Trading Tokens

Use the npx awal@2.0.3 trade command to swap tokens on Base network via the CDP Swap API. You must be authenticated to trade.

Confirm wallet is initialized and authed

npx awal@2.0.3 status

If the wallet is not authenticated, refer to the authenticate-wallet skill.

Command Syntax

npx awal@2.0.3 trade <amount> <from> <to> [options]

Arguments

Argument	Description
`amount`	Amount to swap (see Amount Formats below)
`from`	Source token: alias (usdc, eth, weth) or contract address (0x...)
`to`	Destination token: alias (usdc, eth, weth) or contract address (0x...)

Amount Formats

The amount can be specified in multiple formats:

Format	Example	Description
Dollar prefix	`'$1.00'`, `'$0.50'`	USD notation (decimals based on token)
Decimal	`1.0`, `0.50`, `0.001`	Human-readable with decimal point
Whole number	`5`, `100`	Interpreted as whole tokens
Atomic units	`500000`	Large integers treated as atomic units

Auto-detection: Large integers without a decimal point are treated as atomic units. For example, 500000 for USDC (6 decimals) = $0.50.

Decimals: For known tokens (usdc=6, eth=18, weth=18), decimals are automatic. For arbitrary contract addresses, decimals are read from the token contract.

Options

Option	Description
`-c, --chain <name>`	Blockchain network (default: base)
`-s, --slippage <n>`	Slippage tolerance in basis points (100 = 1%)
`--json`	Output result as JSON

Token Aliases

Alias	Token	Decimals	Address
usdc	USDC	6	0x833589fCD6eDb6E08f4c7C32D4f71b54bdA02913
eth	ETH	18	0xEeeeeEeeeEeEeeEeEeEeeEEEeeeeEeeeeeeeEEeE
weth	WETH	18	0x4200000000000000000000000000000000000006

IMPORTANT: Always single-quote amounts that use $ to prevent bash variable expansion (e.g. '$1.00' not $1.00).

Input Validation

Before constructing the command, validate all user-provided values to prevent shell injection:

amount: Must match ^\$?[\d.]+$ (digits, optional decimal point, optional $ prefix). Reject if it contains spaces, semicolons, pipes, backticks, or other shell metacharacters.
from / to: Must be a known alias (usdc, eth, weth) or a valid 0x hex address (^0x[0-9a-fA-F]{40}$). Reject any other value.
slippage: Must be a positive integer (^\d+$).

Do not pass unvalidated user input into the command.

Examples

# Swap $1 USDC for ETH (dollar prefix — note the single quotes)
npx awal@2.0.3 trade '$1' usdc eth

# Swap 0.50 USDC for ETH (decimal format)
npx awal@2.0.3 trade 0.50 usdc eth

# Swap 500000 atomic units of USDC for ETH
npx awal@2.0.3 trade 500000 usdc eth

# Swap 0.01 ETH for USDC
npx awal@2.0.3 trade 0.01 eth usdc

# Swap with custom slippage (2%)
npx awal@2.0.3 trade '$5' usdc eth --slippage 200

# Swap using contract addresses (decimals read from chain)
npx awal@2.0.3 trade 100 0x833589fCD6eDb6E08f4c7C32D4f71b54bdA02913 0x4200000000000000000000000000000000000006

# Get JSON output
npx awal@2.0.3 trade '$1' usdc eth --json

Prerequisites

Must be authenticated (awal status to check)
Wallet must have sufficient balance of the source token

Error Handling

Common errors:

"Not authenticated" - Run awal auth login <email> first
"Invalid token" - Use a valid alias (usdc, eth, weth) or 0x address
"Cannot swap a token to itself" - From and to must be different
"Swap failed: TRANSFER_FROM_FAILED" - Insufficient balance or approval issue
"No liquidity" - Try a smaller amount or different token pair
"Amount has X decimals but token only supports Y" - Too many decimal places