DeFi is a decentralized and global arm of the crypto industry that holds $54 billion worth of digital assets. But even more than a market, DeFi is a movement that pushes you towards decentralized financial instruments that escape the clutches of centralized exchanges, KYC, and other limiting factors.
DeFi is what allows us to earn yield on existing crypto assets, collect NFTs, borrow funds, and provide liquidity to decentralized exchanges. But to participate in this brand new world, you first need a non-custodial web3 wallet.
In this article, I’m showing you a list of the top 10 Web3 wallets DeFi has to offer in 2022. Some of the wallets I’ve mentioned are desktop applications, some are browser extensions, and some are mobile apps. In short: there’s something for everyone!
Keep in mind that I haven’t ranked the wallets mentioned below in any particular order. Although most of the wallets I talk about today are exclusively for Ethereum’s DeFi ecosystem, I have also added a few great wallets targeting Solana, BSC, and other chains as well.
MetaMask is the best and most popular Web3 wallet. It comes in the form of a browser extension that you can easily setup and use to interact with any Ethereum dApp. MetaMask users can directly buy Ethereum from the wallet without having to interact with exchanges or trading platforms.
More than 30 million crypto users use MetaMask. It’s a great non-custodial solution that lets you join the vast and rich world of DeFi with ease. Apart from Ethereum, the wallet also supports other blockchains. All you have to do is switch from one network to another and MetaMask will let you trade your BNB or Harmony tokens.
Keep in mind that MetaMask is a software hot wallet. Your private key is stored within the extension installed on your local browser. That means that anyone can access your wallet if they gain access to your computer. I recommend applying rigorous due diligence when using MetaMask to keep yourself safe from harm.
Phantom is yet another extension-based wallet created exclusively for Solana investors. The wallet lets you interact with any dApp on Solana. It also grants you access to Solana’s billion dollar-worth NFT market.
Phantom is a user-friendly Web3 wallet that lets you buy, send, swap, and receive SOL-based cryptocurrencies and NFTs. It comes in the form of a browser wallet available for Chrome, Brave, Firefox, and Edge. But you can also install it as an app on your iOS or Android device.
Phantom is non-custodial and keeps your private key within the extension. However, you can add an additional layer of security by connecting your Phantom wallet to your Ledger. Doing so forces you to confirm transactions directly through the Ledger, meaning that no one can gain access and steal your funds online.
Phantom has one of the best UX in the entire web3 wallet market. However, the wallet is exclusive for Solana and supports no other blockchain.
Rainbow is another popular non-custodial Web3 wallet for the Ethereum ecosystem. You can download the wallet as an extension on your web browser or as an app on your Android and iOS devices. Rainbow supports direct interaction with Ethereum's DeFi dApps, meaning that it can execute transactions and token swaps. The wallet also shows your NFT collectibles, yield farming pools, and savings.
Much like Phantom, Rainbow also features a very sleek and simplistic UX. I recommend it to new and inexperienced users who are stepping into DeFi for the first time. But keep in mind that because it is a hot wallet, you should keep your funds secure and refrain from interacting with malicious links or apps.
Now for something completely different, I'm introducing you to the TrustWallet. This wallet features multi-asset support and is completely blockchain agnostic. You can download Trust Wallet on your iOS or Android device. You can hold both crypto and NFTs.
The most surprising feature is Trust Wallet's built-in dApp browser. Yes, you can browse all kinds of decentralized applications directly from the Trust Wallet. You can interact with them in various ways by swapping tokens, buying or selling NFTs, borrowing assets, or funding assets into a yield farm.
Keep in mind that Trust Wallet does not come in the form of a browser extension. You won’t be able to load Trust Wallet from your browser and use it on your PC or laptop. This is quite a limitation as it forces you to interact with DeFi strictly from your mobile phone. However, the extremely well designed dApp browser makes up for it.
Coinbase is a cryptocurrency exchange that was severely hit by DeFi’s boom. Accounts were emptied as users moved funds to other Web3 wallets and started dealing with decentralized exchanges, rather than centralized ones. This is why Coinbase took the logical step of building its own Web3 wallet.
The largest U.S. crypto exchange, Coinbase, offers a non-custodial DeFi wallet that comes with several security features. For example, you can add your own biometric data as a step for accessing your wallet. Or you can add a pin code that makes it possible for anyone else to physically access your wallet.
