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Overview

On Initia, importing the same mnemonic into a Cosmos-based wallet (e.g., Keplr, Leap Wallet) and an Ethereum-based wallet (e.g., MetaMask, Rabby) results in different addresses. Although both wallet types follow HD Wallet standards like BIP32 and BIP44, they use different derivation paths, specifically different coin_type values. This difference leads the wallets to derive distinct private keys and, consequently, different addresses, even when using the same mnemonic.

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Example Case

Let’s consider an example where the same mnemonic is imported into MetaMask and Keplr.
Address Derivation Example

Address Derivation Example

Mnemonic: 
borrow debate guard coconut chat polar loan stable render hazard true margin crash soon also leopard vehicle impose emotion sea amazing equal parade soldier
Import into MetaMask result in:
  • Private Key: a18d5fc426d6f4b72e44c8c0e3e1147508b4a193f901c5dc351c6ca1a5ab52ad
  • Hex Address: 0xb658395C73c592695d8de3DF320a15CE1C8d8252
  • Bech32(init) Address: init1kevrjhrnckfxjhvdu00nyzs4ecwgmqjjufa7z5
Import into Keplr result in:
  • Private Key: f3decd45241fc1a2d4b80f1449140b6cf67faf302b6c0f67f021337470a9c193
  • Hex Address: 0x8d9f8c5d0f68ebd45b2d7cf732e56073a4e009ca
  • Bech32(init) Address: init13k0cchg0dr4agked0nmn9etqwwjwqzw28u97dr
As you can see, the addresses differ and the chain will recognize them as a completely different addresses.

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Key Reason: Derivation Paths

Derivation paths are the core reason why the same mnemonic yields different addresses in different wallets. BIP44 defines a path structure like this: 
m / 44' / coin_type' / account' / change / address_index
  • 44' is the BIP44 purpose field.
  • coin_type' is a hardened index that identifies the blockchain.
  • account', change, address_index specify account details, internal/external chains, and the specific address index.
Different wallets use different coin_type values to derive addresses for different blockchains. For example, Ethereum-based wallets use 60 as the coin_type value, while Cosmos-based wallets use 118.

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How to Derive Addresses

EVM Wallet: 
initiad keys import-hex [key-name] [private-key] --key-type eth_secp256k1

# initiad keys import-hex alice a18d5fc426d6f4b72e44c8c0e3e1147508b4a193f901c5dc351c6ca1a5ab52ad --key-type eth_secp256k1
Cosmos Wallet: 
initiad keys add [key-name] --recover

# initiad keys add alice --recover
# > Enter your bip39 mnemonic
# borrow debate guard coconut chat polar loan stable render hazard true margin crash soon also leopard vehicle impose emotion sea amazing equal parade soldier
or if you have a private key:
initiad keys import-hex [key-name] [private-key] --key-type secp256k1

# initiad keys import-hex bob f3decd45241fc1a2d4b80f1449140b6cf67faf302b6c0f67f021337470a9c193 --key-type secp256k1