Block DX¶
What is Block DX¶
Block DX is the fastest, most secure, most reliable, and most decentralized exchange (DEX), built on the Blocknet Protocol. Block DX mimics a centralized exchange experience, but enables traders to conduct exchanges directly from their respective wallets instead of through an intermediary. Here are some benefits to using Block DX:
- Safe Trading - There’s no middlemen or intermediaries. Funds remain in each party’s wallets and are not entrusted to a third party at any stage (non-custodial). Your funds are always in your control.
- No Accounts - Since it’s decentralized, there are no accounts, signups, or KYC/AML requirements.
- Lower Fees - Trading fees are lower than those with centralized exchanges, and withdrawal fees are non-existent since trades are conducted directly from the wallets.
- No Limits - There’s no withdrawal or trade limits, creating greater flexibility..
- Trading Pair Freedom - Complete trading pair freedom allowing any digital asset on Block DX to be traded with any other. See the full list of traded assets.
- Liquidity - Block DX is powered by the Blocknet Protocol. Any service using the protocol will have shared order books and liquidity.
- Fee Distribution - 100% of trade fees are distributed among BLOCK holders.
- No Listing Fees - There’s no listing fees for assets to be added to Block DX. However, we do testing to ensure 100% compatibility. Read more about listings.
- Zero Downtime - Since Block DX is a decentralized exchange powered by the Blocknet Protocol, there is zero downtime and built-in DoS protection.
What are Decentralized Exchanges¶
A decentralized exchange is a service enabling counterparties (traders) to exchange one asset for another, without the involvement of any third party as an intermediary. This applies to all components of an exchange (not just settlement), which is the only criteria many 'decentralized' exchanges use to classify themselves as such (i.e. using atomic swaps). To better understand decentralized exchanges, this is a great resource.
The term "decentralized" refers to matters of control rather than the distribution of processing. The ideal of a decentralized solution is one where no third party is required to act on their behalf in order for a trade to take place. To make an exchange truly decentralized, the following is needed:
- Decentralized storage of funds
- Decentralized order books
- Decentralized order matching
- Decentralized settlement
- Decentralized governance
- Decentralized development (open source)
What Aren’t Decentralized Exchanges¶
As stated above, many so-called “decentralized” exchanges claim to be so because they use atomic swaps for settlement. Since there are more components to an exchange than settlement, (including storage of funds, order books, and order matching) most of these exchanges would more accurately be described as hybrid exchanges since not all of these components are decentralized. An easy way to tell if an exchange has centralized components is if any of the following are true:
- Requires signup or a login
- Requires sending funds to another address
- No control of private keys
- The development team is able to help out with stuck transactions, deposit/withdrawal issues, etc
- Derivatives (proxy tokens or colored coins) are used as an intermediary in the exchange