Learn how to create a MetaMask wallet, set it up for Binance Smart Chain and connect to PancakeSwap.
The DeFi ecosystem has grown a lot in the last year. During 2020, Ethereum fostered the creation of hundreds of protocols that leverage on smart contracts to offer financial services in a decentralized environment.
However, a few months in, the Ethereum network showed it was not prepared to handle the influx of users and transactions that these protocols attracted. Hence, there was the need of a new, more scalable blockchain to properly withstand the DeFi boom.
The developers delivered and Binance Smart Chain (BSC) was born, with full EVM support to ease the migration from Ethereum. Less than a year later, BSC is already rivaling Ethereum and has surpassed its monthly transaction volume, according to analysis firm DappRadar.
While Ethereum has Uniswap and SushiSwap as its main DEX, BSC users got PancakeSwap, a truly decentralized Automated Market Maker (AMM) and yield farming protocol to trade and stake their tokens.
Due to EVM compatibility, you can use Ethereum wallets to trade and store your BSC tokens. We’re going to explain step by step how to create a MetaMask wallet, set it up to use Binance Smart Chain and then connect to PancakeSwap.
Creating a MetaMask wallet
MetaMask is one of the best Ethereum wallets to use tokens and interact with smart contracts, so we’re going to stick with it to use our BSC tokens.
The first step is to install the MetaMask extension on your browser. It’s supported on Chrome, Brave, Firefox and Edge. You can also download the app on iOS and Android devices.
After this, you must either create a new wallet or import one using a seed phrase. If this is the first time you create a wallet, I recommend you to create a new one.
It’s important that you write your seed phrase on paper and put it in a safe place.
Setting up Binance Smart Chain
Once you open your wallet, it will be set by default in the Ethereum mainnet, as well as the different testnets in the Ethereum network. You can see this in the upper part of the window.
If you go to the end of the list, you’ll find the Custom RPC button, where you can add other chains.
Once you click this option, you’ll need to put the following data in order to configure the BSC:
Network Name: Smart Chain
New RPC URL: https://bsc-dataseed.binance.org/
ChainID: 56
Symbol: BNB
Block Explorer URL: https://bscscan.com
After you’re done, just press Save and it’s ready!
Adding new tokens to your MetaMask wallet
Now, once you have MetaMask set for BSC, you can add any BEP20 token you want. All you need is its name.
The first step is to scroll to the bottom of the MetaMask window and click on the Add Token button.
Here, you will see two options: Search and Custom Token.
For the most known tokens, you can try writing their name in the Search bar. This works for Aave and Binance pegged coins, as well as many other renowned projects.
If you want to add a lesser known token, like new projects you want to invest in, or participate in an airdrop, you’ll have to use the Custom Token option.
This process is also really easy. You only need the Contract Address (CA) of the token. If the team behind the project doesn’t provide it to you, you can always go to https://bscscan.com/ and look for the token name in the search bar.
It’s important to double check you are seeing the information related to the right token. Many scammers create fake tokens with a similar name to fool users into investing in a wrong token.
In the above image, you can see the market overview of the token, with the information regarding price, supply, capitalization and holders on the left.
On the right side, you can see the contract, the amount of decimals and social information about the token. This is what you’ll need to introduce in MetaMask. I recommend you to copy and paste it to prevent any mistake.
Usually, once you put the contract it should automatically fill the other information. However, you can find that info (and check if it matches) in BSCScan.
Connecting to PancakeSwap with MetaMask
After you set the Binance Smart Chain in your MetaMask wallet, it’s time to go to pancakeswap.finance and start trading.
This step is really easy. You just have to go to the upper right corner, click on Connect and select MetaMask. The MetaMask extension will then request you to accept the connection and, once you do it, it’ll be all set.
You’re ready to trade tokens in the exchange, or participate in the Liquidity Pools, Lottery, and all the other features PancakeSwap offers.
Trading in PancakeSwap
PancakeSwap is a Decentralized Exchange and, since you’re connecting it to your MetaMask account, you don’t need to transfer the tokens there like in other centralized alternatives. You can trade with the tokens you have in your wallet.
Since PancakeSwap works in the Binance Smart Chain, you need to also own BNB to pay for the fee. Unlike Ethereum, the fee price in BSC is really low, accounting for only a couple of cents. You can buy BNB tokens in centralized exchanges, like Binance or Bittrex.
To best use this DEX, you can head over to BSCPromotions on Telegram, where you will get to participate in promos and receive free crypto in the many giveaways they conduct.
You’ll also be the first to know which are the best projects in the BSC ecosystem and be among the firsts to jump in!