending and borrowing platform for cryptocurrency assets. It offers one of the most popular interest accounts for cryptocurrency assets. BlockFi pools the assets that customers lend to it and pays interest on those assets. It generates interest by lending those assets on to trusted institutional and corporate borrowers.

BlockFi’s interest account (the product under scrutiny) is their flagship offering. They also provide customers with a trading account product and crypto-backed loans.

How does this impact BlockFi crypto wallet app customers?

State regulators have expressed that these regulatory actions are meant to protect retail investors, although in reality they are likely to be causing some concern. The Texas regulator has said BlockFi has at 25,000 clients in Texas with $691 million in total assets. That’s no small deal and it’s just one of the states in question.

If they are successful, the filings will only directly impact new BlockFi customers who are residents of Alabama, Texas and New Jersey. In fact, BlockFi has already been required to stop taking new customers for this product in these states until the matter is resolved.

That said, if the filings are successful they may set precedents for other states. At a minimum we can expect other state securities regulators to take a closer look at BlockFi.

What is the impact on other crypto wallets like Celsius and Nexo?

We’re sure the Celsius and Nexo teams will be watching with keen interest what is going on. But there’s no need to panic. These platforms should have their lawyers advising on any implications and will have a head start on BlockFi in terms of formulating a response and getting a head start on preparing for registration applications. That’s assuming registration is required. In short, there’s still a long way to go before state regulators move on to other platforms.

Should you be withdrawing your crypto from BlockFi?

If you’re a resident of one of these three states it might be safest to withdraw your assets and wait it out until the judge has ruled. If you’re worried out losing out on interest earnings then take a look at our review of Celsius Wallet here. Celsius is a competitor to BlockFi and offers the same sorts of products and interest rates.

If you’re not a resident of Texas, Alabama or New Jersey you should keep an eye on how these cases play out. Pay attention to whether other state regulators make similar moves in a domino effect. If this begins to happen, perhaps consider getting your crypto out.

If you’re not a resident of the US, then you’re not impacted so there’s no need to worry.

What can you do to manage regulatory risk to your crypto assets?

Regulatory risk is material in crypto because its such a new asset class and operates differently to any other financial products in the market. Law makers are still trying to classify different crypto product offerings. Until they do, we can’t really expect crypto platforms to comply with laws that may or may not apply to their products.

So how should you protect yourself?

Diversify your assets across crypto wallet apps. If you want to earn interest on your crypto don’t put all your eggs in one basket (or one crypto wallet app!). There are three or four large providers in this space all offering similar interest rates on Stablecoins and major cryptocurrency. We’ve listed these below. Our recommendation if you are worried about regulatory risk would be to split your assets across them. This can also help protect your coins from cyber attack and hackers attacking your wallet.

  • Celsius (get $40BTC free if you sign up with our link or referral code 1910143eb7)
  • Nexo
  • Orion

Hopefully, as regulators take an interest in this space and laws begin to be applied, existing customers will be grandfathered and providers will remain committed to their customer’s assets.

But in crypto its always best to protect your assets yourself.

Why digital wallets now make it easier than ever to invest in cryptocurrency

Crypto KP Crypto wallet news , ,
Why digital wallets now make it easier than ever to invest in cryptocurrency

If I were to ask you whether you use any digital wallets in your day to day life, would you know the answer? What if I were to ask you what you use digital wallets for?

The fact is digital wallets have stealthily crept in to most peoples daily lives without them really know it.

If you have used Apple Pay, Alipay, Samsung Pay, PayPal app or Venmo, then the answer to that question is ‘yes’. But did you know that digital wallets are also becoming ubiquitous in the cryptocurrency space and making it super easy to invest in, access and transact cryptocurrency? Digital wallets for both fiat and crypto are the future of money, making it easier, faster and cheaper to move money and value around the globe. This also means it’s becoming easier to make money from your money!

If you want to know how all of this has come about and will impact you and your money, read on!

What is a digital wallet?

If you search Google for ‘digital wallet’ a whole bunch of sites will come up with definitions that say digital wallets are software payment systems. They store your credit card and debit card information….. They’re a convenient way to pay by phone… Blah, blah, blah. But…we think this is just a small part of the story about digital wallets and how they will impact our money future.

Digital wallets are much bigger than just payment systems. They are financial ecosystems on your phone that allow you to access different financial services and to transfer value via the internet – without the friction of current banking services. Cathie Wood of Ark invest cleverly calls digital wallets ‘money over IP’. The reference is a nod back to when Voice over IP technology revolutionised once expensive phone communications.

Digital wallets are expected to do the same for banking and financial services – which is exactly why you need to know about them!

What can you do with digital wallets?

Payments with digital wallets

Today, you can use digital wallets to directly purchase and pay for items – like with Apple Pay or Samsung Pay. You can also use them to send money seamlessly and instantly to friends and peers, like with Venmo. In fact, recent research from the US found that 42% of millennials have a Venmo account. Millennials seem to prefer mobile payments and will drive a lot of the upcoming growth in digital wallets. China’s mobile payments jumped from $1 trillion in 2014 to $26 trillion in 2018 – driven largely by the coming of age of millennials. Here’s some recent data from Australia’s biggest bank about mobile payments with digital wallets:

CBA contactless payments data

Peer to peer transactions & other financial services

While people are mostly using digital wallets for payment services, digital wallets are more than just transferring fiat currency around.

