What is BEP-20?
BEP-20 is the technical standard that defines how tokens work on BNB Smart Chain. It's equivalent to Ethereum's ERC-20 standard — any token following BEP-20 rules can be held in any BSC wallet, traded on any BSC DEX, and used in any BSC DeFi protocol.
Key BEP-20 functions
Every BEP-20 token implements standard functions:
- transfer() — send tokens to another address
- approve() — authorise a contract to spend your tokens
- balanceOf() — check how many tokens an address holds
- totalSupply() — the total number of tokens in existence
USDT and USDC on BSC
Both USDT and USDC are available as BEP-20 tokens on BSC. These are the same stablecoins as on Ethereum but bridged to BSC for lower fees. They maintain the same $1 peg.
BEP-20 vs ERC-20
BEP-20 and ERC-20 are functionally identical — BSC was designed to be EVM-compatible, so the same token standard works on both chains. The difference is which blockchain the token lives on.
Approvals and security
When you use a DeFi protocol, you typically need to "approve" it to spend your BEP-20 tokens. This approval is a transaction that grants the contract permission to move your tokens. Always check what you're approving before signing.