At the time of writing, there are an estimated 11,000 to 20,000 tokens and cryptocurrencies. The vast majority of them are tokens, and only a few are considered real cryptocurrencies.
We will not delve into the differences between these two terms here. But we will try to explain how such a large number of assets could have arisen.
Is each token a separate blockchain?
Not always. Most tokens are deployed on the Ethereum blockchain. According to Nomics, there are more than 12,500 tokens on the Ethereum network. But of this number, only slightly more than 4,160 have any volume. In second place is Binance Smart Chain with more than 8700 tokens.
The choice of blockchain is a personal matter for the developer. Networks differ in both commission costs and community size.
It is important to understand that a token created on a network such as ETH will not work on another such as BSC. The only way to “transfer” a token is to use so-called “bridges”.
Create your own cryptocurrency: What do you need?
- Your time (no more than one hour)
- Browser extension with your MetaMask Wallet, Coinbase or Trust Wallet
- Balance in the Wallet (if you want to create a free trial token you will have to apply for trial ETH)
How can I create a cryptocurrency or token?
Ideally, of course, you should understand the basic mechanics of the token you want to create. Also, have an idea of what that part of the code is responsible for. But let’s say you don’t want to learn the basics, and your hands are itching to create something as quickly as possible at the lowest cost.
Since the blockchain market is already developing, enthusiasts have launched a group of platforms to create tokens in a very simple way.
This means that there are several sites that are ready to take care of the entire technical component for you.
Here are some of them:
- cointool.app
- vittominacori.github.io
- createmytoken.com
- guarda.co
We recommend Cointool.app
We recommend the use of cointool.app as it is the market leader, but all the web portals mentioned above are similar and the operation to create tokens is almost the same. There is a field for the token name, the ticker, the volume of coins and all that is necessary to create the cryptocurrency.
Before you start creating a token, you need to synchronize your wallet with the chosen portal.
It is assumed that you have already installed it in your browser. The wallet will be required for the site to independently create a smart contract, through which it will issue the tokens. This service is paid if you want to create a real token. If you just want to try it for free, then read on.
To synchronize with cointool.app, click on the button in the upper right corner “Connect wallet”. Your purse window will close. We accept the terms and connect. Next, we start choosing a network for the token.
Choosing a network and the cost of creating a cryptocurrency (token)
The blue section of the form in cointool.app is the blockchain network/scaling protocol selection. You already know the difference between them in the section ”
Is each token a separate blockchain?” If you missed it, we recommend you read it again.
At the time of writing, creating a real token through cointool.app will cost you a pretty penny. More specifically, 0.1 ETH (~$400).
What is the difference between a real token and a test token? Once you have created a real token, you can list it on the exchanges and trade it. It is impossible to be quoted with a test token.
The process of creating a real token and a test token is the same. Even in a test scenario, there is a fee to be paid. (with free tokens). In our case, we will look at a test case for creating an ERC20 token on the Ethereum testnet called Kovan.
Create your own cryptocurrency: Connecting the wallet to the network
By default, MetaMask connects to the Mainnet and displays the corresponding balance. It is necessary to switch to the Kovan test network. Of course, you can also choose from other chains: Ropsten, Rinkeby and Goerli.
To connect to the test network, open MetaMask > click on the “Ethereum Mainnet” button above > click on “Kovan Test Network” in the dropdown menu
If you had cryptocurrencies in MetaMask, now your balance has been restored. No problem: your wallet has just connected to a different network. You can switch back to the old network using the method described above and the balance will be restored again.
Once connected to Kovan , the cointool.app site should reload and display the “Eth Kovan” network selected at the top right. If this does not happen, make sure your wallet is connected.
So, we are connected to the test network, when are we going to create the token already? Soon.
The last point remains – getting free tokens. To do this, you can use the token tap.
Here are some services that give free tokens for trial use:
- faucet.metamask.io
- faucet.egorfine.com
Choose any of them. Once on the website, paste your public address. You can get it by opening MetaMask and clicking on the “Account 1” column.
Once you have submitted a request to receive free tokens, you will have to wait. Test ETHs will arrive in your wallet in 5-10 minutes.
Attention. If you start sending ETH requests multiple times, then your wallet will be blacklisted for 24 hours. Simply submit your application and wait. In 5-10 minutes.
Configuring the cryptocurrency (token)
Once the test ETH is received, we proceed to the creation of the token itself.
The form in cointool.app contains the following fields:
- Token Name – the name of the token (example: Bitcoin, Ethereum, Dogecoin).
- Symbol – the ticker of the token (e.g. BTC, ETH, DOGE)
- Initial bid – the maximum initial amount of tokens
- Decimals – system of calculations (the minimum that your token can be divided. For example, BTC is divided by 8 decimal parts, and ETH by 18).
- Burn – burn tokens
- Mint – the ability to create additional tokens (the amount will be added to the initial supply)
- Pause – the ability to stop all operations with the token (feature in case a critical vulnerability is detected)
- Deflation – a fee is charged for each transaction with a token, which is then burned.
- Super deflation – accelerated mode of the deflation function.
It is optional to fill in all fields. In our case, we call the test token Cronuts Digital Coin, and the ticker CDC. The rest of the settings will be left at their default values.
We pay for the creation of the smart contract
Once you have configured all the> settings scroll down and click on the “Create Token” button.
A window will open in your wallet with a request to send ETH to create a contract with your token.
In our case, 0.00001 ETH of test has been needed.
Find out the details of the smart contract
First we need to find out the address of the smart contract that created the tokens.
To do this, go to the “Activity” tab and look for a transaction called “Contract Deployment” for which 0.00001 ETH was paid.
Click on the transaction, and in the details click on “View in block explorer”.
As shown above, an etherscan.io window will open.
All the details of creating a smart contract for your token are described here.
We find the line where it says “Contract” and the address of the contract itself. Copy this address.
Next, we open the MetaMask > main page at the bottom, click on “Import tokens” > in the “Token contract address” field and paste the copied address.
The wallet should automatically pick up the imported smart contract data, including the token ticker and calculation system. Click on “Add custom token”.
And now, the generated tokens (in our case, CDC) appear in our Wallet.
The appearance of the token (logo, description, links to social networks) can also be specified in the “Create token” > “Create token view” section of cointool.app.
Now that you know how to create a test cryptocurrency (token), you can create a real token. But you will need to pay in real ETH.
