Buy, swap and move crypto.
Know where your money goes.

Centralized exchanges hold your funds for you. Decentralized ones let you keep control. Both have a place, knowing the difference is non-negotiable

WHAT IS A CENTRALIZED EXCHANGE (CEX)?

A traditional exchange.
Convenient, but not yours.

A centralized exchange (CEX) works like a traditional stock broker: you create an account, deposit your crypto or fiat money, and the platform manages everything. Buying, selling, matching orders, all handled by the company's servers. It's fast, easy and has customer support.

The catch is fundamental: your crypto is not in your wallet. It's in theirs. The exchange holds the private keys. If they get hacked, go bankrupt or freeze withdrawals, like FTX did in 2022, you could lose everything with no recourse. The phrase in crypto is: "Not your keys, not your coins."

CEXs are still useful, especially for buying crypto with fiat (euros, dollars) and for trading volume and liquidity. But you should never leave large amounts on an exchange long-term. Use it to buy, then move to your wallet.

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CUSTODY

Exchange holds keys

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BEST FOR

Fiat on-ramp, trading

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DIFFICULTY

Beginner, easy start

⚠️

MAIN RISK

Exchange collapse

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complete
exchange

Go!

WHAT IS A DECENTRALIZED EXCHANGE (DEX)?

No account. No KYC.
Your wallet, your rules.

A decentralized exchange (DEX) has no company, no login and no custody of your funds. You connect your wallet directly, approve a transaction and the swap happens automatically via a smart contract on the blockchain. Nobody holds your money at any point.

Think of it like a vending machine compared to a shop assistant. The CEX is the shop, you hand over your cash, they manage everything. The DEX is the machine, you put in exactly what you want, out comes exactly what you asked for, no intermediary involved. If the machine breaks, your wallet is untouched.

The tradeoff: DEXs are harder to use for beginners, have no fiat on-ramp (you need crypto already in your wallet to start), and slippage or gas fees can make small trades expensive. But for anything on-chain, swapping tokens, accessing new launches, avoiding KYC, a DEX is the only option.