- Arbitrage
- Buying an asset where it is cheaper and selling where it is more expensive at the same time. Arbitrage keeps a token’s price aligned across exchanges and pools.
- Ask (offer)
- The price at which a seller is willing to sell. The lowest ask on the book is the best ask.
- Automated market maker (AMM)
- A DEX design where a smart contract prices trades using a formula and the token balances in a liquidity pool, instead of an order book. Read more.
- Basis point (bp)
- One hundredth of a percent (0.01%). Spreads are often quoted in basis points.
- Bid
- The price at which a buyer is willing to buy. The highest bid on the book is the best bid.
- Call option (in market-making deals)
- A right, but not an obligation, for a market maker to buy a set number of a project’s tokens at a pre-agreed strike price at a set time. Often paired with a token loan. Read more.
- Centralized exchange (CEX)
- An exchange operated by a company that holds user funds and matches orders on an order book, such as Binance, Coinbase, or Kraken. Read more.
- Circulating supply
- The number of tokens currently available to trade, excluding locked, vesting, or treasury-held tokens. Exchanges and data aggregators check it. Read more.
- Concentrated liquidity
- An AMM design where liquidity providers choose a price range. Liquidity is deeper inside the range and absent outside it.
- Decentralized exchange (DEX)
- A smart-contract-based exchange where users trade from their own wallets, usually through AMM pools. Read more.
- Depth at ±2%
- The value of resting orders within 2% of the mid price, usually measured per side. A common benchmark for market-maker KPIs. Read more.
- Impermanent loss
- The shortfall an AMM liquidity provider experiences versus simply holding the tokens, caused by price moves while funds sit in the pool.
- Inventory
- The tokens and quote currency a market maker holds to quote both sides of a book. It may belong to the market maker, the project, or both.
- KPI (market making)
- A measurable commitment in a market-making contract, typically maximum spread, minimum depth, and uptime. Read more.
- KYC / KYB
- Know Your Customer / Know Your Business: identity checks on people and companies. Exchanges require them from listing applicants.
- Launchpad / launchpool
- Exchange-run programs that distribute new tokens to users through a sale or staking-based allocation, usually around a listing. Read more.
- Liquidity
- How easily an asset can be bought or sold quickly without moving its price much. On an order book, it shows up as tight spreads and deep books. Read more.
- Liquidity lock
- Locking AMM liquidity-provider tokens in a contract for a period so the liquidity cannot be withdrawn suddenly.
- Maker
- A trader whose order rests on the book and adds liquidity. Exchanges often charge makers lower fees than takers.
- Market depth
- The amount of buy and sell orders available at and around the current price. Deeper markets absorb larger trades with less price impact. Read more.
- Market maker
- A firm that continuously quotes bids and asks on an asset so others can trade. For token projects, market makers provide spread, depth, and consistent prices across venues. Read more.
- Market manipulation
- Trading or other conduct intended to create a false or misleading impression of an asset’s price, volume, or demand. Prohibited by exchanges and, in many jurisdictions, by law. Read more.
- MEV (maximal extractable value)
- Profit that block producers or bots can extract by ordering, inserting, or censoring transactions, for example sandwiching trades around a token launch.
- MiCA
- The EU’s Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (Regulation (EU) 2023/1114), which sets rules for crypto-asset issuers and service providers, including white papers and market abuse. Read more.
- Mid price
- The midpoint between the best bid and best ask.
- Order book
- The list of resting buy and sell orders for a trading pair on an exchange, organized by price.
- Retainer (market making)
- A recurring fee a token project pays a market maker for a defined quoting service. Read more.
- Slippage
- The difference between the expected price of a trade and the average price actually paid, caused by the order consuming liquidity at several price levels.
- Spread (bid-ask spread)
- The gap between the best ask and the best bid, often expressed as a percentage of the mid price. Tighter spreads mean cheaper trading. Read more.
- Strike price
- The price at which an option holder may buy (or sell) the underlying asset. In market-making deals, strikes decide what the market maker pays for tokens it chooses to keep. Read more.
- Taker
- A trader whose order executes immediately against resting orders, removing liquidity from the book.
- TGE (token generation event)
- The moment a token is created and first distributed, often followed by DEX trading and CEX listings.
- Token loan (market making)
- An arrangement where a project lends tokens to a market maker for a fixed term so it can quote, usually with call options and return terms. Read more.
- Uptime (market making)
- The share of time a market maker’s quotes meet the agreed spread and depth targets.
- Vesting
- A schedule that releases tokens to holders (team, investors) over time, often after an initial cliff.
- Wash trading
- Buying and selling the same asset with yourself or a coordinated party to create fake volume. A form of market manipulation. Read more.
- White paper (MiCA)
- Under MiCA, a standardized regulatory disclosure document for a crypto-asset, notified to an EU national authority and published. Read more.
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