Un DEX it's like a cryptocurrency market where you can buy or sell without having to give your money to a company. There are no bosses or banks here: you connect your wallet, choose what you want to change and do the transaction directly with other people. Everything works with automatic rules in the blockchain, without intermediaries to control your money.

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Un Decentralized Exchange (DEX) is a cryptocurrency exchange platform built on a blockchain, which allows users to perform peer-to-peer (P2P) trading directly from your unguarded wallets, without the need to delegate funds to a centralized entity. Unlike the CEX (Centralized Exchanges), DEXs operate through Smart Contracts that execute operations automatically and in a transparent manner.

The architecture of a DEX eliminates the risk of custody, since the assets remain in the user's possession until the exact moment of exchange. Liquidity in a DEX can be managed using different models:

• Order book on-chain/off-chain (e.g. dYdX, 0x Protocol)
• Automated Market Makers (AMM) such as Uniswap, Curve or Balancer, where they are used Liquidity Pools instead of peer-to-peer orders.

DEXs offer access without permissions, relative anonymity (without mandatory KYC in most cases), and resistance to censorship. They are essential in the DeFi ecosystem and allow trading of ERC-20 tokens, internetwork swaps (via bridges), and even leveraged positions without the intervention of custodians. In addition, they allow open listings, making it easier for new tokens and projects to appear without bureaucratic barriers.

However, using DEX also involves risks: possible errors in smart contracts, low liquidity in some pairs, slippage in large orders, and lack of support in case of problems. Despite this, its adoption is growing thanks to its decentralized nature, user privacy and its central role in the Web3 infrastructure.

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