You can use them to split payments over dinner, earn rewards on purchases, order ahead at your favourite coffee shop or buy and send gift cards.

They are also used widely now in the cryptocurrency space to access, transact, store and invest cryptocurrency. You can access, store, buy, sell, transfer and invest your cryptocurrency right now, with a few taps of your mobile phone screen, using a range of digital wallets.They’re also used to integrate with cryptocurrency exchanges and trade crypto, as well as to enter into smart contracts to lend and borrow cryptocurrency and earn interest.

We expect digital wallets to expand rapidly in coming years to these additional areas:

  • storing value
  • earning interest – Goldman Sachs is already offering higher interest on digital wallet accounts because their cost to serve the customer is lower with these products
  • integrating with and accessing personal financial planning and money management providers
  • accessing tailored insurance
  • accessing stock exchanges and trading platforms
  • tax planning.

Who are the main digital wallet providers in cryptocurrency?

We’ve already talked about Apple Pay, Samsung Pay, PayPal, Venmo. Along with these providers is Google Pay and V.me by Visa. If you’re dealing in fiat currency, these are the most popular digital wallets that you’re likely to come across.

But the cryptocurrency space is where digital apps are exploding because the entire ecosystem is already online – crypto doesn’t suffer from the legacy infrastructure issues of traditional finance when it comes to going digital.

Cryptocurrency digital wallets

Some of the most popular digital wallets for cryptocurrency include

You can read about each of these apps – what they do, how secure they are and what you can use them for – here.

How digital wallets are making it easier than ever to invest in crypto

The intersection between fiat and crypto digital wallets is where it gets really interesting if you’re looking at investing in cryptocurrency and making your money make money. Who doesn’t want more money!

There are already some cutting edge digital wallet providers that provide fiat currency on-ramps to invest easily and directly in cryptocurrency.

You can now buy, sell and store large cap cryptocurrencies in the PayPal app.

If you’re in the US, Coinbase wallet now has a direct integration with PayPal to buy crypto directly from your PayPal account.

eToro combines both crypto trading and fiat trading, along with on ramps between the two, in their eToro app. (On-ramps are just a way to exchange fiat into crypto – the more convenient this is, the more crypto is expected to become a mainstream part of the global money system).

Here are some other fiat on-ramps to crypto that you can use to buy crypto directly in to your digital wallet (some in mobile and some in web browser form):

  1. MoonPay
  2. Sendwyre
  3. Transak
  4. Ramp

The thing to know about these digital wallet on-ramps between fiat and crypto is that their service fees are different. You need to do your own research to find the best fees for your transaction. If you want to see a comparison of some of these services to transfer fiat into crypto in your digital wallet, check out this page.

How does this all impact your finances?

Digital wallets will become a big part of your financial future so its probably time we all get used to interacting with them!

If you invest your money, send money to family and friends, use your mobile to make purchases at the store, do mobile banking, like to earn rewards with your purchases, want to manage your budget, or even your entire personal financial portfolio – chances are in the next few years you’ll be doing it all through digital wallets kept right on your phone.

You’ll also have multiple wallets on your phone that allow you to cheaply and seamlessly exchange fiat currency for crypto in seconds, and then add that crypto into a smart contract allowing you to earn money on your money by lending it out to others.

Your money won’t all be stored in the one bank app in the future. It’ll be moved about to where the best value is. Using digital wallets! And that’s why digital wallets – if you get your head around them now – can help you make money on your money in the future.

Many of these things you can do today if you know your way around the cryptocurrency and decentralised finance space. If you don’t, perhaps look into it. You might be surprised about the financial benefits that digital wallets for cryptocurrency can bring.

If you want to read more about which digital wallets to use with your crypto it’s all laid out for you here.

Fake Trust Wallet mobile app out to get your crypto

Crypto KP Common crypto scams, Fake crypto apps , ,
Fake Trust Wallet mobile app out to get your crypto

Crypto enthusiasts and crypto wallet app users should be aware of the insidious scammers planting fake Trust Wallet apps on app stores and links to them, to scam you of your coins. And this is not the only nefarious means that scammers will try to trick you out of your crypto coins bags. If you’re a Trust Wallet user, or thinking about it, make sure you read on to find out what other Trust Wallet scams are out there and how to stay safe in the wild wild west of crypto.

Trust Wallet is a popular target for scammers as its one of the most popular and versatile apps available to transact your crypto and make money with DeFI. If you want to know more about Trust Wallet, you can check out our full review of what it is and how you can use it to make passive income with DeFi – here.

Our Decryptify blog is all about helping you keep your crypto safe so here is a snapshot of what to watch out for.

Fake Trust Wallet reports online

Fake Trust Wallet apps have been reported on the Trust Wallet community and on Reddit in both 2020 and 2021. Multiple times. While they’re eventually taken down, they keep popping up because they’re obviously successful at scamming new people each time. The thing with a crypto wallet app is you need to set up a seed recovery phase (private keys to your crypto) when you create the wallet. This is the mechanism scammers use to grab your coins once you send them to your wallet. The app records your phrase as you input it and the scammers then use it steal your coins.

Here is what the fake Trust Wallet app looked like. Notice, the name of the developer is the first giveaway.

