// GLOSSARY -- BLOCKCHAIN & CRYPTO FUNDAMENTALS

What is WETH (Wrapped Ether)?

1 min read Updated

WETH (Wrapped ETH) is an ERC-20 token that represents Ether in a standardized token format — solving the incompatibility between native ETH and the ERC-20 interface that most DeFi protocols require.

WHY IT MATTERS

ETH predates the ERC-20 standard and doesn't implement its interface natively. WETH wraps ETH into an ERC-20 token — deposit ETH, receive WETH 1:1. This lets ETH interact with any protocol expecting ERC-20 tokens.

The wrapping contract is trivially simple and trustless: deposit ETH, get WETH. Burn WETH, get ETH. The contract is among the most battle-tested on Ethereum. WETH is used extensively in DeFi for trading, lending, and liquidity provision.

Modern protocols increasingly handle ETH natively, reducing the need for explicit wrapping. But WETH remains essential for protocol compatibility.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Is WETH always worth 1 ETH?
Yes — the wrapping contract guarantees 1:1 conversion. There's no depeg risk because you can always unwrap WETH for exactly 1 ETH.
Why not just use ETH?
Many DeFi protocols expect ERC-20 tokens. ETH doesn't implement the ERC-20 interface (transfer, approve, balanceOf). WETH provides these functions while maintaining 1:1 ETH backing.
Do I need to wrap ETH manually?
Often no — modern DeFi frontends handle wrapping automatically. When you 'swap ETH for USDC' on Uniswap, wrapping happens behind the scenes.

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