StellarX is the name given to the feeless, all-encompassing decentralized exchange. All-encompassing in that soon there will be stocks, bonds real estate etc. available to trade. Saying this is one thing and accomplishing it is another, however, they have already lived up to the zero-fee part.

“Trading on StellarX is completely free because the Stellar network fees are so low we can refund them out-of-pocket”

The beauty is in how quickly one can sign and up and begin trading. An email and password is all that is required. No lengthy KYC procedure and 6 week verification process. StellarX does offer KYC services for asset issuers who wish to do so. StellarX even allows for fiat deposits, although, trusting this is a bit iffy at the moment in my eyes. But hey, I already trust a central bank to hold thousands of my dollars so who am I to talk.

StellarX has quite a smooth user interface. As with any decentralized exchange, however, there is very low liquidity relative to centralized exchanges. There are also very few assets to choose from. Ripple, bitcoin and ethereum are the only tradeable cryptocurrencies I have heard of on the exchange and they have volumes of below $150,000 combined at the time of writing. There are other cryptocurrencies on there, however, I have never heard of them. For example, “Glitzkoin” has the highest volume on the exchange at $350,000. Not too bad actually. And all without a fee?! Definitely a leap in the right direction.

Who is behind StellarX?

StellarX was designed and launched by Interstellar, a merger of Chain and Lightyear. Led by Stellar Development Foundation co-founder Jed McCaleb and Chain CEO Adam Ludwin, this merger has resulted in a digital asset platform enabling organizations to manage, distribute and trade assets on a highly scalable, public ledger. These features are what made the Stellar blockchain the clear choice to develop a decentralized exchange upon.

Decentralized exchanges are the future

Centralized exchanges are a huge barrier for many. They ask for alot of information and take way too long to actually allow users to begin trading, deposit and withdraw. Not to mention the many limits that impose on their users money and the exorbitant fees of which they make a KILLING off of. Oh and don’t forget they charge a hefty price for a coin to be listed on their exchange.

To be honest, centralized exchanges are not much different than banks. We live in a delusional cryptocurrency world where there really is no true decentralization. Centralized exchanges possess massive power and control over the average investor and are the middleman in all of our cryptocurrency trades telling us how much we can trade, deposit and withdraw all the while taking a nice cut and controlling your keys. Decentralized exchanges, such as StellarX, are the future. They have no fees, no lengthy KYC procedure, give the user full control of their keys and have no limits on deposits or withdraws. And forget about the fee charged to list an asset. Applying to list an asset is easy and feeless on StellarX.

Decentralized exchanges were a big focus of 2018. NEX is a decentralized exchange on the NEO blockchain with plans to launch Fall 2018. EOSfinex is another set to launch in January 2019. Decentralized exchanges are gaining momentum and will provide digital assets to anyone at any time without limitations. The unbound potential is yet to be seen.