FAKE app by Trust Wallet LLC

This is what the REAL Trust Wallet app looks like:

Real App by DApps Platform Inc

Fake Trust Rewards offers

Scammers have also propagated fake Trust rewards offers like the ones pictured below. You’re enticed in by offers of an Airdrop or other incentive payments and the MO is to get you to click their links. You can spot a scam like this straight away because you are then asked to input your private keys to get access to the rewards. Legitimate projects and developers in crypto will NEVER have a reason to ask you for your private keys, so don’t be tempted by the promise of big rewards or free crypto.

Fake Trust Facebook accounts

Readers should also be aware of Fake Trust Wallet accounts popping up in Facebook and on Telegram. Straight from the trusted team at Trust Wallet, here are some tips on how to spot a fake FB account:

The MO of the scammers setting up these accounts is similar to the above – they use the promise of incentives if you follow their links and provide your private key details to claim the rewards. Once they have your keys, any crypto you had associated with that address is gone. If you are new to crypto, rewards schemes, Airdrops and competitions are common in the crypto community. However its up to you to identify what is legit and what is not.

How to keep you crypto safe

  1. Only ever download the app from the Official Trust Wallet site. This goes for any crypto wallet app you want to down load. Do not search on the name of the app in Apple Store or Google Play if you want to keep your coins!

2. Make sure you know the name of the developer so you can double check this when the app store link opens up.

3. Don’t rely on the number of reviews in the apps store – this feature is easy to replicate with bots. READ THE REVIEWS IN THE APP STORE! If folks are on the site saying the app is a scam, look into it!

4. Get on to the Trust Wallet Community or Google “Fake Trust Wallet App Reddit’ and read through some posts.

5. Only participate in rewards or incentive programs with legitimate exchanges and projects. Only every access these directly from within the project’s official site. Don’t click links from other sites or accounts to participate in reward schemes, airdrops or competitions.

6. And the most important way to keep your crypto safe – NEVER GIVE YOUR PRIVATE KEYS OUT TO ANYONE! If anyone every asks for your private keys that is a sure sign you’re about to be scammed.

Stay SAFU in crypto!

DeFi rug pulls – how to protect your crypto

Crypto KP Common crypto scams , ,
DeFi rug pulls – how to protect your crypto

Crypto is hyped as the investment opportunity of a lifetime, but it’s also a veritable minefield of hacks, scams and fraud. As they say, ‘no risk, no reward’. With over $100B invested in Decentralised Finance in 2021, its fruitful ground for hackers and scammers. So how do you protect yourself AND further your investing at the same time? In this post we’re going to look at the phenomenon ‘DeFi rug pulls’ – how to spot them and how to protect your crypto.

The anatomy of a DeFi rug pull

A DeFi rug pull is when a team of developers disappear with all of the liquidity added by users to a particular DeFi Protocol. But what does this even look like? Here’s a step by step of the MO of scam token creators:

  1. Scam token creator / developer launches a protocol on a particular network – like Polygon, Binance Smart Chain or Ethereum – with webpage and their own scam token.
  2. The project and the token are hyped on online crypto hangouts like Telegram and Twitter using fake groups and bot group members.
  3. The developer then creates a pair between the scam token and a valuable token on a DeFi platform that is perceived as legitimate, such as Uniswap or SushiSwap, and adds liquidity for the newly hyped token.
  4. Users swap their valuable tokens for the scam token on the promise of mind blowing returns – like 5000% APY and above. This drives the scam token price up.
  5. As the price of the token rises, more users participate in the swap due to FOMO (fear of missing out).
  6. The scam token creator removes the valuable token from the platform and dumps the scam token. The liquidity pool is drained and other holders no longer able to trade or swap.
  7. Users are left holding worthless scam tokens with no place to withdraw or cash out.
  8. And so on, and so on it goes…

The rise of DeFI rug pulls and exit scams

According to Ciphertrace over half of 2020 crypto hacks were from DeFi protocols. Rug pulls and other types of DeFi exit scams are on the rise as more capital flows into the DeFi space with a reported $240M lost in just the first 5 months of 2021.

2021 DeFi theft ($ stolen) are almost double the 2020 figure in the first 5 months of this year alone

Recent DeFi rug pulls

There is a litany of rug pulls online that you can delve into if you’re interested in understanding more about how they work so you can protect yourself and your coins. You can read all about the more recent alleged DeFi rug pools here:

HoneySwap, CrossaintSwap, Turtle DeX

Thodex, Compounder Finance, Meerkat Finance

Titan, Iron

Dodo Finance, PAID network

More rug pulls..

How to protect your crypto

The thing to understand about decentralised blockchain networks is that practically anyone can build decentralised apps on them. If you’re going to add your coins to these protocols, then all of the due diligence is up to you. If you’re not into doing the leg work, they you may have to accept that your coins are at risk.

  1. Avoid early stage DeFi projects – some folks will say this is where the money is made, but it’s also where authenticity and legitimacy are at their most unclear. At a minimum avoid low initial liquidity projects if you are keen to invest in the early stages. Scammers will find it hard to raise large amounts of initial capital.
  2. Make sure there is a project whitepaper and read it. Compare it to other legitimate protocol white papers to help decide whether it appear legitimate.
  3. Is there are huge social media blitz on the token with unreasonable claims of benefits? Watch out for fake hype on Telegram and Twitter. Stay away from these projects.
  4. Research the project – is the developer team transparent and known in the crypto community? If the developer team is anonymous do you really want to trust them with your coins?
  5. Get on to Reddit and research the token and the project and any red flags raised by other developers.
  6. Check that an audit of the protocol has been done by an independent know auditor. Audits are expensive and having one legitimises the project.
  7. Check whether or not the liquidity is locked on Unicrypt.com. Check the smart contract history on Etherscan or Polygonscan.
  8. Watch the token price and pay attention to the Protocol. If the token price starts to tank, get your investment out immediately. This means offloading the scam token and sending your valuable tokens back to your hardware wallet! Don’t leave coins in your crypto wallet app unless you’ve been on to Etherscan or Polygonscan and revoked all of the token approvals you’ve previously confirmed in association with the scammers Protocol.

