Glossary

How to use this glossary

Terms are listed alphabetically. Where a topic has its own guide, the definition links to it so you can read further.

Address

A string of characters that identifies where crypto can be sent on a blockchain. It is derived from a public key and is safe to share, unlike a private key.

Airdrop

A distribution of tokens to many wallet addresses, often to promote a new project. Unsolicited tokens can be a lure for scams, so do not interact with unknown ones.

Altcoin

Any crypto asset other than bitcoin. The term covers thousands of assets with very different designs and risk levels.

Arbitrage

Buying an asset in one place and selling it in another to take advantage of a price difference. Arbitrage helps keep prices consistent across markets.

Ask

A sell order in the order book, or the lowest price at which someone is currently willing to sell. See how a spot order works.

Base asset

The first asset in a trading pair, the one being bought or sold. In BTC-USDT, BTC is the base asset.

Bid

A buy order in the order book, or the highest price someone is currently willing to pay.

Block

A batch of transactions added to a blockchain together, linked to the previous block by its hash.

Blockchain

A shared, append-only record of transactions kept in step by many independent computers. See what is a blockchain.

Candlestick

A chart element showing the open, high, low and close of a price over a set period. See reading candlestick charts.

Cold wallet

A wallet whose private keys are kept offline, such as on a hardware device, reducing exposure to online attacks.

Confirmation

Each block added on top of the block containing your transaction. More confirmations make a transaction harder to reverse.

Consensus

The method a blockchain network uses to agree on which transactions and blocks are valid, such as proof of work or proof of stake.

Custody

Who controls the private keys to an asset. In custodial storage a service holds them; in self-custody you hold them yourself.

DeFi

Decentralised finance: financial applications that run as smart contracts on public blockchains. See what is DeFi.

Depth

How much volume is waiting in the order book at each price level. A deep book can absorb larger orders with less slippage.

Drawdown

The fall in value from a peak to a subsequent low, usually expressed as a percentage.

Fill

The execution of all or part of an order. An order may receive several partial fills at different prices.

Gas

The fee paid to process a transaction or run a smart contract on certain blockchains. It varies with network demand.

Hash

A fixed-length fingerprint produced from any input by a cryptographic function. A tiny change to the input produces a completely different hash.

Hot wallet

A wallet whose keys are stored on an internet-connected device. Convenient for frequent use but more exposed to attacks.

Impermanent loss

The shortfall a liquidity provider can face, compared with simply holding the tokens, when the prices of pooled tokens move apart.

Limit order

An order to buy or sell at a specific price or better. It may not fill if the market never reaches that price. See market vs limit orders.

Liquidation

The forced sale of collateral when a leveraged position or loan no longer has enough backing.

Liquidity

How easily an asset can be bought or sold without moving its price much. High liquidity usually means tighter spreads.

Maker

A trader whose order rests in the order book and adds liquidity until someone fills it. Maker and taker fees are listed on the fees page.

Market cap

The current price of an asset multiplied by its circulating supply. It describes size, not quality or safety.

Market order

An order to buy or sell immediately at the best available prices, without setting a price limit.

Order book

The live list of outstanding buy and sell orders for a trading pair, organised by price.

Peg

The fixed value a stablecoin aims to maintain, such as one unit of a fiat currency. See what are stablecoins.

Phishing

An attempt to trick you into revealing passwords, codes or seed phrases, often through fake websites or messages. See wallet security basics.

Practice account

A trading account funded with virtual money instead of real assets. Orders fill against live prices, but nothing is actually bought or sold and the balance has no monetary value. Zenvorika's practice account is on the trading terminal at /trade/.

Private key

The secret that authorises moving funds from an address. Anyone who has it controls the funds, so it must never be shared.

Quote asset

The second asset in a trading pair, used to price the base asset. In BTC-USDT, USDT is the quote asset.

Seed phrase

A list of 12 or 24 words that can restore all the keys in a self-custody wallet. Keep it offline and private.

Slippage

The difference between the price you expected and the average price you actually received, often caused by thin liquidity or fast markets.

Smart contract

A program stored on a blockchain that runs automatically according to its code when its conditions are met.

Spot trading

Buying or selling an asset for immediate ownership, as opposed to trading contracts that track its price.

Spread

The gap between the best bid and the best ask in an order book.

Stablecoin

A token designed to hold a steady value, usually pegged to a fiat currency. Pegs can and do slip.

Taker

A trader whose order fills immediately against existing orders, removing liquidity from the book.

Two-factor authentication (2FA)

A second login step, such as a code from an authenticator app or a hardware key, in addition to your password.

Volatility

How far and how fast a price moves over time, in either direction. See understanding volatility.

Volume

The amount of an asset traded during a given period, often shown as bars beneath a price chart.

Wick

The thin line above or below a candlestick's body, marking the highest and lowest prices of the period.

Crypto assets are highly volatile and you may lose all the capital you invest. Read our risk disclosure before trading.