Polygon is the sidechain of Ethereum. It was launched in 2017 by Jaynti Kanani, Sandeep Nailwal, and Anurag Arjun, with the original name of Matic Network. This name is still kept in its native token MATIC. Polygon is a revolutionary network that removes some of the problems Ethereum has. Currently being the 14th largest crypto MATIC trades at $0.83 at the time of writing this guide and has a circulating supply of just over 8.8 billion. This network and token are being used by many different projects which operate on Ethereum to improve user experience.
Ethereum network is one of the most popular blockchains and many different projects are built on it. But there are some problems that Ethereum used to face, mainly low transaction speeds and high fees. Enter Polygon, during its release, it was an Ethereum side chain that was created to remove the problems associated with Ethereum. This network runs alongside Ethereum and makes it easy to bridge different cryptocurrencies from Ethereum to Polygon where traders can make transactions with considerably faster speeds and low fees. Polygon also gives the opportunity to enable Ethereum to communicate with different networks.
“We believe scaling solutions are going to be commoditized. Hence, Polygon is trying to be an AWS-like open-source aggregator of scaling solutions that cater to the needs of all developers” - Sandeep Nailwal
Polygon has its own native token MATIC. This token has different utilities that traders can use to their advantage. It can be used to pay fees on transactions made on the Polygon network; these fees are usually less than $1. Since Polygon uses Proof-of-Stake protocol, MATIC tokens can also be staked on the blockchain to validate transactions and earn rewards in form of additional MATIC. Also, Polygon is a DeFi project which means that MATIC holders receive voting rights on the network. MATIC currently trades for $0.85 and with the circulating supply of 8 billion tokens, it has a market capitalization of $7.5 billion. This is a great token that will help you operate on many different Ethereum-based networks and projects.
When it comes to purchasing MATIC it is no different from any other crypto. We can acquire this token from different crypto exchanges and also straight from some wallets. Buying MATIC straight from crypto wallets might be complicated and require some understanding of the blockchain. While buying them from crypto exchanges is a straightforward process that anyone can follow. Here we will take you through every step you have to take in order to purchase Polygon MATIC.
When we decide to get our hands on some MATIC, the first thing we need to do is to choose which exchange we will be using. This might seem easy, but different exchanges offer different services and fees. Because of this, we first need to ask ourselves what are we planning on doing with MATIC we will purchase. Since MATIC has many different utilities it is important to decide which of them we will be using. This will help us to determine what aspect of exchange we have to prioritize, do we want low deposit fees, do we wish to have good trading features and many more. Once this is done we will need to register our account, which can be simply done with an email address.
If we are purchasing Polygon from the regulated exchange, we will need to pass KYC verification before we will be given access to exchange features. In general, this process is also similar to most exchanges. KYC stands for Know Your Client, so exchanges will try to learn more about us. They will ask us to provide info such as a residential address, occupation, and also necessary documentation to prove our identity.
This is when we reach the part of actually purchasing the MATIC. Usually, each exchange will offer us a few options for purchasing MATIC. We can deposit USD or another fiat currency to our exchange wallet and then purchase MATIC from the market using these funds. We can also directly purchase MATIC using traditional payment methods such as Bank Transfers and Debit cards. There is also a possibility to deposit different crypto if we own any and swap it for MATIC tokens.
Another step that we can take is to create our own crypto wallet. This is not something that is required but it's always good to have it. In general, exchange wallets are non-custodial which means that you are not the owner, so if you wish to have full control over your assets and don’t need to keep them in your exchange wallet, it is good to move them from there to your personal wallet. These wallets can be hot and cold wallets. Hot wallets are those which come in form of software and are connected to the internet, while cold wallets are hardware wallets and impossible to hack.
Okay, so we went over the general path of action to buy MATIC and discussed that there are different aspects of exchange that we need to take into consideration before making a decision as to which exchange to use. There are many different exchanges that are best for specific reasons and here we are going to present you with a few examples that might help you in your decision-making.
