WTF IS WETC?
Put plainly, WETC is "wrapped ETC" but let's start by introducing the players.
First, There's Ether Token
Ether or ETC is the native currency built on the Ethereum Classic blockchain.
Second, There Are Alt Tokens
When a dApp (decentralized app) is built off of the Ethereum Classic Blockchain it usually implements its own form of Token. Think ETCswap's liquidity tokens, or Classic USD's USC Token.
Finally The ERC-20 Standard
ERC-20 is a standard developed after the release of ETC that defines how tokens are transferred and how to keep a consistent record of those transfers among tokens in the Ethereum Classic Network.
Why You Need WETC
ETC Doesn't Conform To Its Own ERC-20 Standard.
As mentioned above, ETC was the proto-token of the Ethereum Classic alt tokens, which means it was built before the ERC-20 standard existed.
Wrapping ETC Allows You To Trade Directly With Alt Tokens.
The reason you need WETC is to be able to trade ETC for other ERC-20 tokens on decentralized platforms like ETCswap. Because decentralized platforms running on Ethereum Classic use smart contracts to facilitate trades directly between users, every user needs to have the same standardized format for every token they trade. This ensures tokens don't get lost in translation.
Ready To Wrap?
So This Is Awkward...You Don't Actually Wrap Anything.
When you "wrap" ETC, you aren't really wrapping so much as trading via a smart contract for an equal token called WETC. If you want to get plain ETC back you need to "unwrap" it. AKA trade it back for plain ETC.
Whatever, Just Give Me The WETC!
Wrap your ETC on ETCswap. Once you have the WETC you can freely trade with anyone holding an ERC-20 token on Ethereum Classic.
The Canonical WETC
Only use these official WETC contract addresses. The same contract is deployed on both mainnet and testnet.
| Network | Chain ID | Consensus | Contract Address | Tx Hash |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mainnet: Ethereum Classic | 61 | Proof of Work | 0x1953cab0E5bFa6D4a9BaD6E05fD46C1CC6527a5a | 0x9bb...2259e |
| Testnet: Mordor Testnet | 63 | Proof of Work | 0x1953cab0E5bFa6D4a9BaD6E05fD46C1CC6527a5a | 0x895...a212d |
Secure Your WETC
Trezor Supports WETC
You can store your WETC and ETC safely on your Trezor hardware wallet. Trezor Suite fully supports Ethereum Classic's ERC-20 tokens, giving you cold storage security for your DeFi assets.
- ✓Store WETC alongside your native ETC
- ✓Full ERC-20 token support on Ethereum Classic
- ✓Connect to ETCswap with hardware wallet security
- ✓Sign transactions safely offline
Why Hardware Wallets?
Your private keys never leave the device. Even if your computer is compromised, your assets remain secure. For DeFi users holding WETC for trading or liquidity provision, hardware wallet security is essential.
The Future of WETC
Built With Modern Best Practices
The WETC contract was updated by Gnosis to Solidity 0.5+ best practices. Unlike older wrapped token contracts that may not follow modern standards, this canonical WETC uses the emit keyword for all events.
In Solidity v0.4.21 (March 2018), the
emitkeyword was introduced to emit events. This helps differentiate functions from events — a confusion that was one of the reasons for TheDAO Hack which led to the hard fork and gave birth to Ethereum Classic.
This means WETC is:
- ✓Compatible with modern Solidity tooling
- ✓Follows current security best practices
- ✓Easier to audit and integrate
- ✓Properly emits events for better indexing
Learn more: 'emit' keyword in Solidity by Aniket
WETC Ecosystem
WETC is live and integrated across the Ethereum Classic DeFi ecosystem.
