Wrapped Ether (WETH)
What Is Wrapped Ether (WETH)?
Wrapped Ether (WETH) is an ERC-20 token pegged 1:1 to the value of ether (ETH), created by locking ETH in a smart contract.
WETH is the
ERC-20-compatible version of ether (ETH). It is pegged to ETH at a 1:1 ratio and can be created or redeemed at any time by interacting with a WETH
smart contract. Wrapping other token standards is also possible, though WETH refers specifically to the ERC-20 wrapper for ETH.
Why Does WETH Exist?
Ether is the native currency of the
Ethereum blockchain and was created before the ERC-20 token standard was implemented. As a result, ETH is not natively ERC-20 compatible and cannot be exchanged directly for other ERC-20 tokens in a decentralized manner without additional technical complexity.
Rather than build two separate interfaces into every smart contract, one for ETH and one for ERC-20 tokens, developers created WETH as a solution. By "wrapping" ETH into an ERC-20 token, applications can handle ETH and other ERC-20 tokens under the same technical standard, reducing complexity and eliminating reliance on trusted third parties.
How Does Wrapping and Unwrapping Work?
To wrap ETH, a user sends ETH to the WETH smart contract.
The contract holds the ETH and issues an equivalent amount of WETH tokens (1 ETH = 1 WETH). To unwrap, the user sends WETH back to the same contract and receives the original ETH at the same 1:1 ratio.
No fees are charged by the contract itself, though standard Ethereum
gas fees apply to both transactions.
Where Is WETH Used?
Decentralized exchanges (DEXs)
Platforms such as
Uniswap use WETH to facilitate peer-to-peer trading between ETH and other ERC-20 tokens without an intermediary. DEXs rely on WETH to ensure all assets in liquidity pools conform to the same token interface.
Lending protocols
Protocols like
Aave and
Compound Finance accept WETH as collateral or a lendable asset, since they are built around the ERC-20 standard.
Liquidity provision and vaults
ERC-4626 vaults and automated market makers use WETH to manage fungible ETH positions within a unified contract framework.
Layer 2 networks
WETH is deployed natively on major L2 networks including
Base, Arbitrum One, and
Optimism, where it serves the same function as on Ethereum mainnet.
What Is ERC-7528 and the WETH Landscape Now?
A separate Ethereum standard,
ERC-7528 (finalized in 2023), introduced a standard placeholder address for representing native ETH in ERC-20 contexts.
This convention allows certain protocols, such as ERC-4626 vaults and DEX routers, to reference native ETH without requiring it to be wrapped first. ERC-7528 does not replace WETH; both standards coexist, with WETH remaining the standard for contexts that require a fully transferable ERC-20 token.