
cygaar|May 18, 2025 21:03
I want to do a quick primer going over wallets on @AbstractChain because this has been the source of confusion for users.
1) Abstract Global Wallet (AGW) is not the only wallet that works on Abstract.
Most of your existing EVM browser wallet providers (MM, Rabby, etc) will work just fine on Abstract. In fact, we added an "Add Network" button to our new landing page to streamline this process for users.
So, if you prefer using traditional EOAs to hold your funds or to interact with the chain, you can do so like you would on other EVM chains. The only caveat is some apps are AGW exclusive.
2) AGWs are smart contract wallets.
This means there's no private key to this wallet like you would see for standard browser extension wallets. Your AGW is quite literally a smart contract - it does not have a corresponding private key. There is an EOA that controls your AGW which we allow exports for, but it is highly unlikely that you would need to do this.
The reason why we opted to build AGW in this manner is so we could add features such as batch transaction signing, session keys, and multiple authorized signers. Our primary goal is to extend Abstract to the masses, and we believe that these features are necessary in creating a simple yet powerful UX for new crypto users.
3) AGWs are not cross-chain compatible
AGWs do not currently work cross chain because address derivation on Abstract and other zkstack chains differs from standard EVMs. This means that if your AGW has address 0x12345 on Abstract, the same deployment on Etherem mainnet would not be at 0x12345. This makes it impossible to recover funds send to your AGW address on other chains. We, along with our close partners, have added guardrails to prevent this, but we don't have control over every swap/bridge app. This is what will show up in our upcoming bridge.
4) Abstract XP is only given to AGW users
A question we get a lot is "why not give XP to EOA users as well?". The primary reason for keeping XP exclusive to AGW is that we are trying to increase adoption for smart contract wallets. Most wallet experts in this industry believe that these wallets will be the dominant type of wallet in the future. We believe so too - they're more secure (depending on the setup) and more feature rich when compared to traditional EOAs. We want to accelerate the adoption of SC wallets, so we're using incentives to do so.
Many of our core ecosystem apps also depend on session keys to create web2-like experiences for users. By keeping XP exclusive to AGWs, we can reduce the fragmentation that apps need to worry about - they can create the best possible experience for users and not worry about degradation with other wallets. As more teams start to integrate session keys into their apps, I expect the case for AGW-only integrations to grow stronger.
5) Summary
You can use most EVM wallets on Abstract, just like on other chains. In fact, if you're someone who's used to a particular setup on other chains, I would actually recommend re-using that on Abstract.
AGW was built so users wouldn't have download any chrome extensions, keep secret phrases safe, and be able to interact on mobile easily. It also allows apps to build with session keys, creating a more seamless UX. At times, deep crypto natives may be confused with this setup, but we strongly believe that the future of wallets will be smart contract wallets, and we're willing to make a bet on that with AGW.
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