Introduction to Chains and Currencies

If you are not familiar with blockchain concepts, a blockchain (or "chain" for short), is a distributed ledger of actions. Computers across the Internet use a blockchain to synchronize (agree on) a shared payment history for everyone on the network. You can think of it as a distributed database in which everyone who wants to transact records their actions according to certain rules that ensure nobody is cheating. Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Algorand are examples of chains.

A chain typically hosts one or more cryptocurrencies (or "currencies" for short) which have value. Currencies are also often referred to as tokens. Most chains host a native currency, and may sometimes have additional currencies (or tokens) hosted on the same chain. For example, the Bitcoin chain hosts the native Bitcoin (BTC) currency, but also secondary tokens like Omni (OMNI). The Ethereum chain hosts the native Ethereum (ETH) currency, but also a wide variety of currencies and tokens, including USDC and USDT. Many of them follow a technical standard called ERC-20. Similarly, the Algorand chain hosts the native Algo (ALGO) currency, but also a variety of assets following the Algorand Standard Assets framework, including USDC and USDT.

Occasionally a single currency can be available on multiple chains.

Supported Chains and Currencies

The table below lists the chains and currencies currently supported by the crypto asset API.

Native USDC

Native USDT

Additional Supported Assets