Never invest in DeFi projects that are very new, with anonymous teams, made as memes, and have a lack of real utility

What does a crypto wallet do and what do you need one for?

Crypto KP How to do crypto , ,
What does a crypto wallet do and what do you need one for?

If you’re new to crypto you’ll be scratching your head trying to understand how the cryptocurrency ecosystem works, so you can navigate around it. One of the first questions you’ll ask yourself is – what does a crypto wallet do? In this article we’ll run through exactly what a crypto wallet does and what you’ll use it for, in non-tech head terms.

What is a crypto wallet for?

A crypto wallet is a way to store the private keys that you need to ‘unlock’, access and transact with your crypto assets.

The crypto ecosystem is very different to fiat currency coins and dollar bills that you physically keep in your wallet or purse and in the bank. Crypto is non-custodial and decentralised. What this means for you is that the security of your coins is up to you. No-one is going to look after them for you. There are no government guarantees like there are for fiat currency stored in the bank. On the flip side, you have complete control and autonomy over your finances.

The way you secure your coins is through your crypto wallet.

Another concept to understand with crypto is that your coins remain on the blockchain ledger and don’t actually exist in your wallet. Instead you wallet holds the private keys to any coins you own, and through those keys you can access the blockchain ledger and see – in your wallet – how many coins you have. Your wallet, which holds your private keys, allows you to securely validate and confirm the transactions you make with your crypto assets – like sending them to someone else’s public address on the blockchain. Anyone who has access to your private keys can easily access and steal your coins, so security is super important when it comes to a crypto wallet.

The last thing to understand about crypto is that there are different types of crypto wallets that you use for different things depending on the levels of cyber and physical security you’re after and what you want to do with your coins.

The different types of crypto wallets

If you think about fiat currency, there are a bunch things we do with our dollars and coins. We store some in the bank, we invest some, we use them to buy things, we carry them around with us. These same sorts of transactions are available with crypto and all require some kind or interaction with a crypto wallet. Lets run through a few of these under the two main categories of crypto wallets – offline (cold wallets) and online (hot wallets):

Offline wallets (cold storage)

These are the safest type of cryptocurrency wallets because your private keys are kept separate from the internet and not exposed to cyber attack. The biggest vulnerability with these wallets is physical security – either from theft or loss.

Crypto hardware wallet

This is the bank vault for your crypto private keys. It’s a physical device that you use to store your private keys offline and separate from the internet. This is the most secure and safest form of crypto storage because a lot of the cyber attack vectors for crypto come from connection to the internet.

Crypto hardware wallets are where you store your coins long term for the highest level of protection. You usually keep the device at home – somewhere hidden and safe.

If you’re looking for a great hardware wallet to store your crypto, then check out our review of the top cryptocurrency wallets for 2021.

Crypto seed storage metal wallet

This is a physical wallet too but usually some form of indestructible and engraved metal plate construction. You use it to store you seed recovery phrase for your hardware wallet. Your seed recovery phrase is like your spare house keys. If anything happens to your hardware wallet, you’re going to need your seed recovery phrase to recover access to your coins on the blockchain.

You should always keep your seed phrase storage wallet in a separate location to your hardware wallet.

We’ve also researched and reviewed the best seed storage wallets for you.

Online wallets (hot wallets)

These are less safe forms of storage, but they are necessary to interact with if you want to traverse the crypto ecosystem. They’re not for long term storage of large amounts of coins. They’re like the wallet in your pocket that you use daily.

Crypto wallet app

If you transact with your crypto on the go and use your mobile phone, then you’ll end up downloading a crypto wallet app. This is an online wallet – in app form – that you can use to check your crypto balances and receive crypto (through a public address that the wallet provides). As crypto becomes more mainstream, the features and functions offered by these wallets are expanding. Some crypto wallet apps allow you to buy, swap, stake and trade your crypto – all from within the one wallet.

You might also use a crypto wallet app to interact with Decentralised Finance protocols like Aave, Compound or with decentralised exchanges (dEX) like UniSwap or PancakeSway if you want to yield farm or participate in swap pools.

There are also apps that act like crypto wallets but are primarily a place to lend and borrow crypto – like the Celsius Wallet or BlockFI. If you want to earn interest on your crypto while you hodl it without the complications of using a dEX or DeFi protocol, you might use these wallets and their services.

It’s likely you’ll have several of these crypto wallet apps on your phone, depending on how active you are in the crypto ecosystem. One thing to remember is that because they are online, they’re not safe to store large amounts of crypto.

Crypto wallet browser extensions

what does a crypto wallet do

These are crypto wallets that you download and take the form of browser extensions for popular web browsers like Chrome, Brave or Firefox. You’ll use these if you’re on your desktop a lot. They are a convenient way to interact with DeFI platforms and protocols (websites). The browser apps seamlessly connect with these websites directly in your Chrome browser and allow you to move your coins in and out of smart contracts that govern DeFi transactions like lending and borrowing.

