On March 15, 2021, NEM will be launching the Symbol public blockchain. There is a lot to know when it comes to migrating the user account from NEM NIS1 to Symbol, including Opt-in, Snapshot, and the opportunity to participate in XYM.

By opting-in, XEM holders will obtain an XYM balance equal to that of their XEM balance at the time of Snapshot.

To Claim XYM per the NEMplatform users need to know the following:

“Opt-in is the process every XEM account holder must follow to receive their XYM tokens on the Symbol public blockchain when it launches. To participate in XYM, you first need to own XEM and then make a conscious action to Opt-in as outlined below. This will result in you receiving XYM. If you do not participate in Opt-in you will not receive XYM. Whether or not you choose to Opt-in, your XEM will not be affected, as will the NEM NIS1 network.

NEM walletshave been updated to include a Symbol Opt-in module, which will make it simple to Opt-in via your NEM account. You will need to download a new NEM wallet from the list below. To Opt-in via a mobile device, you will need to download a Symbol mobile app (available in Android and iOS).

Snapshotis the state of XEM accounts (balances, configuration and namespaces) on the NEM NIS1 blockchain at a certain block height. For each 1 XEM you own at the time of Snapshot, you will be allocated 1 XYM to the Symbol account you created during the Opt-in process.”

Several exchanges have supported Symbol Opt-In so far.  Binance, Upbit, bitFlyer, Huobi Global, OKEX, DMMBitcoin, Coincheck, KuCoin, Coinspot, XT.com, EXMO, CoinDCX, HitBTC, BiTMart, HBTC, Poloniex, Zaif, are just a few to name from the long list of exchanges.

For clarity, those who own XEM on the NEM NIS1 blockchain, will receive an equal amount of XYM on Symbol blockchain. They will also be able to keep all of their XEM.

XYM will enable users to participate fully in the new Symbol blockchain. Without XYM, users will not be able to use the Symbol blockchain.

Users will be able to Opt-in for up to 6 years after Symbol launches and receive the same balance in XYM as they did hold in XEM at Snapshot. 

Also, users need to know about the VRF keys (Verifiable Random Function) are a needed part of the harvesting process. They ensure that it’s impossible to predict which account will harvest the next block. They are used as part of an approach to avoid deterministic harvesting (where it is possible to predict and attack the node that is due to harvest next) by making node selection verifiably random. 

You need to create VRF keys if you intend to harvest the first block after Symbol is launched.  You can add harvesting to your Symbol account any time after launch by linking your account to a VRF key.