Orion Protocol enables decentralized access to AscendEX 

Leading centralized exchange AscendEX moves into the DeFi space, enabling decentralized access to its orderbooks via Orion Terminal, the gateway to the digital asset market. 

Orion Protocol is building the decentralized gateway to the crypto market as the first, and only, platform to provide cross-chain access to CEXs, DEXs, and swap pools in one non-custodial platform. On Orion Terminal, Orion’s flagship solution, users connect their wallet and trade across multiple chains and exchanges (centralized and decentralized) in one place. As such, Orion Terminal enables access to the best price for an asset across any connected chain or exchange, opens up a wealth of unique arbitrage opportunities, and enables true cross-chain, cross-exchange liquidity aggregation for the first time.

AscendEX is a global cryptocurrency financial platform servicing more than one million institutional and retail traders with the resources needed to obtain more value from their crypto investments. Operating at the nexus of centralized finance and decentralized finance, AscendEX’s platform features access to margin, futures, and spot trading, a robust wallet infrastructure, and staking support for over 200 industry-leading blockchain projects, all producing industry leading yields and returns, further driving the growth of the crypto ecosystem. 

Orion Terminal is the only platform in the world providing global and decentralized access to centralized liquidity sources. Users trade across the likes of Binance, Kucoin, and now AscendEX directly from their wallet without accounts or KYC. This is all made possible through its proprietary governance mechanism Delegated Proof of Broker, fulfilling every function via a network of third-party Node Validators. 

In becoming a Node Operator on the Orion Network, AscendEX is able to tap into and monetize a growing userbase of DeFi traders by enabling decentralized access to their centralized exchange liquidity for the first time. Rather than taking users away from exchanges like AscendEX, Orion is providing another point of access to its liquidity, in a non-custodial way - particularly fruitful for centralized exchanges wanting to transcend into the DeFi space. 

AscendEX will bolster liquidity for a number of existing assets on Orion Terminal, further tightening low spreads and slippage, while increasing cross-exchange arbitrage opportunities. Through the aggregation of major centralized exchanges on Orion Terminal,  users can effectively be open to unprecedented arbitrage opportunities from one major source of liquidity to another, directly from their own wallet simply by using the single platform of Orion Terminal. For example, a best price purchase could be made on Orion Terminal using AscendEX's orderbooks then immediately sold on Orion Terminal using Binance's orderbooks due to both orderbooks being aggregated and accessible from the same location. Without Orion's groundbreaking technology, this has been impossible throughout the industry... until now.

Meanwhile, AscendEX’s integration will bring a wealth of new assets like ASD, MANA, and FLOKI to the decentralized platform. AscendEX plans to continue to strengthen this proposition by adding deeper liquidity over time.

“AscendEX is excited to integrate with Orion Protocol. By mirroring AscendEX liquidity on the Orion Terminal, we are taking another big step towards bridging the gap between CeFi and DeFi. This partnership will help facilitate a smooth trading experience for all users, both on our platform and Orion's.” - Gage Bowser | AscendEX

“We are delighted to enable one of the leading centralized exchanges to transcend into DeFi: enabling decentralized access to their orderbooks for the first time via Orion Terminal. This signifies how the industry is evolving towards the ultimate goal of decentralization: CEXs like AscdendEX are now providing users the chance to access their (previously gatekept) liquidity from their own wallets through Orion Terminal.” - Alexey Koloskov | CEO, Orion Protocol

• For Orion Terminal and AscendEX users, this means decentralized access to AscendEX directly from their wallet, without the need for accounts or KYC.
• For Orion, this further deepens liquidity sources, tightens spreads, increases volume, and is a huge milestone towards the goal of aggregating the entire market.
• For AscendEX, this enables them to participate in the world of DeFi, tapping into a growing user base of traders looking for decentralized alternatives. Rather than losing market share to DEXs, this provides another point of access to their liquidity. Rather than having to build their own DEX, this enables them to do so seamlessly, decentralizing their liquidity without any additional effort, development, or costs.

The onboarding of AscendEX as a Node Operator marks another milestone for Orion Protocol as it continues to build the decentralized gateway to the crypto market - across asset types, exchanges, and blockchains.

Listen to the replay of Orion's Twitter Spaces chat with AscendEX.