Memos, destination tags and the deposit that "never arrived"
You send coins to an exchange. The transaction confirms, the block explorer shows the funds landing at the deposit address, and yet your exchange balance doesn't move. Often, the missing piece is a short number or string you were supposed to include: a memo, or a destination tag.
Here's why some networks need one, what happens without it, and a checklist for every deposit.
One address, many customers
Most exchanges give each customer their own deposit address. When coins arrive at that address, the exchange knows exactly whose account to credit. This is how deposits usually work on UTXO networks like Bitcoin and Litecoin, and on EVM networks like Ethereum, Polygon and Base: addresses are free to create, so every user gets one.
Some networks make that expensive or awkward. On XRP Ledger and Stellar, for example, every account must hold a minimum reserve balance just to exist, so creating a separate account for each customer ties up real money. Other networks, such as Cosmos-based chains and TON, simply have a long tradition of exchanges using one shared address.
So the exchange uses one shared deposit address for everyone and asks each customer to add an identifier to the transaction. Different networks use different names for it:
- XRP Ledger: destination tag (a number)
- Stellar: memo
- Cosmos-based chains: memo
- TON: comment or memo
The address tells the network where the funds go. The memo or tag tells the exchange whose funds they are.
What happens if you forget it
The network itself doesn't care. A transaction without the tag is perfectly valid, so it confirms normally and the funds arrive at the exchange's shared address. The problem is purely on the exchange's side: its deposit system sees coins with no identifier and can't match them to an account.
Getting them back usually means opening a support ticket. Expect to provide the transaction ID, amount and time, and to prove you control the sending address. Some exchanges recover these routinely, some charge a fee, some take weeks, and recovery is not guaranteed — especially if the sending address belongs to another exchange or service rather than a wallet you control.
A wrong tag can be worse than a missing one. If the number you typed happens to belong to another customer, the funds may be credited to them.
Why most deposits don't need one
If the exchange shows you a deposit address and no memo or tag field, the address itself is your identifier, and there's nothing extra to add. That's the normal case for Bitcoin, Litecoin, Dogecoin, Ethereum and its tokens, and most other networks SSP supports.
The deposit page is the source of truth: if it shows a memo or tag field, include it; if it doesn't, don't invent one. And remember that a memo only works on the network it was given for: choosing the wrong network is a separate, common mistake, covered in address formats and why sends fail. For tokens, also check you hold the network's native coin for fees — see coins vs tokens.
Where SSP fits in
SSP doesn't support XRP, Stellar, Cosmos or TON, so you won't be typing a destination tag into SSP Wallet. Where this matters for SSP users is whenever funds pass through an exchange: when you send from SSP to an exchange, or when you move coins between an exchange and another service.
SSP Wallet does have an optional Message field on some chains, and it's worth being clear about what it is:
- UTXO chains (Bitcoin, Litecoin, Bitcoin Cash, Dogecoin, Zcash, Ravencoin, Flux): the message is written into the transaction as an OP_RETURN output, up to 80 bytes. It's a public note stored on-chain.
- Solana: the message is attached as a Solana Memo instruction inside the vault's approved transaction.
- EVM chains (Ethereum, Polygon, BSC, Avalanche, Base): there's no message field.
These notes are handy references, not a substitute for an exchange's deposit tag. Exchanges on these networks almost always give you a personal address instead. If an exchange ever does ask for a Solana memo, confirm with them first that they'll recognise one sent from a multisig vault: SSP's memo is executed by the vault program as part of the approved transaction, and not every deposit system looks for it there. And because the message is permanent and public, never put anything personal in it.
A checklist before sending to an exchange
- Network. Pick the same network on both sides. "USDC" on Ethereum and "USDC" on Solana are different deposits.
- Address. Copy it fresh from the deposit page, paste it, and compare the first and last several characters.
- Memo or tag. If the deposit page shows one, include it exactly. If it doesn't, leave it out.
- Minimum deposit. Exchanges often ignore deposits below a stated minimum, and those can be hard to recover.
- Test amount. For a new exchange, a new network or a large amount, send a small amount first and wait until it's credited.
- Confirmations. Exchanges credit after their own number of confirmations, so expect a wait.
The same checks apply in reverse when you withdraw to SSP; your first withdrawal from an exchange walks through that side.
The honest summary
Memos and destination tags exist because some exchanges use one shared address for many customers, and the tag is the only way to tell deposits apart. Leave it out and your funds reach the exchange but not your account; getting them credited depends on the exchange's support team, and isn't guaranteed.
Most deposits — Bitcoin, Ethereum and most other networks SSP supports — use personal addresses and need no tag at all. SSP's optional message field is a public on-chain note, not a deposit tag. Read the deposit page, match the network, include the tag only when it asks for one, and send a small test first.
