In the vast world of crypto, Counterparty is a very interesting network for many reasons. Founded in 2014, it is built upon Bitcoin and it is one of the first NFT provider. XCP is the native coin of the network and is one of the most used currencies (with Bitcoin) on the markets hosted by the network.
The best way to explore Counterparty is by going on xchain.io: there you have access to all the assets, addresses and transactions. But if you want to interact with the markets, you're going to need another tool: the Freewallet software. It is a wallet application for computer and smartphone. Go on their website to download it (freewallet.io). Next, we will explore the two main to ways to buy and sell XCP assets.
The markets
Are you a player, a collector or just curious? Are you looking for old Spell Of Genesis cards? Rare Pepe NFTS? Then you might have asked yourself: where to buy/sell? Well, there are two types of markets available on Counterparty: the first one would be the exchanges, where you can ask/bid on offers for thousands different trading pairs, the second one are the dispensers, automated vendors that deliver assets to the buyers to a fixed price.
For the purpose of this guide, let's say we are looking for Rare Pepe card named BANKRUPTPEPE.
Exchanges
- Open your Freewallet application.
- Go to the "Exchange" tab. There you can see the currencies already selected (BTC and XCP in this case).
Let's see if we can find our asset:
- Click on "XCP", then "Search", type in "BANKRUPTPEPE" and click on the green button.
- Click on the asset name and you'll have access to the trading pair "BANKRUPTPEPE/XCP", with a nice trading platform user interface.
Now, let's see if we can find a way to trade for PEPECASH, the token of the Rare Pepe ecosystem.
- In the "Exchange" tab, click on the blue wheel button and in "Actions" click on "Add Market".
- In the "Token Name" field, type in "PEPECASH", click on "Add Market". Now you have access to all the the trading pairs with PEPECASH.
- Click on the "PEPECASH" tab, then "Search", type in "BANKRUPTPEPE" and click on the green button. Congratulations, you've just found the "BANKRUPTPEPE/PEPECASH" trading pair!
We now have access to two markets for this asset. Are there more markets available? Well, let's find out!
- In the "Exchange" tab, click on the blue wheel button and in "Actions" click on "Add Market".
- In the "Token Name" field, type in "BANKRUPTPEPE", click on "Add Market".
For the moment, it's seems BANKRUPTPEPE is only available against XCP and PEPECASH.
Maybe you are seeing more markets at the time you're reading this tutorial. Adding in the markets of your asset with this method is the easiest way to monitor the prices and opportunities.
Dispensers
Sometimes, markets are not very populated and you might not want to wait for months before seeing any movements, right? Why not buy or sell via a secured escrow? Dispensers are exactly that, automated vending machines, with all the same advantages: it's fast and easy to interact with, both for the buyer and the seller.
I've written a guide on how to create a dispenser (Counterparty - How To Create A Dispenser). Here, we are going to take a look at the other side, how to find and buy with dispensers.
- In Freewallet, click on the "Dispensers" tab.
- Click on the blue button, then in "Actions" click on "Add Dispenser Watchlist".
- In the "Token Name" field, type in "BANKRUPTPEPE", click on "Add Watchlist".
Here we go! All the dispensers ever created for this asset, open or closed, are on this watchlist.
Just click on the "Buy Now" button, it will open a window with the details for the transaction. The total price you will pay for the transaction is equal to the sum of the "BTC Amount" and the "Fee".
You can also click on the link of the dispenser in the address section. This will open a webpage where you can buy the asset with another bitcoin wallet, using the QR-code or by copying the BTC address.
It generally takes one confirmation on the blockchain after the payment to receive you newly acquired NFT.
Looking for rare cards?
If you are looking for old Spells of Genesis cards, have a look at my , all my XCP dispensers are listed there. Given that the stocks fluctuate, take a look regularly to find gems.
