Hello crypto enthusiasts!
I have tried to find good single article or post with the list of existing types of exchange and failed. By reviewing many articles, I had drafted this topic because I believe other people also want to have that information.
The topic aims to summarize (with your help) all types of existing and upcoming crypto exchanges (or channels to trade digital assets) with their strengths and weaknesses. Also please vote here to choose the most important traders' concerns:
https://bitcointalksearch.org/topic/m.30196846. Then I'll gather all info into the one topic (here) and we all get useful thread and guide!
So, let's start.
1. Brokers (online & brick-and-mortar) Sometimes they are called market-makers. In some countries (e.g. Russia), it's a brick-and-mortar office -where clients can come, pay/take local fiat cash and get/give its bitcoins. The big weakness of such "windows" is high (in Moscow about 9%) spreads. For example, if Bitfinex shows you BTC/USD = 10 000 then the local exchanger ASK price will be 10 900.
1.1. Strengths:
- clients can buy/sell high volume crypto stakes relatively quickly with no slippage.
- easy to access
- low risks
- relatively high-speed of transaction
- fixed price (no slippage)
1.2. Weaknesses:
- charge high (from +3% to +9% depending on the volume and residence country of a client) commissions comparing to the market price.
2. Centralized digital currency exchangesSo called DCE, they accept your fiat deposits and allow withdrawals. However there are centralized DCE with don't support fiat deposits/withdrawal, providing only crypto-to-crypto exchanging in the market. The limits, fees, complexity of depositing/withdrawing of fiat highly depends on clients and exchange registration locations.
2.1. Strengths:
- relatively low (0,1% to 0,3%) commissions for trading inside.
- no need to have a personal digital wallet to start trading
- the high speed of trading
- Sophisticated order placement process, availability of charting tools, etc.
2.2. Weaknesses:
- Relatively high deposit and withdrawal fees, however not each exchange charge for it.
- high risk of losing clients' fiat funds (being hacked)
- high risk of sudden legal restrictions
- hard to access due to the challenging validation process
- slippage can occur
- obligation to reveal your identity
3. Decentralized digital currency exchanges.They usually doesn't require client to upload selfies with passport before trading, but they also don't accept fiat deposits/withdrawals (only crypto), which makes such type of exchanges quite complex for beginners.
3.1. Strengths:
- low (0,1% to 0,2%) commissions for trading.
- the high speed of trading
- low risks
- the broad list of tradable altcoins
- simple validation (usually don't require to upload selfie with passport)
3.2. Weaknesses:
- clients cannot access until you have a personal digital wallet with some coins
- clients cannot trade for fiat
- slippage can occur
- no decentralized exchanges with a fair volume
- quite complex for beginners
- Memory Pool of smart contract which support the exchange is open, so a cheater can put his block first (using higher rate of gas).
4. P2P or over-the-counter exchanges They work as escrow agents by locking crypto-assets of a seller and releasing them to a buyer only after money acceptance confirmation.
4.1. Strengths:
- low risks
- clients can trade locally for habitual fiat money, using suitable payment methods or globally
- clients can buy/sell directly (peer-to-peer) for the fixed prices; so no slippage
4.2. Weaknesses:
- relatively high (0,5-1%) commissions for trading
- low speed of trading
- a short list of tradable cryptocurrencies
- clients must match peers’ advertisements and face awkward deal conditions. Lack of efficiency.
5. Non-executable brokers/platforms. By using them, clients don’t deal directly with buying and selling Bitcoins but rather the purchasing of CFDs (Contract For Difference) or ETF on Bitcoin’s price. Another example is CBOE bitcoin futures.
5.1. Strengths:
- low risks for funds to be stolen (only if a client choose a reputable broker/platform)
- simple to access and simple in taking money back
- low fees
- high margins
5.2. Weaknesses:
- clients cannot actually buy Bitcoins (or other altcoins) through them
- hight margins (yes - it's also a weakness)
- high risks to get a margin call on price spikes and lose all deposit.
6. Cryptocurrency (mutual) Funds.These are like MIF (Mutual Investment Funds) but with cryptocurrencies as basis assets. The clients can deposit their fiat to such fund or manager and take profit if basis crypto-assets are growing. A Fund alway takes its fees no matter would there a profit for clients or not.
6.1. Strengths:
- low risks for funds to be stolen buy hackers
- simple to access and simple in taking money back (only if a client choose a reputable Fund)
- low fees
6.2. Weaknesses:
- clients cannot actually buy Bitcoins (or other altcoins) through them
- a fund can collapse
7.....All are welcomed to add any new TYPE of exchanges (existing or upcoming) as well as any additional strengths/weaknesses, which I forgot to include.
For example, to which type you address telegram apps/bots for trading, upcoming dark pool atomic swap exchanges?