CypressPractical route guide · Ethereum · Hydration
Ethereum → Hydration: ETH and USDC
For a user who holds ETH or USDC on Ethereum, uses MetaMask or another EVM 0x account, and wants to start using Hydration.
Quick answer
If you use MetaMask / a 0x account:
- Move native ETH: use Hydration Cross-chain → Snowbridge.
- Pay Hydration transaction fees: keep some WETH (MRL); native ETH does not replace this fee asset.
- Move USDC: use Basejump — currently 0.1 USDC, fast when landing-pool liquidity is available.
- After arrival, verify the asset representation before using it.
Start with the constraint
Treat the move as two separate jobs
Choose the ETH representation
Use native Snowbridge ETH for native ETH, or WETH (MRL) when the MetaMask/0x account needs its current fee asset.
Move the main capital
For USDC, check the current Basejump fee, rate limit, and landing-pool liquidity before signing.
Native ETH and WETH (MRL) are different Hydration representations for different purposes. They are not interchangeable names for one asset or competing bridges for one identical result. This guide does not make an investment recommendation.
Step 1 · Fee asset
Solve the first-transaction problem
Hydration supports Substrate accounts and EVM 0x accounts. Its current fee documentation says a MetaMask user with a 0x address can currently pay transaction fees only in WETH (MRL).
That makes the fee asset a prerequisite for a fresh MetaMask account. USDC alone should not be assumed to solve the first-transaction problem.
Gas-bootstrap route
WETH (MRL) through Wormhole / MRL
Hydration documents that Wormhole-routed assets are minted on Moonbeam before being transferred to Hydration. For this use case, the useful result is the representation Hydration currently identifies as the MetaMask fee asset: WETH (MRL).
Cypress treats this as a practical gas-bootstrap route for the specific MetaMask/0x use case. That is not a claim that Wormhole is universally safer, cheaper, faster, or better than another bridge.
A different route and trust model
Where Snowbridge fits
For a user who wants native ETH on Hydration, Hydration’s Cross-chain interface presents one Ethereum-to-Hydration transfer flow and lets the user select native ETH bridged through Snowbridge. You do not need to perform a separate manual transfer to Polkadot Hub.
Under the hood, Snowbridge is the Ethereum–Polkadot system bridge and the architecture routes through Polkadot Hub before delivery to Hydration. Its documentation describes trustless, decentralized on-chain light-client verification, permissionless relayers, no multisig control, and governance through Polkadot OpenGov. That architecture is context, not an extra user step.
| Question | Wormhole / MRL | Snowbridge |
|---|---|---|
| User-facing route | Wormhole / MRL route to Hydration | One Hydration Cross-chain flow: Ethereum → Hydration |
| Underlying architecture | Wormhole-routed asset minted on Moonbeam, then transferred to Hydration | Snowbridge passes through Polkadot Hub before delivery to Hydration |
| ETH representation | WETH (MRL) | Native ETH via Snowbridge |
| MetaMask fee bootstrap | Documented by Hydration as the current fee asset | Not documented as the MetaMask fee asset |
| Trust model | Wormhole + routed path to Hydration | Ethereum–Polkadot system bridge with on-chain light clients |
Step 2 · Main capital
Move USDC after the fee buffer is ready
For Ethereum USDC, separate the underlying NTT settlement from Basejump’s fast payout. They are related parts of the current corridor, not competing assets.
| Route | What it is for | Main dependency | Main limitation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Underlying settlement | Moves the gross USDC amount through Wormhole NTT | NTT settlement rail and its current capacity | Completion time varies; it is not an instant guarantee |
| Basejump fast path | Fronts the net USDC amount from a Hydration landing pool | Available landing-pool liquidity and fast-message delivery | Can queue when the pool cannot cover the payout |
Current Basejump design
Fast payout, settlement in the background
The current Galactic Council specification limits the live corridor to Ethereum → Hydration and the live token to USDC. Basejump uses a pre-funded landing pool on Hydration:
- 1
The user sends gross USDC from Ethereum.
- 2
The fast message carries the net amount to Hydration.
- 3
If the landing pool has enough USDC, it pays the recipient before final settlement completes.
- 4
Wormhole NTT later delivers the gross amount and replenishes the landing pool.
Current specification value per transfer.
Per sliding 24-hour window; separate from pool liquidity.
USDC is the single live token in the pinned specification.
The specification describes NTT guardian finality around the 13-minute range, and referendum #404 uses similar context. This is a description of the current design—not a promised completion time. Actual completion can vary.
Two different constraints
Landing-pool liquidity is not the NTT rate limit
Landing-pool liquidity
The USDC currently available to front fast payouts. If it is insufficient, the payout can enter a pending FIFO queue.
NTT rate limit
The current specification reports an outbound limit of 100,000 USDC per sliding 24-hour window on the settlement rail.
These constraints can affect the experience in different ways. The 10,000 USDC documented in referendum #404 was seed liquidity for the landing pool; it is not evidence of a 10,000 USDC per-transfer maximum.
Verification checkpoint
Check what asset actually arrived
Bridge routes can produce different asset representations. Before swapping, lending, providing liquidity, or treating two assets as equivalent, verify:
- the destination network;
- the displayed symbol;
- the token or asset identity;
- the bridge route used;
- the current Hydration representation.
Do not assume that two assets labelled “ETH” are interchangeable merely because their symbols look the same.
Practical sequence
A verification-first flow
- Connect the intended MetaMask/
0xaccount.Confirm the account and destination before signing. - Check Hydration’s current EVM fee-asset requirement.Do not rely only on this guide’s last-verified date.
- Choose the representation that matches the intended use.Use Hydration Cross-chain / Snowbridge for native ETH; obtain WETH (MRL) separately if the
0xaccount needs the current fee asset. - Confirm the fee balance on Hydration.Verify the network and exact asset representation.
- Move the intended USDC amount.Choose between waiting for settlement and the conditional Basejump fast path based on current conditions.
- Verify the received asset and remaining fee buffer.Check identity, route, amount, and transaction record.
- Only then decide what to do next.Holding, swapping, earning, or providing liquidity is a separate decision.
Cypress principle
Verify before you sign
The wallet holds the keys.
The user decides.
Cypress only says what it can verify.
Open Cypress Wallet only when you are ready to inspect your own account. Continue with Guides, read the underlying Research, or see how Cypress works.
Primary documentation
Sources
Volatile technical claims above were checked against these primary records on 29 September 2026:
- Hydration — Ethereum ETH to Hydration ETH routeUser-facing Cross-chain route preselected for native ETH through Snowbridge.
- Hydration Docs — FeesMetaMask/
0xfee behavior and Omnipool fee assets. - Hydration Docs — Deposit from EthereumWormhole, Snowbridge, minting locations, and selectable ETH representations.
- Hydration Docs — EVM integrationEVM account support and WETH gas configuration.
- System-bridge scope, light clients, relayers, multisig claims, and OpenGov control.
- Galactic Council / WHM — pinned Basejump specificationDirection, token, architecture, fee, rate limit, settlement context, queue, and keeper behavior.
- Hydration OpenGov Referendum #404Ethereum–Hydration corridor context and 10,000 USDC landing-pool seed.