Like crypto wallet apps, they’re online and have a larger attack surface than a hardware wallet.

Crypto exchange wallets

If you sign up to an exchange to trade crypto, then for any crypto you buy you’ll keep your private keys on the exchange. Centralized crypto exchanges like Binance and Coinspot provide their own coin wallets where your crypto assets will appear when you are using the exchange. These wallets are only as safe as the exchange itself and exchanges do get hacked from time to time, so you be aware of this.

More and more exchanges are offering DeFI products from within the exchange as a reward for keeping your crypto there. On Binance for example you can earn interest, stake, and pool your coins all from within the exchange. Exchanges often have a supporting app – for example the Binance Wallet – that you can use to transact your crypto on the go.

Hardware wallet and crypto wallet app integrations making it safer to transact your crypto

A new development in the crypto world is making transacting your coins safer. Wallet developers from the hardware and software worlds are getting together and partnering up their services so that you can transact with the convenience and flexibility of an online crypto wallet app, but utilising the safety and security of a hardware wallet.

MetaMask – the crypto wallet app and browser – now provides support for both Trezor and Ledger hardware wallets. Exodus wallet has an integration with Trezor. Your can move your crypto to Exodus easily from your Trezor Model T hardware device and use Exodus to manage the crypto in your Trezor.

For you, this means interacting with DeFi and making passive income on you crypto with peace of mind that your coins and tokens are as safe as they can be. So if you’re looking for the safest crypto wallet to use, check out our reviews of Ledger and Trezor, as well as the MetaMask and Exodus reviews here.

If you want to delve further into how crypto wallets work, have a read of our FAQs page here.

How to set up MetaMask crypto wallet to use DeFi protocols

Crypto KP How to do crypto , ,
How to set up MetaMask crypto wallet to use DeFi protocols

MetaMask crypto wallet is one of the most ubiquitous wallets in the crypto ecosystem. The reason is pretty simple – it’s got multi chain capability and therefore loads of DeFi integrations. Here’s a full review of what MetaMask cyrpto wallet is and what to use it for. One thing about MetaMask Wallet is that all of the big DeFI protocols interact seamlessly with it. And you can too, once you’ve got the hang of things. In this post, we’re going to take you through some key concepts to understand and 5 steps to take so that you can set up your MetaMask wallet to interact with DeFi and get on with your passive income earning!

This post is for non-tech heads starting out in crypto and based on some of the tech hurdles we faced when first trying out the Decentralised Finance space.

We’re going to assume that you have downloaded either the app or browser version of MetaMask, and created your wallet already which is a process of setting up your password and seed recovery phase.

Here’s what to do next:

1. Set up your blockchain networks in the wallet

The MetaMask wallet comes with the Ethereum Mainnet set up or ‘turned on’. But if you’re into DeFi you’re probably going to use some different networks to transact because of the high fees on the Ethereum Mainnet. The two alternative networks that are most popular at the moment are Matic and Binance Smart Chain.

If you want to use these other Blockchains and networks the first thing you need to do is manually add these different mainnets to the MetaMask wallet. To do this, you go to ‘settings’ -> ‘networks’ -> ‘add and edit custom RPC networks”. You can simply Google the settings you need to add the network, by searching something like “Matic Mainnet Settings for Metamask”. Make sure you land on the Matic developers pages to get these instructions.  

  • 1.Open settings
  • 2. Go to networks
  • 3.Enter the network details from the developers website

2. Add your token types

You need to ‘add tokens’ to Metamask for them to show up once you have sent them to your wallet. There’s an ‘add token’ button in the Assets tab that you should use to do this. Tap the button, input into the search bar the ticker for the token or coin you want, and click ‘add’. It may take a while for your tokens to show up after you’ve done this so don’t freak out if they’re not there immediately.

3. Add custom token types

Sometimes when you search the ‘add tokens’ list you won’t find your token. If you hold that token, it won’t show up in your Metamask until you add the token type. But can still add the token to the MetaMask wallet manually, so that your balance in that token shows up in the wallet. You’ll need to go to ‘add tokens’ then select the ‘Custom tokens’ menu.

Adding custom tokens

Then you have to go to Etherscan block explorer (or the block explorer for the network your token is on) in your web browser. In Etherscan, search on the token using its ticker (e.g. SUSHI). Once you find it, you grab the smart contract address for that token and paste it into the web URL field back in Metamask wallet. The other fields in your Metamask wallet should autopopulate if you have grabbed the right smart contract address. If so, just follow the prompts to complete the add token process.

Finding the smart contract address to add a custom token

4. Make sure you toggle to the right network before you connect to any DeFI protocol

Once you’ve got your coins and tokens showing up in MetaMask, you’re probably going to want to do something with them. Like lend or stake them in a DeFI protocol or Decentralised Exchange. When you use MetaMask wallet you ALWAYS need to double check you are on the right network for the crypto asset or protocol or exchange you are trying to transact with. You toggle this at the top of your screen.

MetaMask crypto wallet

For example, if you want to interact with PancakeSwap to stake some crypto, then that DeFI protocol is built on the Binance Smart Chain. So you open the PancakeSwap website, then from that browser screen you open Metamask broswer extension and toggle to Smart Chain. Then you jump back to PancakeSwap and hit ‘connect’.