When it comes to purchasing MATIC for the cheapest price possible eToro is the place to go. This social trading platform deals with cryptocurrencies as well as stocks and CFDs. If you are looking to pay as little fees as possible, then eToro should be on top of your list. This crypto exchange has 0 deposit fees regardless of the deposit method you use and the only fees you have to pay are those that might be charged by payment service providers. When it comes to actually purchasing MATIC this is when you pay fees but this fee is only 1%. These low fees will be great for those whose main goal is to just acquire MATIC. Here we will teach you how to buy MATIC on eToro.
When joining eToro we can do it in multiple ways. eToro offers direct registrations by connecting our Facebook, Apple, or Google accounts to the exchange. If we don’t own any of them or don’t wish to connect them to the exchange we can just register using our email address. Once registration is submitted eToro will send us a confirmation link on our email address and once we confirm the registration our account will be ready for the second step.
The last step before we are able to purchase MATIC is to pass KYC verification. eToro will ask us about some general information about ourselves. These questions will range from occupation to the trading budget we have. After that, they will ask us to upload a photo of an official document such as an ID or Passport which verifies our identity. Once that is done we will simply need to wait before eToro confirms the verification.
When eToro verifies our identity and gives us green light to purchase MATIC we need to go to the Discover page in order to do so. There we can select Crypto and look through the list of available cryptos or simply search Polygon in the search bar. Once found we can simply press the Buy option and complete the purchase using the payment options available for us.
If you are someone who is interested in Ethereum projects and want to use MATIC for its scalability and trading Binance should be your exchange of choice. Binance offers a wide range of trading features such as spot, margin, and futures trading. It also has the option to swap MATIC directly for any other token with 0 fees. Trading fees are also considerably low compared to some other exchanges as the max you have to pay is 0.1% when trading MATIC. To get started on Binance you have to follow a few steps and here we will tell you how you can do that.
Just like any regulated exchange, we need to have our own Binance account in order to purchase and trade with MATIC. For this, we simply need to provide either our email address or phone number, come up with a password and complete the registration through the link sent to our email address or verification code sent to our mobile number. But know that in the end, you will need to provide both your email address and phone number to access most Binance features.
Once our account is created, our activities on Binance will be greatly limited and we will need to pass identity verification in order to remove this limitation. To do this, Binance themselves will notify us that we need to pass KYC verification or we can go to our profile and find the verification tab there. Once there we have to simply input information such as our residential address, country of residence, and ZIP code. Then we will need to upload the photo of our ID and wait for verification to go through, this might take around 24 hours but usually its done within 1-2 hours.
Once we are verified we can start purchasing MATIC and trading with it. We will see a big Buy Crypto option at the top menu. Once we hover over it we will be given a list of available purchase options and we can select whichever we prefer. After that, we can simply select MATIC from the list of cryptos and purchase it as much as we like. But keep in mind that there are several fees associated with purchasing MATIC on Binance so your final amount of tokens might be different from your original calculation.
If you are a fan of the proof-of-stake protocol and wish to stake MATIC in order to receive APY from it, Cex.io should be your exchange of choice. Cex.io is one of the oldest exchanges which can boast about the security it provides for its clients. If you are looking for a safe platform to stake you MATIC, Cex.io offers an APY of 8% on it and also does not requires you to commit to staking. What we mean by that is that most platforms will ask you to stake your tokens for between 30-90 days and during that period you will not have access to your tokens. On Cex.io this is not the case and you will be able to take out your tokens whenever you want to. Here is how you can get started on Cex.io.
Just like the previous two cases, Cex.io is a centralized exchange which means we will need to have our account in order to use their services. When creating a Cex.io account we have to provide our email address, strong 10-letter password, and country of residence. Once that is done Cex.io will send us a verification email to confirm registration.
To oblige to the requirements placed by regulators Cex.io will ask us to pass identity verification in order to give us access to the exchange features. Before we can do that we will need to turn on 2FA by linking our mobile number to our account. Once this is done we have to give Cex.io information about ourselves, such as address, city, and occupation. Then we have to upload a photo of our ID and also a selfy of us holding our ID in one hand and a piece of paper with a note that says Cex.io Verification in our second hand. Then we should give it a few minutes and verification will be complete.
