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For the complete documentation index, see llms.txt. This page is also available as Markdown.

Wallets and Collateral

How wallets, collateral, and deposits work for prediction market trading on Polymarket.

Collateral: USDC.e

All prediction markets on Polymarket are denominated and settled in USDC.e on the Polygon network.

What is USDC.e?

USDC.e is a bridged version of USDC from Ethereum to Polygon. It maintains 1:1 backing with USDC on Ethereum while enabling faster, cheaper transactions on Polygon.

Property
USDC.e

Network

Polygon PoS

Contract

0x2791bca1f2de4661ed88a30c99a7a9449aa84174

Decimals

6

Backing

1:1 with USDC on Ethereum

USDC.e vs Native USDC

Polygon has two versions of USDC:

Token
Description

USDC.e

Bridged from Ethereum, used by Polymarket

USDC

Native Polygon USDC issued directly by Circle

Polymarket uses USDC.e. Depositing native USDC requires bridging or swapping first.

Depositing Funds

From Ethereum

  1. Send USDC to your Polymarket Ethereum deposit address

  2. Polymarket bridges it to Polygon as USDC.e

  3. Funds arrive in ~30 minutes

  4. Gas fees apply (~$30+ depending on network conditions)

From Polygon

  1. Send USDC.e directly to your Polygon deposit address

  2. Funds arrive in a few minutes

  3. Gas fees are minimal (a few cents)

Sending USDC.e over Polygon is faster and cheaper than bridging from Ethereum.

Proxy Wallet System

When you first trade on Polymarket, a proxy wallet is deployed for you on Polygon. This is where your positions and USDC.e are held.

How It Works

  1. You connect with your EOA (MetaMask, hardware wallet, etc.) or Magic.link email wallet

  2. A 1-of-1 multisig Safe is deployed on Polygon

  3. Your connecting wallet is the sole owner/signer

  4. All trading occurs through this proxy wallet

Architecture

The proxy wallet is a Gnosis Safe with a single signer (you). It provides several benefits:

  • Gasless trading: Polymarket relays transactions and pays gas

  • Atomic execution: Multi-step operations happen in one transaction

  • No approval popups: Allowances are pre-set for the Exchange contract

Signature Types

Polymarket supports multiple wallet configurations:

Signature Type
Description
Use Case

Type 0

Standard EOA signature (EIP-712)

MetaMask, hardware wallets

Type 1

Magic.link email wallet

Email-based login

Type 2

Browser wallet proxy (Safe)

Most web users

The signature type tells Polymarket how to verify your order signatures.

Wallet Security

Custody Model

Polymarket uses a non-custodial model:

  • You control the signing key

  • Only you can authorize transactions

  • Polymarket can relay transactions on your behalf (after you sign)

  • Polymarket cannot move funds without your signature

The Safe Contract

Your proxy wallet is a 1-of-1 Gnosis Safe:

  • Battle-tested smart contract wallet

  • Single owner (your connected wallet)

  • Audited by multiple security firms

  • Used across DeFi for billions in assets

Private Key Access

You retain full control:

  • Your EOA private key controls the proxy wallet

  • Export your key from MetaMask or Magic.link

  • Transfer assets using your EOA at any time

Importing and Exporting Wallets

Exporting from Magic.link

If you signed up with email (Magic.link):

  1. Log in to your Polymarket account

  2. Go to Cash > three dots menu > Export Private Key

  3. Or visit: https://reveal.magic.link/polymarket while logged in

  4. Copy your private key securely

Importing to MetaMask

  1. Open MetaMask

  2. Click your account icon > Import Account

  3. Paste your exported private key

  4. Your EOA is now accessible in MetaMask

EOA vs Magic Wallet Limitations

Feature
EOA (MetaMask)
Magic.link

Private key export

Yes

Yes

Import to other wallets

Yes

Yes

Programmatic trading

Straightforward

Requires funder setup

Hardware wallet support

Yes

No

Important: Only EOAs can be directly imported to external wallets or trading bots. Magic.link wallets can export their private key and then be imported elsewhere, but the proxy wallet (Safe) itself cannot be imported directly.

Programmatic Access

For API or bot trading:

EOA Users:

  1. Use your private key directly

  2. Set signature_type=0

  3. Set allowances for the Exchange contract

Magic.link Users:

  1. Export your private key

  2. Use signature_type=1 with the funder address parameter

  3. The funder address is your proxy wallet address

Allowances

Before trading programmatically, you must set token allowances:

Required Allowances

Token
Contract
Purpose

USDC.e

Exchange contract

Buying outcome tokens

CTF tokens

Exchange contract

Selling outcome tokens

Setting Allowances

For web users, Polymarket handles this automatically through the proxy wallet.

For programmatic users:

  1. Approve the Exchange contract to spend your USDC.e

  2. Approve the Exchange contract to transfer your CTF tokens

  3. Allowances must be set from the funder address

Balance Management

Checking Balances

Your trading balance is:

Reserved Funds

When you place buy orders, the USDC.e is reserved:

  • A $50 order at $0.50 reserves $25

  • This amount is unavailable for other orders

  • Cancelling the order releases the reservation

Insufficient Balance Errors

If you see "not enough balance/allowance":

  1. Check your USDC.e balance in the proxy wallet

  2. Cancel open orders to free reserved funds

  3. Verify allowances are set (for programmatic trading)

  4. Ensure you have enough for the order size at your price

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