Current market volatility has driven gas fees higher than ever before. To move assets on the Ethereum chain users need to pay well over $10 and more complex actions like interacting with DeFi Dapps are completely out of the reach for small investors.
This has created a serious problem even for those that want to move to Layer 2 solutions such as xDai. Bridging funds would also require paying gas fees and most users can’t afford them. This time, using a centralized exchange wouldn’t be such a bad idea after all.
Binance Smart Chain (BSC) gets xDai Bridge
app analysis
The Omnibridge has been a gateway from ETH to xDAI for a long time now. Recently, BSC was added to the bridge opening new possibilities for those that want to go directly to Layer 2. Here is a step-by-step guide on how to do it:
Withdraw DAI from Binance to BEP20 address
Withdraw DAI to your Metamask address and be sure to select BEP20 as the withdraw option as seen in the image below.
Add Binance Smart Chain as Custom RPC (NYSE:RES) to Metamask
To start using BSC with your Metamask you need to enter the correct parameters and add them as a new network. Select “Custom RPC” and enter the following:
If for any reason the RPC URL causes you problems, you can find others that can be used by clicking here.
Bridge from BSC to xDAI
This is the part where the Omnibridge comes into play. Follow this link and select the following parameters:
You will need to have some BNB in your wallet to cover the transaction and approval fees. Once the whole process is complete, your DAI should be bridged over to xDAI.
Wrapping your DAI
In order to use the newly-bridged tokens on Honeyswap you will need to wrap them first. This can be done with Component Finance. If you don’t have the xDai network set up on Metamask, here are the parameters.
Go to Component Finance, select the Swap option and convert your BSC DAI to WXDAI.
Once this process is completed, you will be able to use the wrapped xDai on Honeyswap. Also, if you want to use it elsewhere as xDai it can be unwrapped using Wrap ETH.
Note that you will also need to have some xDai in your wallet to cover the fees for this process.Using the faucet may help if there is no other way to obtain the token.
On the Flipside
Many have been criticizing the Binance chain for being 100% centralized. While this is a genuine concern, it can still be used as a way to bypass gas fees.
The broader crypto community generally doesn’t like using centralized exchanges but for now, this seems to be the only way to get to L2 without paying hundreds of dollars in fees.
And that’s it! Once you are on the xDai chain gas fees won’t be a concern anymore. Moving funds and interacting with Dapps is almost free as it costs a fraction of a cent per transaction at the moment.
As more time passes, L2 solutions will see more and more traction because ETH fees are here to stay for quite a while. Why not be first at the party?
