Word of the Day | ATOMIC SWAPS

ATOMIC SWAPS

Word of the Day | Atomic Swaps

Atomic swaps enable direct peer-to-peer trades across different blockchains, allowing users to exchange tokens while maintaining full control over their private keys and eliminating the risk of counterparty fraud.

The term "atomic" refers to the all-or-nothing nature of the transaction, meaning it is completed in its entirety or not at all.

Rehypothecation - Rehypothecation might not be a household term, but if you’ve ever borrowed or lent crypto, it’s worth understanding. Rehypothecation happens when a platform or institution takes collateral (your Bitcoin, for example) and lends it out again to earn extra income. It’s common in both traditional finance and crypto, and while it can lower borrowing costs and boost liquidity, it also introduces risks.

In 2022, crypto lenders like Celsius learned this the hard way, using customer assets to chase high yields until market conditions turned against them. The result was insolvency, frozen withdrawals, and billions lost. Even FTX, once a giant in the space, collapsed after mismanaging customer funds in a similar way.

https://www.dbm.academy/faq for more blockchain vocabulary.