Zerion
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Zerion
Over the past several weeks, we have taken a journey into Decentralised Finance (DeFi). We have focused on what it is and how to use it. We have covered many of the primary activities one can currently participate in, including exchanging assets with Uniswap, lending and borrowing with Aave and MakerDAO, yield farming with yearn.finance, staking with Lido, trading perpetual contracts with dYdX, trading option contracts with Hegic and creating structured products with Ribbon Finance.
This has provided an excellent base to understand how these networks work and what they can do. However, the one problem that arises when using DeFi is that it can become cumbersome to keep track and account for all the activities you participate in. Due to this, we have seen the rise of DeFi network aggregators, such as Zerion.
What is Zerion?
Zerion is an interface to the world of DeFi and Web3. It allows you to track and participate in different protocols through one application.
Zerion was founded in 2016 by Evgeny Yurtaev, Alexey Bashlykov and Vadim Koleoshkin. They managed to secure early backing from well-known venture capital funds Placeholder and Blockchain Ventures, raising $2 million in its seed round. When they started, they offered a simple solution to tracking the rising number of ERC-20 tokens that were available on Ethereum; however, they soon saw the scope of where their technology could be applied and evolved into a DeFi and Web3 asset management tool.
Through this shift, they have grown the company rapidly. They now have around two hundred and twenty thousand active monthly users and have processed over 1.2 billion in transaction volume. They currently support over ten different blockchains with five hundred plus integrated protocols.
Another bonus, which is fast becoming the standard, is that the Zerion code has been independently audited by two different security firms, Trail of Bits and Vulners.
How Does Zerion Work?
Zerion is a non-custodial asset management tool. This means that they do not store your private keys or seed phrase and therefore cannot access your assets from their side.
Zerion simply acts as a user interface to the world of DeFi and Web3. This simple solution alleviates many of the problems that people experience when using DeFi, especially those who are new to it. Many existing DeFi projects have complicated or poor UI and affect the experience one has with the technology, and for many, it means that you write it off from the get-go. Crypto needs a killer app to encourage adoption.
Zerion has tried its best to do this while still allowing a significant amount of flexibility on the user's side. When using Zerion, you can choose which wallet you want to use to interact with it, from mobile wallets MetaMask, Trust Wallet and Phantom to a hardware wallet like Ledger. However, these wallets do have limitations as they focus on specific chains or a specific standard such as Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) compatible chains.
To address these shortcomings, Zerion has recently created its own wallet, aptly named the Zerion Wallet, that supports the ten different chains that Zerion is integrated into. They believe that this will make it easier to bridge assets between chains and track your assets more effectively. One important addition is that they also try to maintain a user's privacy by not tracking any user data or cross-associating wallets.
How To Use Zerion
For the purpose of this guide, we will set up and use a Zerion Wallet. This will automatically integrate better into the Zerion application and allow us to explore its functionality. Nevertheless, if you decide to use a specific wallet such as MetaMask (EVM), Trust Wallet (Binance SC) or Phantom (Solana), please find the links to setting up and funding them by clicking on the name.
Creating a Wallet
The Zerion Wallet is a mobile application, and therefore you will need to complete the following on your mobile device.
Step 1: Visit the Zerion Website
Go to the Zerion Website
Make sure the URL you land on is "https://zerion.io/"
You should see the below screen:
Click Create Wallet
Choose your appropriate app store
Follow the usual process when installing an application on your mobile device
Open up the application
Click Get started
Step 2: Create A Wallet
You will now have to create a new wallet.
Click Create Zerion Wallet
Click Create new wallet
You will be prompted to set and confirm a passcode. Make sure that you remember it as it is how you protect your wallet
The wallet will begin generating. This can potentially take some time, so be patient.
Zerion will now prompt you to review security best practices. Click Ok, let's go
Once your wallet has been generated, click Finish
Step 2: Backup Wallet Seed Phrase
You will now have the opportunity to backup your seed phrase. Your seed phrase is how you recover access to your account if something happens to your wallet. Therefore, it is crucial to concentrate during the next few steps. You can do this step at a later stage, but it is always recommended to do it when setting up a wallet if the surroundings allow it.
Click Backup
Zerion will provide some information about what seed phrases are and the importance of storing them safely. We have previously written about the importance of storing a seed phrase correctly. You can access that article here to follow best practices.
Click Show seed phrase
Enter your passcode or use biometrics
Your seed phrase will now be generated. It consists of twelve words. Copy your 12 words down in order and ensure that they are accurate, store them as suggested in our article. You can never be too careful with your seed phrase.
Once you have copied them down and stored them securely, click Confirm phrase
You will now have to verify your phrase and prove you have copied the words down correctly
Enter the five words they have asked for
If entered correctly, it will say Nicely done! Click Finish
You can now view your wallet and dashboard, which will look like the below:
Step 3: Use your Wallet
Now that you have set up the wallet, feel free to explore what you can do with it. You can now also connect it to your web browser wallet.
Connecting Zerion Wallet to Web Browser
Connecting your mobile wallet to your web browser for a different UI experience is also possible. Some prefer it, and some don't; it’s a personal preference.
