What is dYdX?
dYdX is a decentralized cryptocurrency exchange based in the United States. It has been operational since 2019.
We believe it is safe to state that dYdX is primarily a derivatives exchange, which means they specialize in trading derivatives. A derivative is a financial product whose price is determined by the value of another asset (normally stocks, bonds, commodities, etc). Derivatives in the cryptocurrency market derive their values from the prices of various cryptocurrencies. Bitcoin, Ethereum, Dai, and USD Coin are all available for derivatives trading.
On the Ethereum blockchain, dYdX is a decentralized margin trading system. The protocol's decentralized exchange (DEX) allows users to lend, borrow, and gamble on the future price of crypto assets, with the ultimate goal of bringing traditional trading tools to the blockchain ecosystem, such as FX and stocks.
dYdX is attempting to push DeFi to the next logical stage in its growth, despite the fact that it appears to be just another Ethereum-based lending and borrowing protocol. Despite the fact that decentralized lending and borrowing protocols have existed on the Ethereum network for quite some time (think Compound), the Ethereum ecosystem as a whole still lacks advanced margin trading tools and protocols, which is precisely what this article is about.
dYdX, like the bulk of DeFi financial solutions, is open source and free to use, with its customers' assets being totally managed, run, and held by smart contract apps rather than third-party escrows. The dYdX decentralized trading platform is open-source, transparent, and free to use, with one of the most exciting features being the ability to execute trustless peer-to-peer short sells and option transactions on any ERC-20 asset.
dYdX's robust, Ethereum-based DEX provides spot, margin, and perpetual contracts trading and, in true DeFi fashion, allows anybody to use it without having to register, fill out KYC procedures, or give over assets to a centralized authority, as is the case with traditional CEXes.
dYdX is an Ethereum-based platform that has never been hacked. According to their website, security is their first focus, and their Smart Contracts have been audited by a company called "Open Zeppelin."
