Built by Bransfer, Layerswap facilitates transfers between centralized exchanges and various rollups and Layer 2s.
With Osmosis integrated, users from all corners of crypto can now quickly move assets cross-chain between Cosmos and Layerswap’s network of 15 CEXs and 11 blockchains/rollups, including Arbitrum, Optimism, zkSync, StarkNet, ImmutableX, BNB chain, and more.
For Osmosis, the addition will make its on-ramping and cross-chain infrastructure more robust, provide access to more ecosystems, improve UX, and – through competition – put downward pressure on bridge and on-ramp fees.
Using Layerswap
Currently, Layerswap works best in conjunction with a Coinbase account. Other CEXs can also be used, but they require more manual work from the user since only Coinbase (so far) has a full API integration that allows Layerswap to semi-automate the transfers.
Example:
Mary has USDC on Coinbase, and she wants to use the Layerswap user interface to transfer it directly to Osmosis.
- Enter Osmosis address and Token Information
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Connect Coinbase Account: Once an Osmosis address is entered in the form above, the Layerswap UI will guide Mary through connecting her Coinbase account. This process is relatively easy since it takes place in an embedded pop-up.
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Authorize/Set Spending Limit: While connecting the account, Mary will authorize Layerswap to spend up to a certain amount, which is similar to the UX of Ethereum token approvals or Cosmos authz spending limits:
Mary can lift or remove this allowance at any time.
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Confirm Tx on Layerswap: Once her account is connected, Mary can confirm the transfer on Layerswap. (She can still cancel the transaction until she performs the next step.)
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Send to Deposit Address on Coinbase: This will then prompt her to open the “Send and Receive” interface in Coinbase and to copy in the deposit address and amount that Layerswap provides.
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Layerswap Auto-Detects and Sends: When the intra-Coinbase transfer to the Layerswap deposit address is completed, Layerswap automatically sends the tokens to their final destination, in this case, Osmosis. The UI will alert Mary once the funds have arrived.
Fees, Token Caps, Extra Txs: The first screenshot above shows the fee breakdown for Mary’s on-ramping transaction. In this case, it consists of a flat (but somewhat variable) Layerswap fee plus an Exchange fee for Mary, which comes to $11.17 to move up to 1000 USDC. This relatively low cap on transfers means that large amounts of tokens cannot be transferred without multiple transactions.
It is important to pay close attention to fees, especially when using non-Coinbase CEXs since they involve additional transactions not displayed in the Layerswap UI.
A few important things to note when using Layerswap
1. You are trusting layer swap during the swapping process – similar to fiat on-ramps.
2. Coinbase API authorization works similarly to ERC20 token approvals. DO NOT APPROVE MORE THAN YOU INTEND TO SEND.
Why Layerswap?
Users should check out Layerswap if they are looking for:
– faster transfers (usually) than with mint/burn bridging
– potentially lower fees (always double-check!)
– access to otherwise hard-to-reach networks (maybe BASE, soon)
– a different trust/risk model: eliminates bridge contract risk but adds temporary custody risk (somewhat mitigated by users’ access to legal recourse).
Layerswap is now available on the osmosis.zone frontend, part of a growing suite of on-ramping and non-IBC cross-chain solutions like Axelar, Squid, Kado, and Transak. All of these will be combined into a fiat onramp selector that will make it more obvious to users how they can onboard various assets onto the chain.
– Welcome to the Osmosis Ecosystem!