Bridging $wPOKT to Pocket Mainnet

Bridging your tokens back to The Pocket Network

Pocket Network is its own blockchain where $POKT is the native token —here is where the token performs it's core function of facilitating Pocket's Data Econonmy. It's also where staking in nodes and securing the network is possible. But, as we've explored, the entry points for new users (CEXes and DEXes) will give you wPOKT on Ethereum, Base, or Solana.

Here’s how it works today:

• When you buy $POKT on an exchange or DEX, what you actually hold is wPOKT — a wrapped version of the token that lives on Ethereum, Base, or Solana.

• To use those tokens inside Pocket itself (for example, to stake on nodes or participate in protocol-level functions), you must unwrap them through the bridge. That converts $wPOKT back into native $POKT on Pocket Mainnet.

• Currently, the bridge works one way only: $wPOKT → native $POKT. Wrapping in the other direction is paused during the Shannon transition. Thanks to the Inter-Blockchain Communication (IBC) standard, the native $POKT token can go anywhere in the Cosmos Ecosystem without bridges and we have research initiatives that will soon expand similar functionality to EVM chains and Solana.

Bridging effectively gives $POKT two lives:

• Wrapped POKT (wPOKT): usable in external EVM and Solana DeFi ecosystems.

• Native POKT ($POKT): usable directly within Pocket Network for staking and protocol participation.

We’ll go deeper in upcoming sections on what you can do with native $POKT once it’s back on the Pocket Network. For now, the key point is that the bridge is what connects Pocket’s role as a data network with the liquidity and financial activity of the broader crypto ecosystem.

How to use the Pocket Bridge:

• You connect your wallet.

• Choose the EVM or Solana bridge.

• Select the source chain and amount.

• Send your wPOKT to be unwrapped back into native $POKT on the Pocket blockchain.

It's worth repeating that, at present, the bridge works in one direction only:

wPOKT (Ethereum / Base / Solana) → Native POKT (Pocket Network).

Wrapping from native POKT back into wPOKT is not supported during the Shannon transition. This means that if you unwrap tokens into native POKT today, they will remain on the Pocket Network until new cross-chain functionality is released.

What’s next:

With the Shannon upgrade, Pocket Network has rebuilt itself on the Cosmos SDK and CometBFT, making it IBC-compatible. Over time, this allows native POKT to move directly between Cosmos chains without requiring wrapping.

For ecosystems outside Cosmos (like Ethereum, Base, or Solana), bridges will still be needed — but the long-term goal is to reduce reliance on wrapped tokens and make movement between networks more seamless.