BRC20 Tokens: The Complete Guide
Welcome to our comprehensive guide on BRC20 Tokens, an innovative and exciting development in the world of digital assets. In this guide, we will explore the concept of Ordinals, the technology behind BRC20 tokens and how to Buy or Mint BRC20 tokens.
What Are Ordinals?
Ordinals aim to make Bitcoin more engaging by allowing text, images, and code to be inscribed on satoshis, the smallest Bitcoin unit. Each satoshi has a unique number ranging from 0 to 2,100 trillion, assigned as they are mined.
The Ordinals protocol assigns serial numbers to satoshis and tracks them through transactions, making individual satoshis unique by attaching extra data. This process is known as “inscription.”
Ordinal Theory is a proposed method for identifying and tracking each satoshi within the Bitcoin supply by assigning a serial number and monitoring their transaction history. Enabled by the Taproot upgrade in November 2021, ordinal inscriptions resemble NFTs and do not require a sidechain or separate token.
By February 2023, over 100,000 inscriptions using ordinals were created, with users adding images, video games, and other content to the network. The growing popularity of ordinal inscriptions highlights the potential of this innovative approach to enhance the Bitcoin ecosystem.
What Are BRC20 Tokens?
BRC20 tokens are a novel token standard that utilizes the Ordinals protocol explained earlier. Similar to ERC20 tokens on the Ethereum blockchain, BRC20 tokens allow for the creation of unique digital assets on the Bitcoin Blockchain.
However it is important to note that BRC20 Tokens are very limited in terms of functionality, ORC20 tokens are the next-gen standards that enhances the limitations of BRC20 Tokens, below is a comparison table:
Nonetheless, the excitement currently surrounds BRC20 Tokens, as they are still in their infancy, being only two months old. To this day, no ORC20 tokens are known to exist.
You could view a list of the existing BRC20 tokens by visiting BRC-20.io
How to Buy BRC20 Tokens?
BRC20: Wallet Creation
There is no bridging involved, like what was needed to be done on DogeChain.
- First you need to create a Compatible Bitcoin ‘Web3‘ Wallet, you can do that by going to https://ordinalswallet.com, Click on “Connect” Wallet and either use their native Ordinals Wallet or any other from the list if you prefer to have a browser extension like Metamask
- For the sake of this Tutorial, We will go with the
Ordinals Wallet, Click on “Create New Wallet” -> “Create a Password” and “Generate Seed Phrase”IMPORTANT: BACKUP YOUR SEED PHRASE AND DO NOT SHARE IT WITH ANYONE - Congratulations, your address is now set up and ready to use! Notice that this generated BTC address is longer than SegWit or Native addresses due to its Taproot compatibility.
It is crucial to withdraw BTC only from exchanges that support Taproot withdrawals.
BRC20: How to Buy BRC20 Tokens?
- Head on to the BRC20 Tab located in the navbar
- You will see a list of BRC20 Tokens that are available to either Buy or Mint, You could also user the various Filter options to narrow down your Search.
- Let us say for Example we want to buy some $ORDI which is the native token of the Ordinals Wallet.
- We notice here that the coin is fully Minted, so our only choice is to Buy it
- Unlike exchanges or the traditional ways of buying tokens, BRC20 tokens are sold in batches, in the example below $ORDI tokens are filtered by the lowest prices (by default). The metadata reveals that “
amt” represents the amount, “tick” represents the ticker.
For the first item, 200 $ORDI tokens are available at a price of $13.80 each.
- Click on “Buy Now” -> Enter your “Wallet Password” -> “Buy Now”
- After your Transaction is confirmed, you could see your BRC20 Tokens by visiting your wallet section and click on the BRC20 tab
- We notice here that the coin is fully Minted, so our only choice is to Buy it
BRC20: How to Mint BRC20 Tokens?
- You can only mint BRC20 Tokens that were newly listed. In order to filter that:
- head on to the “
BRC” section on the navbar - Filter by
50% Minted
- head on to the “
- After using the Filter, We could see that $BANK is not fully Minted
- $BANK is 85% minted, we could see that 85,160,977 of the total supply of 100,000,000 were minted. You click on “
Mint” -> Enter your “Wallet Password” -> “Confirm your Mint”
- After your Transaction is confirmed, you could see your BRC20 Tokens by visiting your wallet section and click on the BRC20 tab
In conclusion, BRC20 tokens represent a groundbreaking development in the world of digital assets, leveraging the innovative Ordinals protocol to create unique tokens on the Bitcoin Blockchain. While BRC20 tokens are still in their infancy, the excitement surrounding their potential is undeniable. As more users and developers begin to embrace and experiment with this new token standard, we can expect further advancements in the ecosystem, including the upcoming ORC20 tokens.
We hope this comprehensive guide has provided you with a solid understanding of BRC20 tokens, Ordinals, and the exciting possibilities they bring to the world of digital assets. Armed with this knowledge, you are now ready to dive into the world of BRC20 tokens, create your own compatible wallet, and start exploring the unique tokens available for purchase and minting. Enjoy your journey into this innovative and dynamic space!
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