CryptoAdventure

‘Not your keys, not your coins.’ If you have been an adept follower of the crypto space, you probably know what I mean. Since the inception of the first coin, Bitcoin, the decentralized nature of cryptocurrencies has been a nightmare for many governments across the globe. Governments were not ready to lose their monetary policy powers.

On the contrary, crypto exchanges have for many years been centralized, and that’s where the opening statement comes in. Centralized exchanges deny crypto holders their custodial powers as the true owners of the assets. In essence, they bring about governments and third parties control of fiat currencies. Luckily, decentralized exchanges have come to their rescue.

What are Decentralized Exchanges?

Decentralized exchanges, commonly dubbed as DEXes, are autonomous applications that give cryptocurrency holders the power to transact with their assets without giving up their control to third parties. They treat investors as the sole owners and operators of their crypto assets.

The platforms function through a smart contract system known as an Automated Market Maker (AMM). The AMM utilizes the liquidity provided by traders known as liquidity providers and the existing liquidity from the platform’s reserves.

Decentralized exchanges have the upsides of unlimited accessibility of assets, security, full custodianship of coins, and decentralization, minimizing the chances of manipulation.

Although decentralized platforms entered the crypto space recently, the market is fast evolving, and there are many decentralized platforms already. Here is our list of the top fully decentralized crypto platforms.

PancakeSwap

Based on Binance Smart Chain (BSC), PancakeSwap is the newest talk of the internet in the decentralized exchange sector. The platform mimics Ethereum’s ERC-20 tokens, which are usually based on Ethereum’s blockchain. However, the unique aspect of the new food-themed platform is that it utilizes Binance’s BEP-20 tokens. It is the Binance ecosystem’s first AMM and, at the same time, the first rival for the long-standing Ethereum ERC-20 tokens.

The platform provides cheaper and faster transactions which complete within 5 seconds. Token swap fees are usually 0.2%, 0.17% of which gets distributed among the liquidity providers. The remaining percentage gets burned to maintain the platform. It is one of the leading decentralized platforms to transact with privacy and safety if you want to evade the high gas fees associated with Ethereum’s DEXes. As of this writing, PancakeSwap’s DEX has a trading volume of $491,129,384, according to coin market cap statistics.

UniSwap

UniSwap is a decentralized exchange platform developed in 2018 on Ethereum’s blockchain and ERC-20 tokens. It is designed to function as a community tool, where anyone can use it to swap tokens. A user can add any token on UniSwap by simply funding it using an equivalent amount of Ethereum and the ERC-20 token to trade.

Liquidity providers on UniSwap receive liquidity pool tokens whenever they add Ethereum and ERC tokens to the pool. The platform’s trading fee is usually 0.3% and is automatically sent to a reserve. Whenever liquidity providers want to leave, they get a portion of the fees based on their contribution. The platform recently introduced a protocol fee that sends 0.05% of every 0.3% fee to a special UniSwap fund meant for financing future platform developments. However, the protocol can be turned on or off through community votes.

At the time of this writing, Uniswap’s DEX has a trading volume of $2.4 B, according to coinmarketcap.com.

SushiSwap

SushiSwap is another decentralized exchange platform based on Ethereum’s blockchain. It seeks to provide users with incentives via liquidity pools while providing a platform for crypto tokens swapping. Liquidity providers add a token to the pools by linking their ETH wallets to the platform’s farming software and lock a pair into a smart contract.

For instance, a liquidity provider can provide a pair like USDT/ETH, which carries equal values of both assets. Buyers can then swap tokens in the pool, and the smart contract will take a similar amount from the buyer and send it back. Liquidity providers earn the fees for providing liquidity, plus a portion of the platform’s native token SUSHI that is mined daily.

SushiSwap is the main competitor to UniSwap on Ethereum’s blockchain. Currently, the SushiSwap has a trading volume of $2.3B

Etheros

Etheros is a decentralized platform based on the Ethereum blockchain. It presents the world in 2D and 3D architecture as a social application platform where users can play, own, or use anything or any place based on their imagination and create value to derive profits. In essence, the platform creates virtual reality based on several programming technologies with the fundamentals of decentralization, efficiency, simplicity, and security.

Users can create their virtual world on the platform, starting with as low as one dollar and ultimately build their world. Ethereum blockchain’s smart contracts guarantee asset security, and they are not possible to cancel once initiated.

Additionally, they can earn passive income through owning spaces with valuable resources needed by the creators of goods and services in the virtual world. You can become the largest supplier of the resources and at the same time remain anonymous. There are other exclusive spaces where people can invest, sell, or HODL, and one can choose a successor of their assets at any time.

The platform’s native token is ETS, whose public token distribution will start on May 14, 14:00 CET, until May 31, 14:00 CET (sold via smart contract and via Coinbase). The opening price will be $1.00, targeting 30 million tokens. The token will be available on the centralised exchange P2PB2B.io. from 1 June. After the completion of the IEO Phase on this exchange lasting 14 days, regular sales will be launched in the most well-known currency pairs. Then, around 22 June, the ETS token will be listed on decentralised exchanges: i.e. Uniswap, MesaDEX and Pancakeswap thanks to the launch of the ETS token on the Binance blockchain (latest news).

AirSwap

AirSwap is a decentralized platform developed in 2017 on Swap Protocol. It runs on the Ethereum blockchain and allows users to trade two tokenized pairs on Ethereum’s ecosystem. Every trade happens between the maker and the taker. Makers stake their AirSwap tokens to provide liquidity and signal takers of their intention to trade. Traders can add liquidity and remove it as well.

There are no fees on AirSwap, other than the ETH gas fees usually paid when settling trades on Ethereum.

Bancor

Bancor is a decentralized exchange protocol built on Ethereum’s blockchain for creating smart tokens. Users can exchange the tokens directly on the platform via smart contracts, and their prices can be determined automatically. The platform’s automated market maker does not follow the 1:1 basis when providing liquidity. For instance, for USDT/ETH, you can deposit either USDT or ETH in the liquidity pool. The platform includes a liquidity protection feature that protects users’ assets when they stake specific assets.

Bancor currently trades at $7.80, according to coinmarketcap. Its 24-hour trading volume stands at $116,078,253.

Conclusion

Decentralized platforms are, in theory, the best platforms that are resonating with the truly decentralized nature of cryptocurrencies. They restore asset holders’ custodial and operational rights and unlock opportunities for investors to earn more from their reserves. Decentralized exchanges are the platforms for an ideal world even beyond the crypto space.

However, they still face their share of hurdles, especially since most of them are based on Ethereum’s blockchain. Users have to deal with exceptionally high gas fees, which remains the primary obstacle preventing decentralized platforms from becoming a force to reckon with.