Introducing native ETH & wstETH transfers for EVM chains

The Wormhole protocol has added native ETH and Lido wstETH transfer software to the platform. This new functionality, built on Uniswap v3, is set to transform the way ETH and wstETH are moved across various EVM-based networks, bringing a new level of cost efficiency and liquidity.

Native ETH Transfers

This new system leverages Wormhole’s cross-chain functionality combined with the concentrated liquidity pools of Uniswap v3, providing the following:

1. Transfer ETH and wstETH at the most competitive fee price on the market: Transfer ETH or wstETH with fees typically around 0.02%-0.04%*.
2. Transfers without gas on destination chain: Enables the movement of ETH or wstETH between chains without requiring assets on the destination chain.
3. User-Friendly Approach: Simplifies the transfer process to a single function call through the Portal app.

*based on internal testing and liquidity levels as of January 11, 2024

Architecture

Each chain will have one xETH/wETH pool, which is used to trade between xETH (Wormhole ether) and wrapped (local) ether. Since the pool is a standard Uniswap v3 pool, all LPs are welcome and may choose exactly how they want to provide liquidity. We expect most liquidity to be concentrated near the middle, but some LPs may choose to charge a higher fee and others a lower fee.

How it Works

In a detailed example of a transfer of ETH from Optimism to Base, ETH is swapped to Wormhole xETH on Uniswap (Optimism), the xETH is transferred to Base, and then swapped to Base-native ETH on Uniswap (Base), all with minimal fees. The user began with native ETH on Optimism and ended with native ETH on Base all with high speed and extremely low fees.

Where Native ETH and wstETH Transfers are Available

At launch, native-to-native ETH transfers are now available across Ethereum, Arbitrum, Base, Optimism, Polygon, BNB Chain, and Avalanche.

Native-to-native Lido wstETH transfers are available across Ethereum, Arbitrum, Optimism, and Polygon, and Base.

Embed Native ETH Transfers in Your App

Starting today, developers that want to embed the Wormhole Connect widget can do so here: https://www.npmjs.com/package/@wormhole-foundation/wormhole-connect

You can find the docs here: https://docs.wormhole.com/wormhole/quick-start/wh-connect

More advanced integrations via the Wormhole SDK are not supported quite yet, but coming soon.

Transfer Now

Users can begin transferring native ETH and wstETH, starting with Portal Bridge, at portalbridge.com.

About Wormhole

Wormhole is the leading interoperability platform for multichain applications and bridges. Wormhole provides developers access to liquidity and users on over 30 of the leading blockchain networks, enabling use cases that span DeFi, NFTs, governance, and more. The wider Wormhole network is trusted and used by teams like Circle and Uniswap, and to date, the platform has facilitated the transfer of over 40 billion dollars through over 1 billion secure cross-chain messages. To learn more about Wormhole, visit the Wormhole website, Twitter, Discord, or blog.