What Is a Cryptocurrency Exchange and How Does It Work?

Cryptocurrency exchanges are sites, applications or platforms that allow users to buy, sell and exchange cryptocurrencies. Some of the major cryptocurrencies that can be traded on cryptocurrency exchanges are Bitcoin, Etherium, Dogecoin and Bitcoin Cash. Cryptocurrency exchanges also offer additional services such as token storage and exchanging fiat currencies for cryptocurrencies, trying Quickex to exchange cryptocurrency can be a good experience.

What are the Types of Exchanges?

There are three types of cryptocurrency exchanges:

• Trading platforms: Platforms that link buyers and sellers to each other.
• Brokers: Platforms that sell cryptocurrencies at a price set by the broker. .
• Direct Trading: Platforms that offer direct trading between peers (peer-to-peer trading). This allows users to exchange currencies around the world, and the seller and buyer can set the price.

What are the Requirements for Cryptocurrency Exchanges?

In order to exist and function, a cryptocurrency exchange must comply with the laws of the country. These laws vary from country to country, but generally follow rules regarding customer protection.

Two of them are important for most countries:

• AML & KYC.

There are anti-money laundering laws designed to stop any illegal activity involving money that is considered legal.

KYC laws are designed to make sure that a platform such as a stock exchange knows who it is dealing with to protect existing customers, business and the integrity of business transactions. It’s a bit like a credit rating – where banks trust a person because they have earned their trust.

To regulate this, most exchanges ask traders and users to link their account on the platform to their personal bank account. First, it helps create a place from which fiat currency can be sent and received. Second, it helps verify identity and credibility.

What is a Centralized Exchange?

Centralized exchanges are online platforms used to buy and sell cryptocurrency. They are the most common means that investors use to buy and sell cryptocurrency assets.

In centralized exchanges, the idea of centralization refers to the use of an intermediary or third party to help conduct transactions. Both buyers and sellers trust this broker to manage their assets. This is common in banking institutions, where the customer trusts that the bank will keep his money. The reason for this setup is that banks offer security and monitoring that a person cannot achieve on their own.

In the case of a centralized exchange, the same principle applies. Traders trust not only that the exchange will complete their trades safely, but also that it will use the exchange’s network of users to find trading partners.

In the case of cryptocurrencies, which are often stored in digital wallets, a person could lose hundreds or thousands of dollars simply by forgetting the wallet key. The exchange won’t let that happen because it protects the assets, not the individual investor.

What is a Decentralized Cryptocurrency Exchange?

A decentralized exchange is a peer-to-peer trading platform that connects buyers and sellers of crypto currency.

Unlike centralized exchanges, decentralized platforms do not require storage, which means that the user retains control over their private keys when making transactions on the decentralized platform.

In the absence of a central authority, decentralized exchanges use smart contracts, which automatically execute under specified conditions and record each transaction on the blockchain.

These secure and trust-free transactions represent a fast-growing segment of the digital asset market and are pioneering new financial products.

What are the Differences?

Centralized exchanges are maintained by a company, the user must create an account and provide various information such as address, name and last name. In order for a consumer to trade, they must deposit funds.

Similarly, a consumer who wants to buy creates a buy order and one who wants to sell creates a sell order and must wait for a match to be created. On the other hand, this type of exchange can be subject to AML and KYC rules, among other things.

On known DEX or decentralized exchanges, the consumer does not need to create an account and deposit funds, they can work directly from their wallet.

DEXs are open to the public and are not subject to KYC or AML. They are part of the DeFi or decentralized finance ecosystem.

In both exchanges, liquidity is one of the most important elements, because if an exchange does not have liquidity, it dies. On traditional exchanges, the level of liquidity is constantly dependent on the number of buy and sell orders, whereas on a decentralized exchange, it depends on liquidity pools.

Liquidity pools consist of liquidity provided by known liquidity providers, where they receive a commission in the liquidity extraction process.

What is a Non-Custodial Service?

A non-custodial service can be offered by a trading platform that does not require users to create an account on that platform. It also does not keep the seller’s cryptocurrency on balance. This means that there is an additional layer of security as well as anonymity. Such services allow transactions to be made automatically.

How to Store Cryptocurrency

Cryptocurrency is stored in a cryptocurrency wallet, usually in an app or on a physical device that contains private keys to access your cryptocurrency. Cryptocurrency wallets are secure enough to protect them from hackers and other thieves.

Two types of crypto currency wallet providers:

• Hot Wallet Vault: hot wallets use online software to protect the private keys that give you access to your crypto-assets. They usually charge a fee.
• Cold Storage Wallets: also known as hardware wallets, cold storage wallets are self-contained physical devices on which your private keys are stored. They usually do not charge a fee.

Cryptocurrency storage is also often done on cryptocurrency exchanges, which are online platforms that function as a marketplace, allowing users to securely store, send, receive and convert cryptocurrency. Many exchange platforms charge fees for withdrawals, transactions and cryptocurrency trading. But they also offer security, storage and withdrawal options.

Conclusion

Decentralization seems safer than centralization because it eliminates negative factors from the process. In centralized exchanges, all data is stored on a central server and all transactions go through that server before being verified by the network. Thus, this creates a natural risk for users. In contrast, on DEX, transactions are made directly between users (peer-to-peer) through an automated process.

Trying Quickex services can be an option, they offer exchange of funds with support for more than 57 coins, including the most popular cryptocurrencies such as BTC, ETH, USDT, BNB.

Featured Image – Pixabay © Pete Linforth

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