Many people still hold their Bitcoin on a centralized exchange. Until now, swapping and using it onchain meant setting up a Bitcoin wallet first.

That step is gone. BOB Gateway QR Swaps now let you swap native BTC straight from your CEX account - directly to wBTC or USDT on Ethereum, Base, BNB Chain, and more - straight into your EVM wallet without ever needing to connect a Bitcoin wallet.

Bringing BTC swaps onchain

$800B of BTC is swapped on centralized exchanges every month, compared to just $0.5B onchain.

That gap isn't because people prefer custodial platforms. It's because onchain swaps have historically been slow, unpredictable, and complicated to set up. CEX swaps are fast, precise, and familiar. Onchain hasn't been able to match that - yet…

BOB is changing that, piece by piece. We recently shared how we're building zero-slippage and instant BTC swaps to close the speed and certainty gap. You can apply for early access here.

QR Swaps remove another barrier: the setup friction of a Bitcoin wallet. For the millions of people who hold BTC on exchanges, this is the easiest path they’ve ever had to using their native BTC onchain.

If we can pull just 1% of current CEX volume onchain, that's $8B in monthly volume - a 1600% increase from today.

Swap native BTC with or without a Bitcoin wallet

The right approach depends on where your BTC is.

Option 1: Swap from a Bitcoin wallet. If your BTC is already in a self-custody wallet, use the standard swaps flow. Connect both your Bitcoin wallet and your destination EVM wallet before initiating the swap. This is the most seamless experience - amounts are verified automatically, and the swap is guaranteed to go through.
Option 2: Swap directly from a CEX (no Bitcoin wallet needed). If your BTC is on an exchange like Binance or Coinbase - or you'd rather not connect your Bitcoin wallet to a third-party app - you can now send BTC directly to complete a swap while only connecting your destination EVM wallet. You initiate the swap, get a deposit address and exact amount, send the BTC from your exchange, and receive your output token on the destination chain. No Bitcoin wallet setup. No bridge.

#BOB QR swaps - step by step

This walkthrough guide will show you how to swap from native BTC to Tether Gold (XAUt) on Ethereum - a new route that just went live on BOB Gateway.

Head to app.gobob.xyz and connect your EVM wallet where you want to receive the destination asset
Input the amount of BTC you want to swap and the app will give you a quote for how much of the destination asset you will receive - in this case 0.05 BTC for 0.84 XAUt. Click review.
You will be presented with a summary of the requested transaction including fees and estimated time to complete. If you are happy with the quote, click swap.
You will be given a Bitcoin address. Copy the address directly to your CEX and initiate the withdrawal. The QR code will also populate the destination BTC address if your CEX app has that functionality. You’ll notice that a 10 minute timer has started. It is vital that you send the exact amount of BTC before this time is over.

Read before you swap

This flow gives you flexibility, but it requires precision. Please be aware:

You have 10 minutes to make the payment after initiating the swap. The payment does not need to be confirmed within that window, but it must be sent.
Send the exact amount shown. If you send even 1 satoshi less than required, the swap will not complete and the funds will be lost.
Do not overpay. Any amount sent above the required figure will also be lost.
There is no tolerance for rounding or estimation. Copy the deposit address and amount exactly as shown, and confirm both before sending.

The best swaps engine for native BTC

QR Swaps are the latest addition to BOB Gateway - the swaps engine we're building to help make native BTC one of the most used assets in DeFi.

Powered by Bitcoin intents, Gateway already offers non-custodial BTC-to-stablecoin, tokenized gold and wrapped BTC swaps across 11 major chains, with the best routes and quotes on the market. QR Swaps extend that to users who hold BTC on CEXs or hardware wallets - no Bitcoin wallet required at any point.

The Bank of Bitcoin starts with the best on and off ramp for native BTC. This is another step toward it.

Available now in the BOB app and via the BOB Gateway API for dapps and integrators.