To finally buy MATIC on Cex.io we have to go to the Instant Buy section. There we can select that we want to buy MATIC and which fiat currency we will be using to do so. Cex.io will offer us the option to instantly buy $200/$500/$1000 worth of MATIC or we can enter the amount we want to purchase. Once we finalized the purchase, MATIC should shortly appear in our wallet and if we want to stake it, we can go to the Earn section of the exchange and follow the instructions there.
We mentioned before that it not always might be a good idea to keep your MATIC on the exchange you purchased it. There are several reasons for that, it might be for security reasons, or we can give them better usability somewhere else. Here we will give you a few options as to where you can keep your tokens if you don’t like the security of the exchange where you purchased your tokens.
When it comes to the best exchange where you can keep your MATIC stored, it is hard to look past Crypto.com. This exchange is widely considered to be the safest crypto exchange in the world. With its military-grade protection layers and numerous insurance policies, you can rest assured that your tokens will be kept safe at any given moment. Crypto.com also has its own Debit Card which can be used to make purchases using cryptocurrencies such as MATIC.
If you are not a fan of keeping your MATIC on an exchange wallet you can always use hardware wallets such as Ledger Nano X to make sure it's completely protected from hackers and thefts. Being a hardware wallet Ledger Nano X comes in form of a USB stick which only connects to the internet when you plug it into your computer. This removes the threat of hackers and you can spend your time knowing that your assets are 100% protected. But it might be uncomfortable for some, as you have to have a USB on you at all times, in order to be able to access your assets whenever you want to.
| Crypto.com | Ledger Nano X | |
|---|---|---|
| Security | Military grade security layers and numerous insurance policies | Hardware wallet which is disconnected from the internet and protected from hackers |
| Price | Free | $200 |
| Benefits | High security and ability to implement MATIC to your everyday spendings | MATIC stored in this wallet is 100% protected from hackers |
| Number of available cryptos for storage | 250+ | 1,200+ |
| eToro | Binance | Cex.io | Crypto.com | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Purchase options for MATIC | Fiat & Crypto | Fiat & Crypto | Fiat & Crypto | Fiat & Crypto |
| Fees | 0% | SWIFT transfer - Free; Signet transfer - Free Credit Card - up to 2% | SWIFT - Free; Debit/Credit Card - 2.99%; PayPal - 2.99% | SWIFT deposits - Free; Wire - Free; Credit card up to 4% |
| Allows MATIC Stakeing | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Number of trading pairs available for MATIC | 4 | 5 + Binance Convert | 4 | 1 |
| Trading options for MATIC | Allows spot and margin trading | Spot and Margin | Allows spot and margin trading | Allows spot and margin trading |
| Withdraw fees | $5 + additional conversion rates if withdrawal is not in USD | SWIFT transfer - $15; Signet transfer - Free Credit Card - up to 2% | ACH - Free; SWIFT - 0.3% + $25 Debit/Credit card - 3% + $5 | Up to 25 MATIC |
| Security | Implements crime insurance and cold wallets to guarantee safety | Uses crime insurance and multi-factor authentication | Has two-factor authentication and uses cold wallets to store funds | Military grade security, multiple insurance policies, Cold wallets |
This is a hard question to answer right now. Considering the fact that the main usage of MATIC was to make faster and cheaper transactions than Ethereum, no one knows what awaits Polygon in the near future. As Ethereum finalized its merge, the price of Ethereum transactions still remains a bit on the pricy side compared to MATIC. MATIC also had a pretty a good few months of recovery after a drastic fall it had since the start of this year. Because of this, investing in MATIC might not be a bad idea, but we will suggest diversifying your portfolio and don’t invest everything into MATIC.
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If you have ever encountered the term Bridge to MATIC what this means is that whichever network you are using will be merged with the Polygon network and it will use Polygon to complete transactions. For this transaction, you will have to pay fees in form of MATIC and it can go up to around $1.
Yes. You can purchase MATIC using PayPal on many different exchanges. Coinbase, Binance, and eToro are a few examples where you can purchase MATIC using PayPal. But keep in mind that most exchanges only offer PayPal services to US customers only.
MATIC has many different utilities. It can be used to pay fees when bridging the Polygon network with other networks in order to reduce fees and increase transaction speeds. It also holds governance rights on the Polygon network and MATIC holders can vote on potential changes made on the network. MATIC can also be staked to validate transactions and make passive income from it.
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