The list of exchanges getting hacked is growing at an alarming rate. This article describes the history of hacks and the sheer number of coins stolen. Whenever you send your coins to an exchange, the risk of losing it all is exponentially increased. The MtGox hack will be remembered by early adopters for a very long time.
The main problem with a centralized exchange is the fact that their exchange resides on a centralized server, which for hackers is an easier target. Another important problem is the manipulation of of the markets by these centralized exchanges in order for them to maximize their profits.
If you have control of your private keys, the crypto is under your control. If you don’t have the private keys, it’s not your crypto. Decentralized exchanges are starting to grow in popularity and this popularity is expected to grow in the years to come.
When you use a fully decentralized exchange like Waves, your coins are stored on the blockchain, so only you have control over it. Why? Because you have and control the private keys. More of these types of exchanges will see the light of day in 2019 and beyond.
If we are to live in a world where decentralized currencies are the norm, we should all embrace decentralized exchanges. For yours truly, the things i look for before using a decentralized exchange: Are the coins sent to the exchange stored on the blockchain, are the private keys under my control and is there enough liquidity.
Below is a few of the DEXs available.
When using a truly decentralized exchange, no KYC is required, not even an email address. Furthermore, manipulation is greatly reduced. The only downside is that you can’t do a wire transfer from your financial institution. But there are many ways to acquire crypto currencies.
Another great aspect of trading on a decentralized exchange is that you’ll never have to pay taxes on your gains because trading is done anonymously. The control of your private keys is the most important thing when hodling or trading cryptos.
~tek
