Four Things to Check Before Any Transfer: Chain, Memo, Minimum, Contract Address

Bottom line first: The worst class of loss for retail users isn't the market, it's transfer operations. Each of the four error types below causes permanent loss or locked assets, and all of them can be caught within 30 seconds before you transfer.

① Chain mismatch (most common, most fatal)

Symptom: the address format doesn't match the network you selected — e.g. you picked ERC20 but pasted a TRC20 address starting with T.

How to check: look at the address prefix. TRC20 starts with T and is 34 characters; ERC20/BEP20 starts with 0x and is 42 characters; SOL is base58. If the format doesn't match, never transfer.

Cost: assets sent on the wrong chain usually can't be recovered (not the kind of problem "a support ticket can solve").

② Missing memo / tag (required on some chains)

Symptom: some chains (e.g. XRP, TON, ATOM on some exchanges) require an extra memo/tag/note to distinguish different users under the same address. Leave it out → the exchange can't locate your deposit.

How to check: the exchange's withdrawal page shows a memo input field under that chain; our transfer self-check also reminds you based on the needTag field in the data.

Cost: the money reaches the destination address but can't be credited to your account, and recovery depends on manual support work (often charged and slow).

③ Below the minimum withdrawal amount

Symptom: the amount is below that chain's minimum; at best it's rejected, at worst the fee eats most of your principal (e.g. sending 2 USDT on ERC20 costs a 2 USDT fee).

How to check: the withdrawal page shows the minimum; we also collect minWithdrawAmount in our data.

④ Sending coins to a contract address (similar format, serious consequences)

Symptom: the address has a normal 0x format, but it belongs to a contract rather than an ordinary wallet. On some chains/coins, sending to a contract address locks the funds outright.

How to check: for a first-time address, especially for a large amount, send a small test first, and transfer the rest only after confirming it arrives. This is the only reliable way to verify.

What our self-check tool does and doesn't do

• Does: validates address format by chain, checks whether a memo is required, checks whether the amount is below the minimum, and warns about a first-time large-amount address.
• Doesn't: it cannot confirm who a given address actually belongs to, and it doesn't guarantee it's a safe address. The format check is a heuristic first line of defense, not a guarantee.

→ Open the transfer self-check (no sign-up)

Next steps

• Not sure which chain is cheaper: measured USDT withdrawal fees by chain
• First deposit: read deposit paths and pre-transfer check

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Data source and fetch time: the coin/chain needTag and minWithdrawAmount come from public APIs (Bitget /api/v2/spot/public/coins, fetched 2026-10-12T13:47:06Z); the decision logic is public on this site's self-check tool page.

Disclaimer: This site is not investment advice. Any transfer is ultimately governed by the exchange page and the block explorer.