DEX Comparison

BasicSwap is not the first DEX to see the day, but it certainly holds a unique position for itself, notably in relation to its strong commitments to privacy, security, and an uncompromising level of decentralization. Let’s take a look at how it compares to other popular DEXs available today.

To get a better idea of how BasicSwap DEX compares to other cryptocurrency trading exchanges, you can first take a look at the following comparison chart.

An order book is an aggregated and public list of offers put by other traders. It is possible to either place an offer on the books, at the desired price, or take one already listed by another trader.

Typically, order books require a central database to host the data. It is also often used to determine trading fees, with a different fee model being proposed for “makers” and “takers”.

Because BasicSwap is entirely decentralized, its order book is powered by the open-source SMSG network, as opposed to databases, and charges no fee at all.

KYC is used here as an umbrella term referring to any user verification or document requirement from exchanges. This usually includes an ID such as a driving license or a passport, a proof of address, and a face picture with the accompanying documentation in hand. Certain exchanges will ask for more information and may do so often, significantly increasing the risks of data leaks and identity thefts.

BasicSwap doesn’t require any of that. In fact, it doesn’t even require an email address or to register an account to get started. It is a completely decentralized trading platform that is open to all without restriction or discrimination.

When you trade cryptocurrencies on an exchange, all of your financial data and activities are logged by the exchange operator and may be analyzed, shared with unauthorized parties, sold, or even leaked. Additionally, depositing coins on an exchange reveals your wallet address, allowing that exchange to track and analyze all your previous transactions, as well as your current holdings, and share that information with their partners.

On BasicSwap, privacy isn’t an afterthought. It’s built at the core of the DEX from the ground up. As such, depositing coins on your BasicSwap address won’t leak your financial information to a central authority. In fact, it is possible to trade on BasicSwap in full anonymity, with more privacy-boosting features coming during the DEX’s open beta phase.

Trading fees are a highly inconvenient fact one has to deal with when trading cryptocurrencies. They make trading often costly and eats on profits. At times, exchanges will have different fees for makers than for takers.

That’s not the case with BasicSwap. The DEX is offered for free; the only fee you need to pay when swapping is the usual cryptocurrency transaction fee of the coin you’re swapping against; a small price to pay for true cross-chain swaps, especially compared to the large trading fees one has to pay if trading on other exchanges (including the vast majority of decentralized ones).

Monero is dubbed the king of privacy coins, and it’s certainly the one with the largest level of adoption. As such, its users are often persecuted or hit with invasive “source of funds” or KYC requests. The coin also itself tends to be delisted from more and more exchanges.

BasicSwap offers a permanent and easy-to-use solution to that problem by allowing Monero to be swapped against a large number of cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin.

And because of its decentralized nature, traders can rest easy knowing they will never be hit with any source of funds request, invasive KYC, have their accounts frozen, or wake up one day with Monero delisted from the exchange.

Monero’s very rigid codebase typically makes it impossible for the coin to be listed on decentralized exchanges without some form of asset wrapping. But thanks to BasicSwap’s revolutionary back-end protocol and Monero’s atomic swap protocol, swapping XMR in a completely decentralized fashion is now a reality.

“Not your keys, not your coins”. You’ve probably heard this often already, but it’s a major tenet of cryptocurrencies. When you deposit coins on an exchange, you essentially lose full access to their private keys, granting custodianship to a central party that may then freeze your account, prevent you from accessing your coins, or even lose them through a not-so-uncommon exchange hack.

BasicSwap flips the script by allowing you to remain in full control, at all times, of your private keys. Here, there is no third-party custodian; you are the full owner of your coins at every step of the way. Even when trading, BasicSwap uses a combination of the SMSG network, atomic swaps, and scriptless scripts instead of a central custodian to swap cryptocurrencies.

Being able to trade cryptocurrencies against more stable forms of currencies is a vital capability of exchanges. That’s because traders may want to hedge against the often-wild fluctuations of cryptocurrencies and, eventually, withdraw the fiat equivalent of their holdings.

Unfortunately, BasicSwap does not currently support any stablecoin. It is, however, planned for later during the open beta as it is a vital feature of any exchange.

Availability or accessibility refers to how one interacts with an exchange. With most traditional exchanges, they can simply be accessed through the web by navigating to their URL. Some exchanges also offer mobile platforms.

BasicSwap, on the other hand, is currently only available through a local desktop client that has to be run on a computer. This offers the maximum level of privacy and security for your funds but is less accessible and convenient to most people.

As such, BasicSwap will be made available through the web at a later stage during the open beta.

Traditional exchanges have their share of challenges when first setting up an account. They typically require an account to be created, an identity and an address to be verified, etc. However, most traders have grown accustomed to these practices.

BasicSwap, like most other DEX, requires a bit more involved process in setting things up. In the case of BasicSwap, a full node of all enabled coins must be synced locally and the local client has to be manually built up in the first place. This makes for a longer and, in some cases, more complicated setup process.

To improve the platform’s level of adoption, BasicSwap’s setup process is planned to be majorly simplified and sped up as we progress through its open beta phase. Notably, the web versions planned for it will use some kind of light services, essentially skipping any syncing and building requirements.

As this comparison table shows, each exchange, centralized or decentralized, has its pros and cons and caters to a niche and use case of its own.

While BasicSwap DEX may be at an earlier stage of development compared to others, it may carry some downsides but makes up for them with its incredible level of financial privacy. With sufficient development time, these downsides are fully expected to be dealt with appropriately.