In 2023, Coinbase, one of the leading crypto exchanges, launched its own Layer-2 for Ethereum called Base. Today, ChangeHero rolls out support for the Base blockchain, starting with Ether (ETH). Learn more about why it matters and how to get started.
What is Base?
Base is an Ethereum Layer-2 (L2), or in other words, a side chain to the main blockchain that offloads transaction processing, making the whole process faster and cheaper.
Base is a project that was incubated by Coinbase, one of the largest centralized crypto exchanges. However, it does not mean Coinbase owns or controls it: it is an open-source project built with a commitment to decentralization as one of its founding principles.
In fact, Base is built with the OP Stack, an open-source technology behind another L2 — Optimism. The Base developers and contributors received cooperation from the Optimism Collective.
While the Base layer processes and bundles information about transactions, the consensus, verification, and security are still handled on Ethereum. For more than eight years, the Ethereum blockchain has proven to be quite fitting for the task of providing all these aspects.
How Does Base Compare to Ethereum and Other L2s?
The layer-two narrative has been around for a while now, considering that even the Ethereum developers acknowledge the need to outsource some transaction processing to L2s.
The Base website claims the network is ten times cheaper to use than L1-Ethereum. Its daily sequencer revenue, which comes from fees paid by users, is on par with Optimism’s, according to DefiLlama. Both fall behind Ethereum by a large margin, but only because Ethereum accounts for proportionally more network use.
As for the total value locked (TVL), unsurprisingly, Base has not caught up to Arbitrum, Polygon, and Optimism yet. Nevertheless, it has already surpassed the rest of Ethereum L2s in terms of TVL, which is $392.99M at the time of writing.
The rapid growth of this ecosystem can be explained by Base being integrated into the Coinbase network of solutions. It includes convenient on-ramps for crypto and fiat and access to the exchange’s ecosystem and user base.
Please note that, unlike the L2s we mentioned in this article, Base has no plans to launch a native token at the moment. Any assets claiming affiliation with the project are not official and are likely to be scams.
ChangeHero Introduces ETH on Base L2 to Listed Assets
Starting today, you will be able to swap crypto with Base Ether (ETH) in any direction without an account or KYC. To swap Base ETH with other cryptocurrencies or get it without bridging on ChangeHero, follow these steps:
- Choose the currencies on the home page: look for the EthereumBase (ETH) label. Adjust the amounts and the type of exchange;
- Provide your wallet address in the next step. Double-check the provided information, read and accept the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy;
- Send a single transaction in the cryptocurrency you will be exchanging. Fixed Rate transactions have a 15-minute limit;
- All done? Now we are doing all the work: confirming the incoming transaction and as soon as it arrives, performing the exchange;
- Once the exchange has been processed, your ETH is immediately on the way to your wallet.
Did something go not as expected? Reach out to our customer support Heroes any time, any day in the chat on the website or through the email: [email protected].
Conclusion
For the time being, ChangeHero’s integration of Base covers ETH only but it opens up the possibility of other Base-powered assets becoming available — keep your eyes clear!
As always, watch the ChangeHero blog for updates and announcements like this one. We highly recommend following our official accounts on social media — Twitter, Facebook, Reddit, and Telegram — to know about all updates to ChangeHero as soon as they happen.
People Also Ask
What is Base Layer-2?
Base is a Layer-2 for Ethereum that helps it scale to process more transactions less expensively. Users can bridge their ETH to the Base blockchain to use these assets in the products and apps on Base. This L2 provides competitive security and economy while having the advantage of being backed by Coinbase, a leading cryptocurrency exchange.
How Does Base Blockchain Work?
The Base L2 is built with the open-source OP Stack, using the same technology as Optimism. L2s are sometimes called blockchains but they are more akin to side chains that perform part of the blockchain’s work. Its components are open-source and Base is permissionless, meaning that no single entity exercises full control over any of its functionalities.
What is Base Crypto?
The Base Layer 2 for Ethereum does not have a utility token, and there are no plans to implement it at the moment. There are new tokens that use the brand but none of them are official. The Base chain uses ETH for gas and supports dozens of tokens from Ethereum.
