Buying cryptocurrency has become easier than ever – with an increasing number of centralized and decentralized crypto exchanges across the internet, cryptocurrencies are today more accessible than they were in years past.
One such decentralized exchange (DEX) is PancakeSwap, which has hosted a huge user base since its inception. In this article, we explain how to buy crypto on PancakeSwap, and look at everything one needs to know before using this exchange platform to trade.
How to Buy Crypto on PancakeSwap – Overview
- Step 1– Set up a cryptocurrency wallet such as a Metamask or Trust Wallet
- Step 2– Deposit BEP-20 tokens to the wallet, such as BNB purchased on a centralized exchange like Binance
- Step 3– Visit the PancakeSwap website and click on the “Trade” button
- Step 4– Connect your wallet to PancakeSwap
- Step 5– Choose the token you want to exchange and the token you wish to buy on PancakeSwap
- Step 6– Enter the amount after reviewing the details
- Step 7– The tokens will be transferred to your wallet
This is a short summary of how to buy on PancakeSwap. However, other aspects need to be considered while buying or selling cryptocurrency on the platform – read on for more information.
What is PancakeSwap?
Founded by a group of anonymous developers in September 2020, PancakeSwap is one of the biggest decentralized exchanges on the Binance Smart Chain (BSC) currently. Since its launch, the exchange has been one of the most popular options within the crypto community to buy BSC tokens, due to its easy-to-use interface, and variety of user-oriented features.
PancakeSwap allows users to buy cryptocurrency directly via their wallet without having to access a centralized exchange. Using the PancakeSwap platform and its automated market maker (AMM), traders can swap BEP-20 tokens, stake the platform’s native token CAKE, access crypto IDOs, trade NFTs, yield farm and more.
As a completely decentralized exchange and ecosystem, every trade on PancakeSwap is carried out with the help of smart contracts. Since it is a DEX, users can find almost every project with ease on the platform as opposed to CEXs which have a limited number of options. Due to such a wide variety of options and features, the TVL or Total Value Locked on the ecosystem is worth more than a massive $4 billion.
Initially created as a fork for the popular DEX Sushiswap, PancakeSwap was quick to overtake it within a couple of months. This was mainly because PancakeSwap had a wider variety of offerings along with cheaper and faster transactions.
The platform announced a V2 in 2022, which was designed to further upgrade the ecosystem and made it more efficient. Some of its new offerings include yield farming, syrup pools to stake CAKE, lottery, predictions market, an NFT marketplace, NFT Profile System, IFOs (Initial Farm Offerings) and perpetual swaps trading. This long list is expected to increase in size even further in the upcoming months and years, as per the project’s roadmap.
How to Buy on PancakeSwap – Full Tutorial
This tutorial will break down the entire process of buying crypto on PancakeSwap with an example.
1 – Set up a Cryptocurrency Wallet
In order to be able to interact with any DEX, one major requirement is a cryptocurrency wallet. It is wise to choose a wallet that is trusted by the majority of crypto traders and has proved to be devoid of any problems in the past. Currently, some of the best options include Metamask, and Trust Wallet.
After choosing the right wallet, the user can easily set it up. It is important to note down the recovery phrase and codes required and keep them securely. This will ensure that one can access the wallet from any device, and is also required to change the password of the wallet. For this tutorial, we’ll consider the Metamask wallet.
2 – Deposit BEP-20 Tokens
To purchase crypto on PancakeSwap, it is important that the token of exchange is a BEP-20 token. This is because PancakeSwap is built on the Binance Smart Chain and supports the same. Users have two options for getting funds in their wallets. One is to buy directly from the wallet’s third-party providers. A majority of popular wallets have this feature, where one can purchase crypto directly from the wallet.
The second option is to deposit funds from CEXs or other DEXs that hold the required token. See our guide to the best crypto exchanges.
While any BEP-20 token can be exchanged to purchase another desired crypto, it is imperative that the wallet also holds some Binance Coin (BNB). This is because BNB is used to pay the fees for any transaction made on PancakeSwap.
