Considering the challenges faced with direct ligand exchange, we hypothesized that Sn2S6 4- functionalization could be improved by first removing the oleate ligands before functionalization. This two-step indirect ligand exchange process first involves stripping the oleate ligands from UCNPs using HBF4, resulting in bare but electrically charged UCNPs that can be dispersed in a polar solvent. Then, Sn2S6 4-ligands are added to coat the bare UCNPs. We theorized that this indirect approach may be more effective since it circumvents the need for Sn2S6 4-to directly displace strongly bound oleate ligands.