MetaMask crypto wallet
Hit the connect button in the top right corner once you’ve selected your network in MetaMask

5. Converting your tokens between Mainnets

One thing about DeFI right now is that the Ethereum Mainnet is expensive to transact on. So if you’re trialling DeFi with smaller amounts it becomes uneconomic to do so. But, there are options with much cheaper transaction fees. To use these options, depending on what tokens you already hold, you might need to convert your tokens to another form so you can use them on another cheaper network. In effect, you’re moving your tokens between networks.

If you want to move your tokens between Mainnets you’ll need to use purpose built ‘bridges’ like the Matic <-> Ethereum ‘Polygon bridge‘.

You can connect your Metamask to these bridges and convert the tokens using the bridges. This will make the tokens ‘move’ from one Mainnet to another in your Metamask wallet. This flexibility means you can transact between multiple Mainnets and their associated DeFI protocols/platforms.

This is one of the cool things about MetaMask once you get the hang of it.

The thing to remember is – always connect to the bridge with your MetaMask wallet showing the right mainnet settings. More often than not you’ll start with the Ethereum network. Then after you’ve converted your tokens, toggle to the other mainnet – Polygon or Smart Chain for example. The tokens you converted should show up under this network after a few minutes.

6. Disconnecting your MetaMask wallet

If you don’t disconnect your Metamask wallet from the different Protocols you use, you’re leaving yourself open to phishing and cyber crime.

But…It’s not always straight forward to find how to disconnect your MetaMask Wallet from a website or protocol when you want to. So here is how you do it.

You simply open your MetaMask browser extension, click on ‘Connected’ at the top left, then click on the three grey dots against the account you have connected. You should then be able to select ‘Disconnect this account’.

How to disconnect your MetaMask wallet

DeFi can be a bit scary for the uninitiated because interacting with the new blockchain and smart contract technology takes a bit of practice. Getting through these starter steps will ready you to use the MetaMask wallet with new DeFi services and hopefully make some passive income from your crypto!

Trust crypto wallet cuts dApp browser in a big loss for iOS users

Crypto KP Crypto wallet news , ,
Trust crypto wallet cuts dApp browser in a big loss for iOS users

On 9 June 2021 Trust crypto wallet announced to its community that it had no option but to remove their very popular dApp browser integration for iOS Trust Wallet users. In this post we’ll go over why, what this means for how you use Trust Wallet, and what to do if you have assets in the dApps that currently feature in the Trust crypto wallet dApp library.

What is Trust crypto wallet?

Trust Wallet is a crypto wallet app owned by the Binance group. It’s popular for offering plenty of functionality across the crypto and DeFi ecosystems that benefit its users. It has also found popularity in it’s integration with Binance Smart Chain, which allows users to access DeFi products and transact their crypto far more cheaply than transacting on the Ethereum Mainnet.

If you’d like a run down on what it is and all of the benefits, check out out Trust crypto wallet review here.

Trust Wallet iOS users will be disappointed to learn that the the next iOS update will come minus the convenience of their dApp browser integration.

Fortunate Android users will be unaffected by this downgrade in the Trust crypto wallet services.

Trust Wallet explains that dApps by nature constitute “code not embedded in the [app] binary,” and that they need to meet several criteria to be allowed in an iOS app. It seems the Trust Wallet development team have been in discussions with Apples App team, but have been unable to meet the criteria required for the App Store.

What does this mean for Trust Wallet iOS users?

Trust crypto wallet

In short it means fewer reasons to use the Trust crypto wallet. The dApp browser was a one of the main reasons we started using the Trust Wallet in the beginning as we found ‘on the go’ access into DeFi protocols like PancakeSwapp and Aave, and NFT market dApps just really convenient.

The Trust Wallet announcement says that for the time being you can still access dApps manually by typing the URL into a web browser but you . Last we checked this dApp menu was still available but the library of dApps is gone. Instead you’re presented with a search bar that allows you to type the web URL directly within the Trust Wallet to locate your coins.

In the future, if you have crypto sitting inside any of the DeFI protocols that you once used to access through your Trust Wallet, you’ll need connect to the protocol using WalletConnect, which provides an interface into Trust Wallet.

Is is still worth using Trust Wallet without the dApps function?

So what is the difference in using Trust Wallet now versus another crypto wallet app that has really good dApp integrations, especially integrations into DeFi protocols where you can lend, stake and farm crypto?

Well if you take a look at something like Metamask, which is probably the most integrated crypto wallet app and web browser, Trust Wallet still offers some additional market features within the wallet that you don’t get inside the Metamask wallet, namely

  • an exchange function
  • limited staking options
  • a place to store collectibles like NFTs

The question is though, with all of the Metamask integrations and ease of use, is this enough to keep driving users to use the Trust Wallet? Our sense is that Trust Wallet will need to come out with more features to attract back the iOS users it will drop with these cut backs.

The even bigger question is, will Apple continue to stand in the way of crypto innovations like dApp integrations or will they recruit in some crypto and DeFI experts and find a way to work with the true innovation (and combat the scammy fake wallet apps that keep popping up in the App Store at the same time?