Coinbase Wallet mainly supports the Ethereum chain. However, you can also add other cryptocurrencies and interact with a number of ETH L2 solutions such as Optimism and Arbitrum. You can also access other chains (e.g. Avalanche and Binance Smart Chain). The caveat
Sounds too good to be true? Well, that’s because it is. There’s one small caveat: KYC. Coinbase forces you to stay compliant and file a number of KYC data in order to use the wallet.
Argent is another mobile Web3 wallet that allows you to access Ethereum and ETH-based L2 rollups with ease. You can trade crypto or buy crypto with fiat directly from the wallet. Argent also lets you interact with yield farming pools and lending protocols directly from the wallet.
Argent features cheaper fees because it supports a number of L2 solutions, including zkSync. You can also buy, sell, and view NFTs on the app.
Note that you can only set up Argent as a mobile wallet. It does not yet support desktop or browser functionality. This might be a deal breaker if you’re not interested in dealing with DeFi from a mobile app.
Interested in a wallet made specifically for the Binance Smart Chain DeFi ecosystem? Then go straight to the source and download the Binance Chain Wallet, a Web3 wallet developed by the Binance team itself.
Binance Chain Wallet is Binance's official browser extension wallet for its native DeFi ecosystem. You can set up the wallet by logging into the exchange and transferring some of your assets to the new wallet. But you can also go to the google play store and download the extension on your browser without requiring a Binance account.
The Binance Chain Wallet also supports cross-chain functionality and lets you interact with Ethereum and other blockchain networks. The team also has plans to develop a built-in dApp browser and enable instant token swaps through the extension.
You have plenty of different options left if you're not interested in Binance's native wallet. I recommend setting up Trust Wallet, Coin98, MathWallet or MetaMask. All of these wallets feature support for BSC.
Exodus is the very first blockchain wallet I've used when I joined the crypto market. Exodus started out as a desktop wallet at first. But over the years, the wallet's developers have expanded quite rapidly and have introduced many new features.
In 2022, Exodus features a Web3 wallet for Chrome and Brave. You can also download Exodus on Android, iOS, MacOS, and Windows devices.
Exodus features multi-asset support, meaning that it supports almost all blockchains. The Web3 wallet itself supports Ethereum, Solana, and Algorand DeFi ecosystems. You can buy, sell, and mint cryptocurrencies or NFTs through all mentioned chains.
Exodus also features 24/7 customer service in case you need urgent support with a stuck transaction or another problem. And the wallet is so great that it has almost 3,000 positive reviews on Trustpilot.
One piece of advice I have to share is that you probably shouldn’t swap tokens through the desktop wallet. Exodus charges higher fees than usual because it wants to swap crypto as fast as possible. However, the fee problem has improved a little bit over the years.
Zerion is an innovative Web3 wallet that encompasses all blockchain networks with DeFi ecosystems. Zerion lets you manage multiple DeFi and NFT portfolios from one mobile app. This means that you can manage all your private keys in one place.
One feature I’d like to mention is Zerion’s social side. You can track other addresses and add people to your watchlist if you want to track their activity. So if someone has a public ENS address, you can look up that address and take a look at their tokens, NFTs, and transaction history. Zerion’s idea here is to turn the Web3 experience into a social media experience.
Another wonderful thing to note is Zerion’s cross-chain functionality. You will interact with more than one chain, meaning that you need a venue to convert or transfer assets from one chain to another, right? Well that’s exactly what Zerion allows you to do with its access to DeFi bridges. You can even decide whether you want to skimp out on fees or go for a fast transaction.
Glow is an alternative Web3 wallet for the Solana ecosystem. You can download Glow as a mobile app on your Android and iOS devices or install the wallet as an extension on your browser. You can also stake and earn SOL directly from the wallet.
Although Glow doesn’t feature any of the fancy features you have seen in other wallets, and isn’t that different from Phantom in terms of functionality, it still offers a very sleek and user-friendly experience for DeFi newcomers. If you want a reliable and easy-to-use Web3 wallet for Solana, I recommend giving Glow a try.
Web3 stays true to its core fashion: choice. There are so many high-quality wallets out there that let you interact with the diverse world of decentralized finance. Each DeFi chain has at least five great wallets that you can use to buy NFTs, swap tokens, and earn yield.
So which wallet should you choose? Well, that falls down to your personal preference. But because every Web3 wallet is free you have plenty of room to experiment and discover what kind of wallet suits you best. And as for what to look for in a wallet, I recommend focusing on user experience, functionality, and security.
If you want to learn more about crypto wallets, I recommend reading the following articles:
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