Your Argent Vault is a smart contract built on Ethereum. This means it needs network fees ("gas") to create. You'll pay the fee for this from your first deposit.
This post explains more about this process. For an introduction to network fees, see this guide.
Does Argent profit from this fee?
No. It is to cover the network fees for creating your wallet.
How do you pay?
You will pay the network fee from your first deposit in Argent. This applies to deposits of crypto from outside Argent and buying crypto in-app.
You can pay in ETH, DAI, USDC or USDT.
What is the fee?
The fee will be clearly shown in-app during onboarding and before your first deposit. The fee will be determined by the gas cost at the time.
Is it a recurring fee?
No. It is a one-time fee to create your wallet.
Why don't all wallets require this fee?
Unlike traditional crypto wallets with seed phrases and limited functionality, Argent is a smart contract wallet. It requires network fees to create as it is built on the Ethereum blockchain. Smart contract wallets such as Pillar and Loopring also require a creation fee.