Fake crypto wallets scam – 4 tips to safe-keep you crypto fortune

Crypto KP Fake crypto apps, Phishing scams , ,
Fake crypto wallets scam – 4 tips to safe-keep you crypto fortune

It’s commonplace now to regularly visit Google Play or the Apple Apps store and download new apps for some use or another. There’s an app for everything after all. This is also true for the cryptoverse, where cryptocurrency apps or dApps have flourished in number over the past year as the bull market has started its run. So many it’s hard to keep up with what’s going on. The sheer speed of development in the crypto app space also makes it a prime target for scammers who continue to exploit the trust that mobile phone users place in ubiquitous app marketplaces like Apple’s App Store and Google Play. Here’s what to watch out for and our tips scam wallets.

Fake Trezor App

The fake Trezor app story came to light when it hit the news that one unfortunately guy had lost 17.1 Bitcoin when he went to the Apple Store and downloaded what he thought to be the app for the popular Trezor Hardware Wallet. The app was a fake set up to perpetrate a phishing attack. Phishing is well known in the world of email where internet users are well-schooled in not clicking on links in emails that are unsolicited or come from a foreign source. The 21st century version of mama telling you never to speak to strangers.

In the world of crypto, apps are a common medium of phishing attacks designed to get the user to input their private keys and seed phrase that used to secure access to coins on the blockchain.

In this case, as soon as the unsuspecting Trezor hard wallet user entered his private keys to set up the fake Trezor wallet app, his Bitcoin was gone forever. Apparently, criminal app developer is now a job title. The fake app displayed hundreds of 5 star ratings which added to its appearance of legitimacy and even linked to the actual Trezor website.

It’s reported that as many as 8 fake Trezor apps have appeared on the Google Play store from time to time.

fake cypto apps
SafePal tweets about fake SFP app

Fake SafePal App

Fake app scams seem to keep popping up like pimples on the proverbial crypto butt. Probably because they’re pretty successful at duping crypto users out of their precious coins. Earlier this year SafePal, a crypto wallet developer, was warning customers on twitter of a fake SafePal wallet app on Google Play. There was no way of distinguishing from the icon alone which was the fake and which was the genuine SafePal app.

If these types of scams are commonplace, the question becomes one of whether app marketplaces are as closely curated and scrutinised as companies like Apple and Google might claim. Especially when some of the icons look suspiciously similar to the real deal? Apparently, the apps are put forward and pass through app market place review processes and then are morphed by developers into fake crypto wallets that impersonate real brands.

Electrum wallet phishing attack

In 2018 a hacker famously targeted Electrum wallet in a cleverly designed phishing attack. The story goest that the hacker created and sent to all Electrum Wallet users a fake message prompting them to perform a security upgrade for the app. The message was disguised with a GitHub site URL, which made it all appear legitimate. The real purpose of the upgrade was to install a client that collected the user’s private keys so the hacker could steal their crypto. The hacker reportedly stole 243 BTC, which in 2018 was worth around $1M but in today’s dollars is more like $8.5M.

These are just some of the many examples of fake crypto wallets that keep popping up in app market places. This reddit forum, organised to get the word out about crypto wallet app scams, reports fake Exodus wallets, Cardano wallets and Trust Wallets, so user beware.

How to avoid being scammed by fake crypto wallet apps

With app market places unlikely to take on more responsibility for policing the growing number of fake crypto apps in their stores, the onus is on you to protect yourself from crypto app phishing attacks. Here are some things you should do before downloading ANY crypto app from Apple’s App Store or Google Play:

  1. google the name of the app with the words ‘scam’, ‘phishing,’ ‘fake’ or ‘hack after it. See what people are saying. Get onto reddit and do the same thing.
  2. don’t search for the app in the app store. Go to the developers website and click through to the app from there. Pay attention to the developer’s website address!
  3. don’t trust the 5 star review ratings in the app store. Bots can be used to manufacture fake 5 star reviews. Click on the reviews and see what they say.
  4. check the app developer – does this align with the developer’s website? Google the developer’s name. Cross check it.

There are some other simple strategies that you can use to protect against total loss if you are the unfortunate victim of a crypto scam. Avoid putting all of your coins in one wallet and keeping your crypto fortune on a hardware wallet air gapped from the internet are two of these strategies.

This doesn’t mean that you can’t put that crypto to work – Exodus wallet and Trezor have a new partnership that allows users of the Exodus mobile crypto wallet to securely stake coins from cold storage. We expect these types of offerings to increase as the cryptoverse fights back against damaging scams and hacks that cost the crypto community millions and can turn the victims off crypto for a lifetime.

7000 Americans scammed out of $1900 in cryptocurrency scams

Crypto KP Common crypto scams , ,
7000 Americans scammed out of $1900 in cryptocurrency scams

If you believe the US Federal Trade Commission, an agency tasked with protecting American consumers, the number of reported cryptocurrency scams is skyrocketing. In a May 2021 post, the FTC reports that cryptocurrency scams have exploded since October 2020 resulting in losses over that period of around $80 million USD. The average loss per reported scam? $1900 USD.

Common cryptocurrency scams

According to the FTC, some of the most commonly perpetrated crypto scams are:

  • giveaway scams where members of particular online crypto communities get free coins if you send your coins to a posted wallet address
  • bogus websites with scam investment opportunities offering block buster returns using fake testimonials
  • Elon Musk impersonators that have duped unsuspecting coin holders out of $2 million collectively
  • Online dating apps used to lure people into cryptocurrency investments (yes, you really did read that!)
Are you being scammed? Ask yourself this before you send your crypto.

So who is getting duped out of their dough?

Apparently, people aged 20 to 49 were 5 times more likely to get caught up in a cryptocurrency scam. But this probably a reflection of the crypto demographic more than anything. Older crypto investors are losing in smaller numbers but their losses are bigger at an average of over $3000.