Step 1: Visit the Zerion Website
Go to the Zerion Website
Make sure the URL you land on is "https://zerion.io/"
You should see the below screen, which is very similar to the mobile experience:
Click Zerion Web App in the top right-hand corner
You will now have a selection of wallets; click Zerion Wallet
Step 2: Connect Wallet
You will now be presented with a QR code
Open up the Zerion Wallet on your mobile and find the square with a horizontal line going through in the top right-hand side of the screen and click on it
You should now be able to scan the QR code on your desktop browser
It should automatically pick it up and start the connection process
It does say it may take some time so please be patient
Once it has connected, you can click Approve
This connection can also take some time, so please be patient
Once done, you should see your desktop connection to your wallet, and you will be able to view your dashboard as below:
Once this has happened and you have funded your wallet, you can do such things as Send, Swap, Bridge, Save and Borrow all through one interface.
Conclusion
Using these networks is the best way to learn about them. It shows and allows you to understand what blockchain networks are capable of. Each has its own unique advantages, disadvantages and user experiences.
While we have only scratched the surface of what is possible, Zerion has provided a glimpse into what DeFi and the crypto killer app may be in the future. One where you hardly even know you are interacting with a blockchain or specific protocol. These will be the applications that get crypto to a billion users, and we look forward to seeing how projects like Zerion and its competitors progress in the future.
If you have any questions or have trouble using the network, please feel free to reach out and ask us questions. We always look forward to chatting with our readers. Otherwise, please feel free to share this article if you know anyone who is interested in using these networks.
Notable Articles and News Stories This Week:
Bipartisan Crypto Bill Hits Congress With Focus on CFTC Jurisdiction, Taxes
A long-awaited US digital asset bill was introduced Tuesday, setting the stage for conversations centred around the likes of stablecoin regulation and taxation — as well as what regulator should oversee cryptocurrency.
Sens. Cynthia Lummis, R-Wyo., and Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., co-sponsored the bipartisan initiative.
The Responsible Financial Innovation Act focuses on clarifying the roles of different regulatory bodies, increasing stablecoin oversight, and eliminating taxes on cryptocurrency transactions of less than $200.
The crypto bill, dubbed the Lummis-Gillibrand bill for short, also pushes back the applicable date for defining a broker-dealer — a key friction point in the 2021 infrastructure bill — to Jan. 1, 2025.
The 69-page legislation includes new rules around stablecoins, which have been a popular — albeit contentious — topic on the Hill since Terra's collapse in May. Lummis and Gillibrand propose that stablecoins be defined as any token backed by one or more financial assets, but not any other digital assets, which would exclude algorithmic stablecoins, such as Terra.
The language defines many crypto tokens as "ancillary assets," or an "intangible, fungible asset that is offered, sold, or otherwise provided to a person in connection with the purchase and sale of a security through an arrangement or scheme that constitutes an investment contract."
Such assets would fall under the Commodity Futures Trading Commission's (CFTC) jurisdiction, as opposed to the SEC, unless ruled otherwise by a court.
Read more about the bill here
In Historic Move, Jamaica Makes CBDC Akin to Cash
In a move to offer an alternative in a cash-heavy economy — and buttress the finances of the unbanked — Jamaica has become the first country to render a CBDC legal tender.
Jamaica's senate authorized the country's national bank to issue its CBDC (central bank digital currency), the Jamaica Digital Exchange, or Jam-Dex, via an amendment. The fresh legislation expands the definition of legal tender to include virtual tokens, as well as physical notes and coins.
Jam-Dex, which has been in a pilot since 2021, will launch officially for domestic use later this month, Central Bank of Jamaica Governor Richard Byles told Blockworks.
The CBDC is expected to significantly limit the challenges associated with Jamaica's primarily cash-driven economy. A digital Jamaican dollar offers a more secure, convenient alternative to physical notes and coins, Byles said — and can be used without a bank account.
Read more about the move here
New York Passes Bill Restricting Carbon-fueled Crypto Mining Operations
The New York legislature has passed a hotly-debated bill that places a two-year ban on certain proof-of-work cryptocurrency mining operations that depend on carbon-based power.
The bill, which was most recently approved by the Senate after passing the state Assembly in April, now heads to Governor Kathy Hochul, who can sign it into law or veto the measure.
While environmentalists praise the effort as a win for carbon-emission reduction, crypto industry advocates argue the measure will make New York less attractive to digital-asset businesses.
"If signed into law, this legislation will have a significant chilling effect on crypto mining in the state, and threatens to send hundreds of good paying jobs to neighboring states," said Kristin Smith, executive director of lobbying group the Blockchain Association. "Most importantly, it would place New York in the unique position of being the only state to enact a moratorium at a time when other states are either studying the industry or actively welcoming the economic development it creates."
Bill sponsor Rep. Anna Kelles called the early-morning vote on Friday an "essential" step in combating the climate crisis.
Read more about the bill here
Whilst we all have the option to look, to seek to understand, it’s often easier not to. Bitcoin, Ethereum and distributed ledger technology are complex systems that require significant due diligence. At Etherbridge, we aim to lower the barriers to understanding this fast-growing digital economy.
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This is not financial advice. All opinions expressed here are our own. We encourage investors to do their own research before making any investments.