DeFi and on-chain
DEXs, liquidity pools, staking, bridges and on-chain analytics.
34 terms · 1 guide
Guides
For beginners
AirdropAn airdrop is a token handout: a project sends coins to the wallets of people who used its service, held a token or joined a list of…BeginnerAPY and APRAPR is a yearly rate without compounding, while APY is the yearly return including reinvested earnings. For the same rate, APY is always…BeginnerBlockchain bridgeA blockchain bridge is a service that moves tokens from one network to another, usually by locking them on the source chain and issuing an…BeginnerCollateralCollateral is an asset you lock up to get a loan or open a position. If you fail to repay or the price moves against you, the collateral…BeginnerDeFiDeFi (decentralized finance) is financial services built on smart contracts: swaps, loans and yield with no bank or exchange in between.…BeginnerDEX (decentralized exchange)A DEX is a decentralized exchange: a smart contract on a blockchain that lets you swap tokens straight from your own wallet, with no…BeginnerOn-chain analysisOn-chain analysis is studying public blockchain data, such as transfers, address balances and coins moving to and from exchanges, to…BeginnerSlippage toleranceSlippage tolerance is a DEX setting that limits how much worse than expected your swap price can be. If the price moves further than that,…BeginnerStakingStaking is locking coins to help secure a Proof of Stake network and earning rewards for it. Risks: the coins are frozen for a period, and…BeginnerTVLTVL (total value locked) is the total dollar value of crypto deposited in a DeFi protocol or network. It shows how much money users have…BeginnerWhaleA whale is a market participant holding so many coins that their buying and selling can noticeably move the price. For example, an address…Beginner
Advanced
AMM (automated market maker)An AMM (automated market maker) is a smart contract that sets the swap price by a formula based on the token balances in a pool, with no…AdvancedDAO (decentralized autonomous organization)A DAO (decentralized autonomous organization) is a community whose rules and shared treasury live in smart contracts, with decisions made…AdvancedDeFi lendingDeFi lending is borrowing and lending through smart contracts: some users deposit crypto to earn interest, others borrow against…AdvancedDEX aggregatorA DEX aggregator is a service that searches many decentralized exchanges at once for the best swap price and, when needed, splits one…AdvancedExchange inflows and outflowsExchange inflows and outflows are an on-chain metric showing how many coins move to and from exchange addresses. Traders use it as an…AdvancedFlash loanA flash loan is an uncollateralized DeFi loan that must be borrowed and repaid with a fee inside a single blockchain transaction. If it is…AdvancedImpermanent lossImpermanent loss is the shortfall a liquidity provider in an AMM pool suffers versus simply holding the same tokens, caused by the tokens'…AdvancedLayer 2 (L2)Layer 2 (L2) is a network on top of a main blockchain (Layer 1). It processes activity on its own and posts a compressed result to the…AdvancedLiquid stakingLiquid staking is staking through a protocol that gives you a receipt token for your coins. The coins earn rewards while the receipt can…AdvancedLiquidity poolA liquidity pool is a shared pot of tokens in a smart contract. A DEX swaps coins from it, and depositors earn a share of the fees. A…AdvancedMEV and sandwich attackMEV (maximal extractable value) is profit made by reordering transactions in a block. A sandwich attack is a common form: a bot buys right…AdvancedMVRVMVRV is an on-chain indicator equal to a coin's market cap divided by its realized cap. It shows how far holders are in profit or loss on…AdvancedOracleAn oracle is a service that feeds a smart contract data from outside, such as an asset price. The blockchain itself cannot see anything…AdvancedRestakingRestaking is reusing coins that are already staked, usually ETH, to secure other services for extra rewards. In return, the risk of losing…AdvancedRWA (real-world assets)RWAs (real-world assets) are tokens that represent claims on assets outside the blockchain, such as bonds, property, gold or loans. Their…AdvancedSlashingSlashing is a penalty in proof-of-stake networks that destroys part of a validator's staked coins and forcibly removes it for a dangerous…AdvancedSmart contract auditA smart contract audit is a security review of a DeFi protocol's or token's code by specialists looking for vulnerabilities and logic…AdvancedStablecoin depegA stablecoin depeg is a loss of its target price, usually $1, when it trades clearly and persistently below or above it. Causes include…AdvancedValidatorA validator is a participant in a proof-of-stake network that locks up coins as a deposit and in return checks transactions, proposes new…AdvancedVesting and token unlocksVesting is a schedule that releases tokens held by the team, investors and funds gradually rather than all at once. An unlock is the…AdvancedWrapped tokenA wrapped token is a token that represents another asset one to one on a different blockchain or in a different format, such as WBTC for…AdvancedYield farmingYield farming is putting crypto into DeFi protocols to earn rewards such as fees, interest and bonus tokens, often moving funds between…AdvancedZero-knowledge proofA zero-knowledge proof (ZK proof) is a cryptographic way to prove a statement is true without revealing the underlying data. For example,…Advanced