How to spot cryptocurrency scams

You’ll notice that most the scams above involve some kind of impersonation – of an individual, a Project, a crypto community group. The first thing you need to do is verify who you are dealing with and that they are legit. Before you invest, check them out. Google the name of the company, entity or cryptocurrency, plus words like “review,” “scam,” or “complaint.” See what others are saying.

Another commonality between all of these scams are the claims of big payouts, guaranteed money, and free returns. Scammers prey on greed and ignorance. While crypto markets are know for their incredible market growth rates, these are generally found buying small cap coins and tokens from legitimate exchanges. If you come across an ‘investment opportunity’ that seems too good to be true then it just is.

The third characteristic of scams is the double down investment offer. A request out of the blue that you double your initial investment in order to get the promised returns.

Another common feature of these types of scams is that they are unsolicited. Someone reaches out to you to join a crypto community or promote a killer crypto investment opportunity. If this happens over social media, via email, in Youtube comments or in any message group forums its a scam.

Finally, all of these scams ask you to send your crypto to a public wallet address that they have posted themselves. Don’t do it if you ever want to see your coins again! Instead, leave your crypto in your hardware wallet and only send it to addresses you have verified or have been generated within a secure website or app. NEVER send your crypto to wallet addresses sent to you in unsolicited emails, social media, group chat apps like Telegram and WhatsApp.

And if you do get suckered in by evil scammer and live in the US, you can report the crypto scam here.

Cryptocurrency scam cons millions out of this Telegram community

Crypto KP Telegram Crypto Scams , ,
Cryptocurrency scam cons millions out of this Telegram community

If you’re new to the cryptoverse, Telegram is a major community hub for different cryptocurrency communities. It’s how exchanges, projects and developers keep their communities up to date on the latest project partnerships and milestones, as well as incentive and reward offers. It’s no wonder then that it’s also fertile ground for a cryptocurrency scam or two. If you join a crypto community on Telegram, in this article we’ll cover what to look out for so you can keep your crypto safe from scammers.

Wall Street Bets crypto pumps scam

Many of you will have heard of the famous David and Goliath Wall Street Bets Reddit forum short squeeze on GameStop. Well as recently as May 2021 a whole bunch of Wall Street Bets members were parted from their crypto in a nasty Telegram cryptocurrency scam. Here’s what happened.

The scammers targeted the Telegram account ‘Wall Street Bets crypto pumps”, offering members of this group the opportunity to buy a ‘new coin’ WSB Finance before it was to be listed on exchanges. The lure of the so called deal? As soon as the ‘new coin’ WSB Finance was listed on popular exchanges it would skyrocket in price making any early coin holders a bunch of easy money.

Sounds totally fly right?

The scammers borrowed the authority and renown of the Wall Street Bets Reddit group and founders to legitimise their scam and this is a trait of Telegrams cryptocurrency scams. The scammers asked the WSB crypto pumps group members to send BNB (Binance coin) and ETH (Ethereum) to a public wallet address and then to make contact with their ‘token bot’ on Telegram to receive their WSB Finance coins.

The crypto scammers then persuaded these unsuspecting Telegram group members to double their initial BNB and ETH deposits buy sending out a group message that implored members to make a second payment or risk losing everything. The story went that a second deposit was needed due to some technical issues with their ‘token bot’.

How much did people lose?

Now because blockchain is a transparent ledger some clever folk got onto the Binance Smart Chain and found that a cool 3500 BNB tokens were removed from the public wallet address posted by the scammers soon after the Telegram ‘Initial Coin Offering’ was posted. At a price of around $600 USD per BNB at the time, it’s thought that group members were duped out of over $2 million. And that was just the BNB and doesn’t even count the ETH lost to the scam.

cryptocurrency scam

3 Telegram cryptocurrency scams to know about

When it comes down to it, impersonating a person or group in Telegram is super easy. So here are the different types of scams that you’ll need to watch out for on Telegram if you want to keep custody of your crypto assets:

Fake rep scam

This is where you are actively contacted on Telegram by someone claiming to be an Executive or recruitment representative of a known crypto entity like a Project or a crypto exchange. The scammers generally try to convince you that you’ve been offered a job and will groom you into providing your personal and other details so they can steal your coins.

Giveaway scam

Scammers will impersonate known groups, persons or entities on Telegram and set up fake Telegram groups using look-a-like profile logos. The groups appear to have loads of members, but these are all paid bots not real people. The scammers entice people to join these groups and post fake giveaways in the group chat. The ‘giveaways’ are often dressed up in the cloak of a competition to win coins or an Airdrop of tokens associated with a particular coin. This is where the giveaways appear legitimate because crypto exchanges do run these promotions legitimately from time to time. The kicker is, to participate you need to send your coins to a certain address, which is also posted in the chat.

Any crypto exchange will tell you that they never require your coins to be sent to a third party address to join their Airdrops or competitions.

Coin listing and ICO scams

These are laid out in the Wall Street Bets crypto pumps example above and are pretty prolific on Telegram. If you want to find small cap coin gems that are not listed on the big exchanges, better to go somewhere like UniSwap or Kucoin then try to become a millionaire on Telegram.

How to keep your crypto safe from Telegram scams

It’s simple: just don’t send your coins to any public addresses posted on the Telegram app. Full stop, end of story.

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