Token swap: when and why crypto-assets change their "clothes"

BridgeTrustFund · 2025-11-29T02:18:35+00:00

Token swaps are simply the exchange of one digital asset for another, often during upgrades, migrations to new blockchains, or changes in project economics. Processes include sending old tokens for new, automatic crediting, or management by exchanges. Atomic swaps allow direct exchanges between users, while cross-chain bridges enable token movement across blockchains. The terms "migration" and "swap" are often confused but indicate different processes. Forks differ from swaps as they don't replace assets on a 1:1 basis.

BridgeTrustFund

2025-11-29 02:18:35

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Think swapping tokens is something complicated? In fact, it's just the exchange of one digital asset for another. Imagine: your favorite coin has decided to move to another blockchain or upgrade itself. Instead of you losing all your investments, the project says: “Okay, we'll swap your old tokens for new ones!”

When does this happen?

Developers launch swaps in several situations:

Token update – changed the ticker or functionality
Migration to a new blockchain – the project is transitioning from Ethereum to Solana, for example.
Change of the project's economy - reviewed the emission or staking mechanics
Merging/splitting of projects – two projects merged, created a new token

Real example: BNB. It was initially an ERC-20 on Ethereum (2017), then in 2019, the native BNB Chain appeared, and trading on BEP2 was launched. Some holders still keep BNB on Ethereum – the swap has not completed.

How does it work?

There are several scenarios:

You send old tokens to the project's address → receive new ones.
The project simply credits you with new assets, the old ones remain in the account but do not work.
If you are on the exchange, the administration does everything itself.

What are atomic swaps and cross-chain bridges?

Atomic swap – a direct exchange between two people without a mediator. A smart contract guarantees that both will fulfill the terms of the deal.

Cross-chain bridges – a technology that allows tokens to move back and forth between blockchains. For this, wrapped tokens (wrapped tokens) are often used. For example, wBTC is an ERC-20 copy of Bitcoin that lives on Ethereum, but its value is tied to the original.

The term “migration” vs “swap”

People often confuse. Technically:

Migration – transition from one blockchain to another
Swap – a direct agreement for the exchange of assets

For users, there is no difference – in both cases, you exchange the old asset for the new one.

Soft fork and hard fork are not the same

Soft fork – editing the network code without changing the token itself.

Hard fork – a radical change that creates a new blockchain and a new asset ( as in the fork of Ethereum into ETH and ETC ).

Difference: forks do not imply the replacement of one asset with another on a 1:1 basis – it is rather a separation.

ETH0,88%

SOL2,15%

BNB2,69%

WBTC1,36%

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