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Decentralized exchanges: The “wild west” of cryptocurrency trading

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  • Aspris, Angelo
  • Foley, Sean
  • Svec, Jiri
  • Wang, Leqi

Abstract

Cryptocurrencies are traded on two types of exchanges – centralized and decentralized. Although trading in the largest cryptocurrencies primarily occurs on centralized exchanges, most newly issued tokens can only be exchanged using decentralized platforms. Volumes in these decentralized exchanges (including automated market makers) has recently increased exponentially. We examine the role of this new and unmonitored market, utilizing an extensive sample of tokens exclusively traded on decentralized platforms. We show significant differences in the listing and trading characteristics of these tokens relative to their centralized equivalents. A small selection of these tokens obtain listing on a centralized exchange during the sample period, which is accompanied by a significant increase in trading activity, consistent with market segmentation. A centralized listing results in a migration of volume away from decentralized platforms, revealing a strong preference by tokenholders for deeper and more liquid markets over the increased security and anonymity offered by decentralized exchanges.

Suggested Citation

  • Aspris, Angelo & Foley, Sean & Svec, Jiri & Wang, Leqi, 2021. "Decentralized exchanges: The “wild west” of cryptocurrency trading," International Review of Financial Analysis, Elsevier, vol. 77(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:finana:v:77:y:2021:i:c:s1057521921001782
    DOI: 10.1016/j.irfa.2021.101845
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Alfred Lehar & Christine Parlour & Marius Zoican, 2023. "Fragmentation and optimal liquidity supply on decentralized exchanges," Papers 2307.13772, arXiv.org, revised May 2024.
    2. Foley, Sean & Li, Simeng & Malloch, Hamish & Svec, Jiri, 2022. "What is the expected return on Bitcoin? Extracting the term structure of returns from options prices," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 210(C).
    3. Zhiqi Feng & Yongli Li & Xiaochen Ma, 2023. "Blockchain-oriented approach for detecting cyber-attack transactions," Financial Innovation, Springer;Southwestern University of Finance and Economics, vol. 9(1), pages 1-38, December.
    4. Almeida, José & Gonçalves, Tiago Cruz, 2023. "A systematic literature review of investor behavior in the cryptocurrency markets," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Finance, Elsevier, vol. 37(C).
    5. Lennart Ante & Aman Saggu, 2024. "Time-Varying Bidirectional Causal Relationships between Transaction Fees and Economic Activity of Subsystems Utilizing the Ethereum Blockchain Network," JRFM, MDPI, vol. 17(1), pages 1-28, January.
    6. Basile Caparros & Amit Chaudhary & Olga Klein, 2023. "Blockchain scaling and liquidity concentration on decentralized exchanges," Papers 2306.17742, arXiv.org, revised Mar 2024.
    7. Alessio Brini & Jimmie Lenz, 2024. "A Comparison of Cryptocurrency Volatility-benchmarking New and Mature Asset Classes," Papers 2404.04962, arXiv.org.

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