Cross-chain technology will be one of the fastest-growing areas in 2022. Check out this guide to using Synapse – one of today’s hottest cross-chain bridge projects..Go to BingX now.

Synapse Protocol Overview
Synapse can be understood as a cross-chain layer that acts as an intermediary for transferring assets between different blockchains, allowing transactions between any L1, L2, or sidechain.
More than just a cross-chain bridge, Synapse also supports various other blockchain activities such as swapping, asset transfers, and yield farming. Synapse currently supports up to 10 different blockchains.

Some Notable Points about Synapse
As a prominent cross-chain project today, the project’s TVL has been steadily increasing in recent months and is now peaking at approximately $1 billion.
Currently, it supports 10 different chains: Ethereum, Binance Smart Chain, Optimism, Boba, Arbitrum, Moonriver, Polygon, Fantom, Harmony, Avalanche. This brings great convenience to users, especially those who want to transfer assets to L2 blockchains.
The number of tokens supported for bridging between chains is currently 12 and will increase in the future.
It integrates many other tools, notably Stablecoin AMM. You can swap stablecoins on multiple chains with low slippage, saving you money compared to swapping on AMMs that don’t specialize in stablecoins.
In addition, you can also add liquidity to stablecoin pools, then stake LP tokens to farm.
Although Synapse does not disclose its investors, you can refer to the investment fund of Nerve Finance because this is a project with the same team and Synapse is also a rebranding of Nerve

Preparing Native Coins for Gas Fees
Gas fees will be charged in the native token/coin of the corresponding chain, for example:
- On Binance Smart Chain, fees will be paid in BNB (BEP20).
- On Ethereum, fees will be paid in ETH (ERC20).
- On Avalanche, fees will be paid in AVAX – C Chain (ARC20).
- On Polygon, fees will be paid in MATIC (PRC20).
Therefore, you need to have enough gas in your corresponding wallet before using Synapse.
You can buy BNB, ETH, AVAX… on centralized exchanges such as FTX, Kucoin, Binance, Gate.io… then transfer them to your wallet. To save on costs, I recommend that you only need to prepare gas fees for the chain you intend to use.
Bridging Funds
Step 1: Select the blockchain with the funds you want to send. Here, I will send from Binance Smart Chain to Polygon

Step 2: Enter the amount you want to transfer.
In this step, you need to pay attention to a few things:
- The transaction fee will be charged on the destination chain, which in this case is 1 USDT on Polygon.
- The price of USDT on Polygon.
- Slippage: 0.01%.
A very nice thing about using the bridge on Synapse is that each time you bridge, you will receive a small amount of native tokens on the destination chain. Here I will receive a small amount of MATIC to be able to use as a gas fee for subsequent transactions with USDT (in case my wallet does not have MATIC available for fees). This is a point that I think is very convenient.

Step 3: Click “Approve USDT.” Then confirm the transaction in your wallet. This step requires a small fee

Step 4: Click “Bridge Token.” Then continue to confirm the transaction in your wallet; this step also costs a small fee (BNB – BEP20).

Once completed, wait a moment for the system to confirm the transaction and transfer the funds

Swapping
Step 1: Select the blockchain for swapping. Here, I’ll use Polygon as an example, but you can choose according to your needs.

Step 2: Select the assets you want to swap. Here, I’ll choose USDT → USDC. You can select according to your needs.

Step 3: Select the amount. Then, be sure to pay attention to the exchange rate between the two tokens and the slippage

Step 4: Approve the token, then confirm the transaction in your wallet

Step 5: Click “Execute Swap” to swap. Then, confirm the transaction in your wallet.

That’s it, you’ve successfully swapped! Please note that this feature is only for stablecoins.
Adding Liquidity to Pools
Step 1: Select the pool you want to add liquidity to. Since my USDT is on Polygon, I’ll use Polygon as an example. You can choose any pool you like

Step 2: Click on the pool, then enter the amounts of the tokens you want to add. You’ll be adding four tokens at once (they don’t have to be the same amount)

Step 3: Then, click “Deposit” and “Confirm” to confirm the transaction in your wallet.

That’s it, you’ve successfully added liquidity! You can withdraw your funds at any time by selecting “Remove Liquidity.”
Staking
Step 1: Once you have LP tokens, select the “Stake” tab.
Step 2: Enter the number of LP tokens you want to stake. Click “Max” to select all.

Step 3: Click “Approve Token” to allow the use of the token. Then, confirm the transaction in your wallet.
Step 4: Click “Stake” to proceed with staking. Then, confirm the transaction once again in your wallet.

That’s it, you’ve successfully staked and will start earning yield! If you want to withdraw your LP tokens, just click “Unstake” and enter the amount.

Some Notes When Using Synapse
Can I only swap/bridge stablecoins?
Besides stablecoins, you can bridge/swap SYN and a few other tokens. Synapse is also aiming to be a general cross-chain bridge, not just for stablecoins.
What is nUSD?
nUSD is a cross-chain stablecoin from Synapse. It is fully backed by a stablecoin liquidity pool on Ethereum. This pool includes the largest stablecoins on the market today, such as DAI, USDC, and USDT.
Do all bridges on the blockchain “support” a small amount of the native coin/token?
On almost all chains, you will receive a small amount of the native token to be able to carry out one or two transactions on the destination blockchain, except for Ethereum.
Swap Fees on Synapse
Each stablecoin transaction on Synapse will incur a 0.04% fee. Of this fee, 40% will go to LP token holders, and 60% will be collected by the protocol.
Do I need to add all the stablecoins in the pool?
No, you can deposit only one type, or a pair you want; it is not necessary to have all of them.
However, if you deposit a stablecoin that is in “excess supply,” you will have to pay a fee. With a stablecoin in “short supply,” you will receive a bonus. If you provide liquidity with all types, it will be as usual.
Why is the number of tokens different from the original after removing liquidity?
When you withdraw liquidity, the number of each token will be different, but the total number of tokens will remain the same. For example, suppose you provide $10 of each type (totaling $40), but when you withdraw, it becomes 15 USDT, 5 DAI, 10 nUSD, and 10 USDC. That is, the total remains the same, but the ratio is different. You can swap back as needed.
Is it safe to use Synapse?
Currently, the Synapse AMM smart contract has been audited by three parties: Certik, Quantstamp, and OpenZeppelin. The Synapse Bridge is being audited. Therefore, as with other dapps, you still have to consider the risks related to smart contracts.