How to Connect a Ledger Nano to Binance Smart Chain (BSC)?

TL;DR

The Ledger Nano S and Ledger Nano X are cold storage devices used to store private keys and crypto securely. These hardware wallets never connect to the internet keeping the private keys safe from hackers.

Ledger Nano devices are compatible with multiple blockchains, such as Ethereum, Tron, Binance Chain, Solana, and Binance Smart Chain (BSC). In this article, we will show you how to connect Ledger Nano to BSC. Make sure to download Ledger Live and install MetaMask for your browser.

Introduction

If you’ve taken the step to secure your crypto and digital assets with a Nano Ledger, you’ll need to set it up to work with Binance Smart Chain. You can store any BEP-20 token on your device, but if your tokens are not visible, you may need to manually add support for it to show up in your transactions and UI.

What is a Ledger Nano?

The Ledger Nano S and Ledger Nano X are two cold storage hardware wallets from Ledger. They can connect to a computer via USB to make transactions and manage crypto stored on the wallet. This is done with either the Ledger Live app or via MetaMask. Each device has a small screen and buttons to navigate through the display.

What is a cold storage device?

A hardware wallet is a highly secure device for storing private keys. Out of all the wallet options you have, it is by far the most secure. Your private key is never exposed to the internet at any point, greatly reducing the chance of anyone being able to hack or steal it. However, you do need to keep the device physically stored somewhere secure along with a backup of your private key should you lose the device.

Set up a Binance Smart Chain account in Ledger Live

1. If you haven’t already set up your Ledger Nano, download the Ledger Live app for your desktop or mobile device and follow the setup instructions from Ledger.com. Open Ledger Live and connect your device via USB. Ledger Live allows you to manage the cryptocurrencies on your cold storage device over different blockchains.

2. Head to the Accounts tab and click [Add account]. You’ll then see the option for BSC. Select [Binance Smart Chain], and click [Continue].

3. Ledger Live will now have created a BSC account for you. Next, head to the [Receive] tab.

4. Choose your BSC account before clicking [Continue].

5. You should now see your Binance Smart Chain address displayed on your Ledger device and the Ledger Live app. This address is only compatible with BEP-20 tokens. It is not compatible with BEP-2 tokens or Binance Chain.

6. Verify the address on your device in the same and press [Confirm].

Does the Ledger Live app support every BEP-20 token?

Your Nano Ledger will accept any BEP-20 token, but it might not show initially on your balance. Your token will safely be there, and all you need to do is add some technical details for it to show on Ledger Live and your Ledger device.

Ledger Live displays BEP-20 tokens in three different ways:

With a balance amount and its value in fiat. This is for fully-supported tokens.
With just a balance amount but no fiat value. This is for semi-supported tokens
With no balance amount and no fiat value. This is for non-supported tokens where you will have to add their details yourself.

If you’ve sent BEP-20 tokens to your Nano Ledger’s BSC wallet but you cannot see your balance on Ledger Live, you can double-check it with BscScan. Head to BscScan and copy in your Ledger Nano BSC address. Click the [Token] drop-down box on the left side to see your balance.

Access my non-supported BEP-20 token balance

Your Ledger Nano can store any BEP-20 token, but not every BEP-20 token in the BSC ecosystem is natively displayed on your Ledger Nano. For this reason, to manage your non-supported BEP-20 tokens, you will need to use a wallet like MetaMask with your Ledger Nano.

1. If you don’t already have MetaMask installed on your Chrome, Firefox, or another supported browser, head to their website and install the compatible extension.

2. Create a MetaMask wallet or log in to your existing MetaMask wallet. Creating a wallet is simple - just make sure to keep a secure backup of your seed phrase, ideally on a device not connected to the internet.

3. Next, you’ll need to follow our Connecting MetaMask to Binance Smart Chain guide. This will involve adding a Customer RPC with the following details:

Mainnet

Network Name: Smart Chain

New RPC URL: https://bsc-dataseed.binance.org/

ChainID: 56

Symbol: BNB

Block Explorer URL: https://bscscan.com

Once you’ve successfully followed the tutorial, return to step 4 here.

4. Connecting your Nano Ledger to your computer and then open your device’s Binance Smart Chain app. You can do this by searching for the Binance Smart Chain icon and simultaneously pressing both of your Nano Ledger’s buttons.

5. Open the Ledger Live app connected to your Nano Ledger.

6. In MetaMask, go to [Settings] - [Advanced] and then toggle on [Use Ledger Live]. Your Nano Ledger will then show up as an account in MetaMask.

7. Next, you’ll need to add your unsupported BEP-20 token’s contract address into MetaMask as a custom token.

8. You can find your BEP-20 token’s contract by looking up the coin on CoinMarketCap or GoinGecko. You’ll see the box below with the information you need to copy. Also, make sure to take note of the [Decimal] field too.

9. Making sure you’re on your Ledger Nano account in MetaMask, and you have Binance Smart Chain selected, click on the [Assets] tab. Scroll to the bottom and then click [Add Token].

10. Copy the token contract address in and the decimal. MetaMask will usually fill out the rest of the details for you. The [Token Symbol] field is the ticker symbol you want your wallet and Nano Ledger to display for the crypto. In our example, this would be CAKE. Finally, click [Next].

You now will have successfully added support for your BEP-20 token on your Nano Ledger. If you decide to move the tokens onto your wallet, make sure to have some BEP-20 BNB for your transaction fees.

Closing thoughts

Choosing to use a hardware wallet is a massive upgrade in security for your crypto assets. If you’re a HODLer, you won’t even have to connect your device to your computer very often. You can purchase crypto and send it to your device’s address without ever plugging it in. Even if you access it regularly for trading, staking, or Decentralized Finance (DeFi) DApps, using your wallet with Ledger Live or MetaMask only requires one extra step: plugging in your device. Whatever your crypto holding strategy is, there’s almost no downside to using a hardware wallet with BSC as long as you keep your device and seed phrase safe.