BridgeRadar
Litecoin to Ethereum Bridge
There is no trust-minimized Litecoin to Ethereum bridge and no widely used wrapped LTC on Ethereum. What works today is a swap: THORChain and NEAR Intents take real LTC and pay real ETH or stablecoins on Ethereum. Exchanges do the same with an account.
Reviewed October 14, 2026 ยท 4 solutions checked
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Short answer
Short answer: you cannot hold LTC on Ethereum without trusting someone, and no wrapped LTC token there has much trading. So LTC to ETH today means a swap. You send real LTC and receive real ETH, USDC or USDT in your Ethereum wallet.
THORChain is the most direct option. It holds pools of native LTC and native ETH and swaps one for the other without wrapping anything. NEAR Intents does the same job with solvers, market makers that compete to fill your order. A centralized exchange that lists LTC is the familiar backup.
Litecoin makes a new block about every 2.5 minutes, and services wait for confirmations, so expect to wait longer than on faster chains. Projects like LitVM want to bring smart contracts to Litecoin, but none gives you redeemable LTC on Ethereum yet. The outlook below tracks them.
| Direct bridge | No trust-minimized one |
|---|---|
| Most common way | Swap LTC to ETH |
| Native swap services | THORChain, NEAR Intents |
| Wrapped LTC on Ethereum | No widely used, liquid version |
| Litecoin block time | About 2.5 minutes |
| Usual time | Often under an hour |
| Need ETH on arrival | Yes, for USDC or USDT |
Why this route is difficult
Litecoin is a fork of Bitcoin and has the same kind of simple scripting, with no general smart contracts. It cannot lock LTC under rules that depend on what happens on Ethereum, and Ethereum cannot cheaply check Litecoin's proof-of-work blocks.
So any LTC token on Ethereum needs someone to hold the real LTC. That can be a single company or a group of signers. Either way you trust them, and no such token has built much trading on Ethereum.
Litecoin's own upgrade, MWEB, adds optional private transfers. It helps privacy, but many exchanges and swap services only handle regular Litecoin addresses. That is one more detail to get right when you move LTC.
That is why swaps fill the gap. THORChain and NEAR Intents give you real ETH without anyone issuing LTC on Ethereum. The cost is that you no longer hold LTC.
Past attempts
| Project | When | What happened |
|---|---|---|
| Binance-Peg LTC | Live | A custodial LTC token, but on BNB Chain, not Ethereum. Backed by LTC that Binance holds. |
What is being built
LitVM
TestnetAn EVM layer for Litecoin built with Arbitrum Orbit and BitcoinOS zero-knowledge tech. It aims to bring native LTC into smart contracts. Its LiteForge testnet is live.
MWEB
LiveLitecoin's optional privacy feature. Not a bridge, but it affects which services can receive or send your LTC.
THORChain LTC pools
LiveNot a bridge, but the main live path. Native LTC swaps to ETH and Ethereum stablecoins.
NEAR Intents LTC swaps
LiveSolvers swap LTC for Ethereum assets. Deposits and withdrawals were paused for about 12 hours after an exploit on 1 October 2026, and affected users were promised full refunds.
What still stands in the way
- Litecoin has no general smart contracts, so it cannot lock LTC under rules tied to Ethereum.
- Ethereum cannot cheaply verify Litecoin's proof-of-work blocks.
- Wrapped LTC on Ethereum never built real trading, so new tokens start with little trust.
- Many services only support regular Litecoin addresses, not MWEB.
Signs the bridge is close
- A LitVM mainnet launch, and whether it offers a route for LTC to Ethereum.
- A redeemable LTC token on Ethereum with real Uniswap liquidity and published audits.
- More swap services and wallets supporting MWEB.
- THORChain LTC pool depth, which decides how good large LTC to ETH quotes are.
Possible approaches
1Native cross-chain swap
THORChain holds pools of native LTC and native ETH, and swaps one for the other.
Trade-offWorks today with real coins on both sides. You give up LTC and pay pool fees.
2Intent-based swap
You send LTC to a deposit address and a solver pays you ETH or stablecoins on Ethereum.
Trade-offSimple, but you rely on the service and its solvers. It paused for about half a day after an exploit in October 2026.
3Custodial wrapped LTC
A company holds LTC and issues a matching token on another network.
Trade-offEasy to build, but you trust the custodian, and there is little trading on Ethereum.
4Proof-based Litecoin layer
Zero-knowledge proofs link a smart contract layer to Litecoin, so LTC can be used with less trust in people.
Trade-offLess trust, but these projects are still in testing.
