Sent crypto on the wrong network: what to do

Why the network matters

Many coins exist on several networks under the same name. USDT on Ethereum, USDT on Tron and USDT on BNB Smart Chain are three different assets. A swap watches one address on one network. A deposit on another network never reaches it.

The mistake happens most often between networks that share an address format. Ethereum, BNB Smart Chain, Arbitrum, Base, Optimism and Polygon all use addresses that start with 0x, so a wallet will accept the same address on any of them.

What to do right now

1. Stop. Do not send a second deposit until you know what happened to the first.
2. Find the transaction hash in your wallet or exchange history, and note the network it was really sent on.
3. Open the support chat on AltoSwap, ask for a person, and give your swap ID, the transaction hash and that network.
4. Keep the swap page. Do not create a new swap for the same coins.

Can the coins be recovered?

Sometimes. If the service that owns the deposit address also controls that address on the network you used, it can usually send the coins back. This is done by hand, often for a fee, and it can take days or weeks. If nobody controls the address on that network, the coins cannot be recovered.

AltoSwap never holds your coins, so it cannot move them itself. What support can do is pass your case, with the details above, to whoever handled the swap.

How to avoid it

• Choose the network in the swap form, not only the coin. The form lists each network of a coin separately.
• Before you send, read the line above the deposit address on the swap page. It names the coin and the network.
• When you withdraw from an exchange, the exchange asks which network to use. Pick the one the swap page names.