What's the Real Exchange?
Satoshi Nakomoto’s discovery of Bitcoin (BTC) provided us with a new way to store and send value. By introducing the concept of peer-to-peer transactions secured by a decentralized ledger BTC has been allowing us to reimagine how we transact and who we transact with. Among the changes catalyzed by decentralized finance (DeFi) is the power to choose how much of our financial data we want to share.
Privacy is becoming an increasingly scarce asset and blockchain ledgers push back on the need for data collection with DeFi platforms often giving more freedom to users. Crypto participants get to choose whether they want to trade on decentralized or centralized exchanges. Centralized options, often backed by big marketing budgets for things like pricey Super Bowl ads, can feel safer to some. However, the collapse of FTX and recent Binance settlement have revealed that the perception of security through centralization might just be users choosing their illusion.
The trade-off on centralized platforms is significant — relinquishing custody echoes the familiar saying, 'Not your keys, not your coins.' Beyond token custody, users compromise varying degrees of their information, a paradox in a time when many are striving for increased data ownership and control.
Centralized crypto exchanges vary in their data collection practices, with U.S.-based platforms often notable for accumulating an extensive array of user information. Depending on the chosen exchange, users might disclose a range of data including contact details, financial information, sensitive personal data, location details, and browsing history. In contrast, certain international exchanges limit their data collection to identifiers, usage data, and diagnostic information allowing for greater privacy than US based competitors.
Credit: surfshark.com/research/chart/crypto-apps-data-collection
The choices users make regarding data sharing and platform trust carry implications for their privacy. This month both Binance and Kucoin moved to list BRC-20 tokens $ORDI and $SATS respectively. Binance experienced a minor hiccup when it was initially mislabeled as "Ordinals'' instead of "ORDI." Casey Rodamor shared concerns on X, stating, "I hope this gets fixed soon. ORDI is not associated with the Ordinals project, The Open Ordinals Institute, or The Ordicord. Those links should be removed, and the token should not be named "Ordinals." The name of the token is ORDI.".
Binance US has also been in the headlines for reaching a settlement with the Department of Justice. CEO Changpeng "CZ" Zhao stepped down with a guilty plea and the company is to face over $4B in fines. It was announced that Richard Teng has replaced CZ at the helm. In contrast to centralized models like Binance US, where recent legal issues arose, decentralized communities benefit from built-in checks and balances that you don't get in a typical organization. Security is created when power is spread out amongst many. It's like having multiple layers of protection to keep things transparent.
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Libretarian Ben succinctly said "it's great to see new places to trade a few selected BRC20, but you can trade any BRC20 at the same speed of Binance on Libredex.org - totally permissionless and decentralized." DeFi captures the spirit of Bitcoin and early blockchain communities who lost trust in centralized institutions.
The LibreDEX has been providing a low transaction cost high throughput environment for trading Bitcoin Ordinals since September 10th, 2023. The only data this DEX collects is what is stored on the blockchain so you do not have to compromise on your privacy to trade BRC-20 tokens with peers.
For those who haven’t used LibreDEX and are interested in trading on the platform, the following resources are listed in the docs section of libredex.org:
- LibreDEX Introduction: a brief summary of the various pages within the DEX.
- LibreDEX Interface Overview: a summary of the various sections within the DEX user interface itself.
- Getting Started: links to get up and running with a Libre blockchain account needed to use the DEX.
- How to Create a UniSat BTC Wallet: a step by step guide on setting up a UniSat BTC wallet to be able to peg BRC20 assets to and from LibreDEX and the BTC blockchain itself.
- How to Connect Wallets to LibreDEX: a step by step guide to connecting your Libre account and UniSat account to the LibreDEX.
- How To Send BRC20s from UniSat to Libre: a step by step guide to send BRC20 assets from the BTC blockchain to the Libre blockchain.
- How to Send BRC20s from Libre to UniSat: a step by step guide to send BRC20 assets from the Libre blockchain to the BTC blockchain.
- How to Buy on LibreDEX: a step by step guide on using the LibreDEX to purchase BRC20 assets.
- How to Sell on LibreDEX: a step by step guide on using the LibreDEX to sell BRC20 assets.
Libertarians can stay informed about community happenings by either keeping up with the BitcoinLibre blog or following them on X .
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Disclaimer: Please note, none of this article is to be construed as financial advice or an endorsement to purchase any digital assets. Do your own research and consult a professional financial advisor prior to making any investments.
Disclosure: The author(s) of this article may have a financial interest in the token of the company or blockchain covered in this publication. The views expressed in this article accurately reflect the personal views of the author(s) about the subject securities or issuers, and no part of the compensation of the author(s) was, is, or will be directly or indirectly related to the inclusion of specific recommendations or views in this commentary. The author(s) may hold a long/short position in the token of this blockchain or company discussed in this article, and as content contributors, they are not subject to no-trade lists.