Options compared
| Option | You get | Typical time | Cost | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Native cross-chain swap (THORChain) | Real ETH or Ethereum stablecoins | Often under an hour | Swap fee + outbound fee | LTC to ETH without an account |
| Intent-based swap (NEAR Intents) | ETH, USDC or USDT | Often under an hour | Built into the rate | Simple quotes, when the service is running |
| Aggregator | Supported Ethereum tokens | Depends on route | Route fees, maybe an extra fee | Comparing LTC quotes |
| Centralized exchange | ETH or stablecoins | Depends on the exchange | Trading + withdrawal fee | Large amounts |
Working solutions
| Solution | You receive | Custody / verification | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| THORChain | ETH, USDC, USDT and other pool assets | THORChain node vaults | Native LTC in, native ETH out. Use an app that builds the memo. |
| NEAR Intents | ETH, USDC, USDT | Solvers, settled on NEAR | Paused for about half a day after an exploit on 1 Oct 2026, then resumed. Affected users were promised refunds. |
| Rango Exchange | Supported Ethereum tokens | Depends on route | Compares LTC routes. Check who fills the quote. |
| Centralized exchanges | ETH or stablecoins | Exchange holds funds | LTC is widely listed. Account and ID checks usually needed. |
How to move Litecoin to Ethereum
These steps show a THORChain swap from LTC to ETH, using a wallet or app that supports THORChain, such as Vultisig, THORSwap or ASGARDEX. NEAR Intents apps follow almost the same flow.
- 1
Get your Ethereum address
Copy your address from MetaMask, Rabby or a hardware wallet. It starts with 0x and has 42 characters. Receiving ETH is easiest, since you need ETH later to move USDC or USDT.
- 2
Use a normal LTC address to send from
Send from a regular Litecoin address in your own wallet, not from MWEB, Litecoin's optional privacy feature. Many services do not handle MWEB funds, so move coins out of MWEB first if you use it.
- 3
Get a quote
Pick LTC as what you send and ETH on Ethereum as what you get. Paste your 0x address. Check the expected amount, the fees and the slippage limit, which is how much worse the price can get before the swap is refunded.
- 4
Check the memo and the vault address
THORChain swaps send LTC to a network vault with a memo, a short note that tells THORChain what to do. Let the app build the transaction. A wrong or missing memo can lose funds.
- 5
Send LTC and wait
Confirm the transaction in your wallet. THORChain waits for Litecoin confirmations, then runs the swap and sends ETH. Large swaps may be spread out over time to get a better price.
- 6
Check the ETH arrived
Look up your address on Etherscan. You can also follow the swap on a THORChain explorer such as Runescan using your LTC transaction ID.
Fees and timing
Litecoin network fees are usually small and rarely matter. The main costs come from the swap route.
THORChain charges a liquidity fee that grows with the size of your swap compared to its pool, plus an outbound fee to pay the Ethereum transaction. NEAR Intents and swap apps build their margin into the quote. Exchanges charge trading and withdrawal fees, which hit small amounts hardest. Compare what you will receive, not the headline fee.
Ethereum gas in 2026 is often cents to a dollar or two, but rises when the network is busy. If you receive USDC or USDT, you need some ETH to move them later.
Common mistakes
- Buying a token called "LTC" or "wLTC" on Uniswap and expecting it to track Litecoin. Check who backs it and how much trades. Lookalike tokens exist.
- Sending Binance-Peg LTC to an Ethereum address. It lives on BNB Chain, not Ethereum.
- Sending LTC to a THORChain vault by hand without the right memo. Let the app build the transaction.
- Sending from MWEB funds to a service that does not support them.
- Thinking a slow swap has failed. Litecoin confirmations take time.
- Receiving USDC or USDT on Ethereum with no ETH. You cannot move it until you add ETH for gas.
Before you transfer
- Ask yourself if you need LTC on Ethereum, or just its value. If it is the value, a swap is simpler and safer than any wrapped token.
- Treat any "wrapped LTC" token on Ethereum with care. Check who holds the LTC, how to redeem it, and how much trades.
- Send from a regular Litecoin address, not MWEB, unless the service says it supports MWEB.
- THORChain fees grow with swap size compared to the pool. Split very large swaps or compare with an exchange.
- Check service status before sending. Swap services sometimes pause deposits after incidents.
- Keep a little ETH in the receiving wallet if you choose USDC or USDT.
Frequently asked questions
Not a trust-minimized one, and no wrapped LTC on Ethereum with real trading. Today you swap LTC to ETH with THORChain, NEAR Intents or an exchange.
Use a THORChain app such as Vultisig, THORSwap or ASGARDEX, or a NEAR Intents app. Send LTC and enter your Ethereum 0x address to receive ETH.
Not as real LTC. MetaMask works with Ethereum-style networks, and Litecoin is not one. Swap LTC for ETH or stablecoins and receive those in MetaMask instead.
No. Binance-Peg LTC is a token on BNB Chain, backed by LTC held by Binance. Do not send it to an Ethereum address.
A project building an EVM smart contract layer for Litecoin, using Arbitrum Orbit and zero-knowledge tech from BitcoinOS. Its LiteForge testnet is live. It is not a live bridge to Ethereum.
Usually not directly. Many services only support regular Litecoin addresses. Move your coins out of MWEB in your wallet first, then send.
Often under an hour. Litecoin makes a block about every 2.5 minutes, and services wait for confirmations before paying out. Exchanges can take longer.