3 – Visit the Swap Page on PancakeSwap
Once the funds are deposited in the wallet, open the PancakeSwap website. There are a lot of fraudulent websites with similar names. Make sure to look for the URL and confirm it. The right URL for the platform would be “https://pancakeswap.finance”. Since there are a lot of scams and phishing links circulated online, interacting with a different website may result in the user’s funds being lost.
Once on the PancakeSwap page, click on the “Trade” button. This button will be on the upper left side of the website interface. On clicking, the user will land on the “Swap” page. The interface is fairly simple and easy to use.
4 – Connect Wallet to PancakeSwap
To buy the desired crypto, the user will need to connect their wallet to the PancakeSwap website.
On the upper right corner of the swap page, click on the “Connect Wallet” button. This will open up a bunch of wallet options for the user to choose from. They can look for their wallet in that list and select it.
On selecting, the wallet password will be required. After this, select approve on the wallet. This will essentially connect PancakeSwap to the wallet.
5 – Choose a Crypto to Exchange
On the page, there will be an exchange calculator on the right. Choose the desired coin using the drop-down menu in the top section. This is an extremely important step since there is massive scope for mistakes here.
Ensure that the token to be traded is entered correctly. There are a number of tokens with similar names. Select the right one and click on import. In order to recheck or be sure, it would be a good idea to directly copy and paste the wallet address onto the search bar. For example, let us look at Battle Infinity’s IBAT token.
PancakeSwap gathers the token’s data from websites like Coingecko and Coinmarketcap, so the room for error is minimal. However, it can be a good idea to go to BSC scan directly and look for the contract address to check again. After this, the user can easily select the token they wish to exchange like BNB, BUSD etc.
After checking, select the “I Understand” option and click on “Import”.
6 – Enter the Required Amount
Enter either the number of IBAT tokens or the token being exchanged for it. Once a particular number is added to any one of the fields, the other one would get filled automatically. Make sure that there is enough BNB in the wallet for fees, since the transaction will not go through if the required fees isn’t present in the wallet.
On entering the fields, a breakdown of the transaction will appear. This will consist of the maximum sold, price impact, and liquidity provider fee.
7 – Buy on PancakeSwap
After reviewing the details and checking the slippage tolerance, click on the swap button. A confirmation from PancakeSwap will appear which also needs to be accepted. Right after, a popup from the wallet seeking permission for approval of fees will appear.
On approval, the transaction will go through and the crypto will be transferred to the wallet.
Why Buy on PancakeSwap?
PancakeSwap is a DEX or Decentralized Exchange, meaning it is a completely decentralized platform with no central authority in charge. This is exactly the idea based on which cryptocurrencies are built. Thus, it already is a top choice amongst major cryptocurrency enthusiasts.
Moreover, PancakeSwap becomes a no-brainer for many due to the way it has positioned itself in recent years. Built on the Binance Smart Chain, it enables users to enjoy extremely low fees and a quick confirmation time. As a project continuously building and keeping users updated bout the same, PancakeSwap has one of the most easy-to-use interfaces which also attracts newer investors. Investors can find many of the best tokens with high potential upside on the PancakeSwap platform.
How to Buy on PancakeSwap – via Jacob Crypto Bury
For traders looking to buy or sell cryptocurrencies too; specifically, those that might not always be available on centralized exchanges, PancakeSwap can be a great option. Since there are a huge number of investors already on the platform who interact with the ecosystem regularly, it boasts high liquidity. An added benefit is that PancakeSwap is backed by Binance directly, which is the biggest cryptocurrency exchange globally in terms of market cap at the moment.
Pancakeswap has its own native utility token CAKE, i.e. its own DEX coin that powers its platform.
The success of CAKE helps in further popularizing its platform as a majority of new investors consider interacting with platforms based on the support its native currencies get. With all these qualities and the comfort of getting numerous features in a single place, PancakeSwap manages to stay on top of the list when looking for a place to buy cryptocurrencies.
In PancakeSwap Safe?
As mentioned above, the DEX has several qualities that makes it a top choice among investors. But one of the most important of them is its history of safety. While almost every other major DEX may have faced some sort of safety breach, PancakeSwap remains to be one of the very few DEXs to never have faced such problems. It has never been hacked, despite the hefty amounts of funds it manages.
In terms of technical security, PancakeSwap has one of the best ratings by several cryptocurrency safety aggregators. It is audited by two popular blockchain security firms – Certik and Slowmist. Through penetration testing and other methods, Certik provides hacker-resistant smart contracts and blockchain audits using Formal Verification technology. Meanwhile, Slowmist inspects and protects cryptocurrency wallets, public chains, and smart contracts as well as asset exchanges.
PancakeSwap has also claimed several times on its social media handles that it gives as much importance to security as it does to the addition of features or revenue growth if not more. While the risk of interacting with Defi remains inevitably, PancakeSwap remains to be one of the safer bets.
Check out our list of best coins to buy on PancakeSwap.
Avoiding Scams When Buying on PancakeSwap
Like any other DEX platform such as Uniswap, PancakeSwap has also faced its fair share of scam attempts.
Avoiding them can sound easy, but may not be the case with the kind of tricks fraudsters have been coming up with recently. There are various types of scams involved in cryptocurrency, such as phishing attacks, scam apps, fraudulent cryptocurrency projects, and fake tactics presented as legitimate popular crypto airdrops.
Phishing attacks were one of the most recent series of scams that were related to PancakeSwap. Several users received emails from an account claiming to be the real PancakeSwap. This email stated that the wallets of the recipients shall be suspended if it was verified. An attached link took users to a closely imitated website where they were asked to connect wallets. As soon as this is done, the fraudsters could gain access to their wallets.
This was one of the most recent among many other phishing attempts. The best way to avoid these is to not open any suspicious links and to always check for the usernames, and website names to ensure that they are indeed legit.
Scam apps are also a type of scam that a number of users fell prey to. Several investors were asked through various social media platforms to download a particular application that was allegedly the real PancakeSwap. However, the team was quick to address this issue, and warned users that there are no applications by the original project yet and to not fill in any details on such apps, even if downloaded.
Fake airdrops are something experienced investors may be well aware of. These come in several types. The usual strategy is when investors somehow interact with a link or get in touch with the fraudster directly through social media platforms. The imposter then; under the pretext of helping them claim it, may extract information or simply hand them a phishing link which would result in the investors losing funds.
Rugpulls or Imitation of cryptocurrency projects have been quite prominent since the 2021 bull run. These con tricks have ended up costing even experienced investors. A rug pull is usually executed by scammers who construct hype around their token and then abandon the project, running away with the money.
Checking a token’s total liquidity pool is the simplest way to identify if it will eventually be rug pulled. Based on the available balances, DEXs will determine the price of a token in a liquidity pool. The liquidity of real tokens with solid project targets will be very high.
There are several other factors too, that can be considered like the developers and their activity on media platforms like crypto Discord groups, Telegram channels or across Twitter. It also helps to track the transactions and catch any unusual patterns. The best way to avoid falling for a rug pull scam is to do due diligence on the project and check if the details provided by them are exactly what is being used.
Conclusion
With more than twenty thousand cryptocurrencies and five hundred crypto exchanges on the market, the crypto industry has managed to go mainstream, inviting millions of investors to the blockchain world.
The total crypto market cap is hovering around $1 trillion in 2022, after a correction since the 2021 bull run. This has given risen to the introduction of even more crypto exchange platforms, with new ones popping up regularly.
However, some exchanges that have been around for several years still manage to be the most popular, and widely used means of buying and selling cryptocurrency – PancakeSwap being one of those. It stands out as a simply decentralized platform to buy new BSC tokens, such as Battle Infinity (IBAT).
Battle Infinity - New Metaverse Game
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