What is Raydium (RAY): a must-know for Solana DEX traders

In the dynamic world of cryptocurrency trading, decentralized exchanges (DEXs) have emerged as powerful platforms for onchain trading. By eliminating the need for intermediaries, DEXs effectively offer users greater control and flexibility. Among these leading DEXs, a notable one that's been gaining traction in the Solana ecosystem is Raydium.

Curious as to why Raydium is consistently among the top five DEXs in terms of overall volume? From understanding Raydium's strengths to grasping what the RAY token is all about, this ultimate guide to what is Raydium will cover everything you need to know about one of the leading DEXs on Solana.

TL;DR

• Raydium is a DEX on Solana that makes use of the automated market maker model to let traders swap and trade without the need for any intermediary.

• As one of the top DEXs on Solana, Raydium offers a streamlined user interface, a wide range of trading pairs, and lightning-fast quotes.

• With its Pump.Fun integration, Raydium seems to have spiked in popularity as it opened the door to an array of Solana memecoins.

• While the differences between both DEXs are subtle, the decision on whether to use Orca or Raydium comes down to personal preference.

• RAY is the protocol's native token and is a multi-purpose utility token that incentivizes users to participate actively in the Raydium ecosystem.

What is Raydium?

Source: Raydium.io

Raydium exchange is an automated market maker (AMM) on Solana that lets traders swap, trade, and provide liquidity to earn bonus yield on their assets. With features like Best Price Swaps and its all-new UI V3, Raydium has become one of the top DEXs on Solana and boasts a cumulative trading volume of more than 200 billion dollars since its 2021 inception. On top of these features, there’s also the recent integration with Pump.Fun, which has resulted in even more traders flooding the DEX to trade memecoins and jump on the Solana memecoin bandwagon.

What makes Raydium popular? A look at Raydium’s defining features

Rapid quote speeds through its hybrid AMM model

Raydium stands out because it claims to be the first to introduce the hybrid AMM model. Unlike the crowd of DEXs in the crypto space that only had access to liquidity within their own pools, Raydium’s introduction of onchain liquidity to a central limit order book enables Raydium users and liquidity pools to access the vast order flow and liquidity of the entire OpenBook ecosystem. Through its Best Price Swaps feature, Raydium intelligently determines whether swapping within a liquidity pool or routing through the OpenBook order book will offer the most favorable price. By sharing liquidity with OpenBook, Raydium benefits from increased liquidity, better price discovery, tighter spreads, and lower transaction costs. Ultimately, this unique OpenBook integration sets Raydium apart from other AMMs, which often rely solely on onchain liquidity pools or integrate with offchain order books.

UI V3

Raydium's UI V3 upgrade is far from just a cosmetic upgrade as it aims to deliver a more intuitive and user-friendly trading experience. The redesigned interface features improved navigation, clearer information presentation, and streamlined workflows, making it easier for both new and seasoned traders to navigate the platform. Additionally, the update introduces a bi-directional routing engine, a new portfolio page, and consolidates all Raydium liquidity, simplifying the trading process and lowering the barrier to entry for onchain trading.

Pump.Fun integration: supporting Solana’s memecoin culture

Heard of the viral King of the Hill feature on Pump.Fun? This innovative concept essentially acts as a launchpad for the most popular memecoins, propelling them towards wider adoption and potentially sustainable growth within the Solana ecosystem. Memecoins that manage to peak in popularity and hit a specified market cap will have a portion of their liquidity deposited in Raydium and burned. This memecoin is also migrated to Raydium, where it can enjoy exposure to a wider audience since Solana memecoin traders now have access to DEX aggregators like Jupiter.

By supporting Pump.Fun and giving memecoin creators an end goal to work towards, Raydium fosters a vibrant and dynamic memecoin scene within the Solana ecosystem. This collaboration allows promising memecoins to gain the exposure and liquidity they need to thrive, while promoting responsible tokenomics through liquidity burning.

History of Raydium exchange and its ties to the Serum DEX

Unbeknownst to newer crypto traders, the Raydium exchange used to rely on the Serum protocol's infrastructure to provide a fast and user-friendly trading experience. Since it was built on the Serum DEX protocol, Raydium had access to Serum's order book and liquidity. This enabled the project to offer a wide range of trading pairs and competitive prices. However, Raydium has since transitioned to its own DEX protocol and continued with its Serum DEX deprecation. This ultimately provides the Raydium exchange with more autonomy and flexibility.

Here are some examples of how Raydium has changed post-Serum.

Customizability: Raydium can now tailor its platform to specific needs and trends, introducing new features and functionalities without relying on Serum’s updates or limitations.

Independent protocol upgrades: By breaking off dependency on Serum, Raydium can independently upgrade its protocol and implement innovative features such as advanced order routing algorithms or enhanced security measures at its own pace.

Community governance: While this has yet to be implemented, Raydium can establish its own governance model, empowering its community to participate in decision-making and shaping the future of the platform.

Reduced dependence: While Raydium benefited from Serum’s infrastructure, it also faced risks associated with Serum’s performance and potential vulnerabilities. By transitioning to its own protocol, Raydium has reduced its dependence on a single third-party system.

How does Raydium work? Understanding Raydium Exchange

At its core, Raydium is a DEX that enables lightning-fast trades, permissionless pool creation, and new features for earning yield. It functions as a hybrid exchange, meaning that traders can directly interact with liquidity pools or trade against a centralized order book. This mechanism ensures there’s always a market for your trades, even for less popular tokens with limited liquidity.

Interested in finding out more about Raydium and its core features? Read on for our breakdown of its key features.

Key features of Raydium

The Raydium exchange boasts several standout features that make it a popular choice among traders and DeFi natives alike.

• User-friendly interface: Raydium’s intuitive interface makes it easy for users to navigate the platform and conduct swaps, provide liquidity, and trade.

• High-speed trading: One of Raydium’s most notable features is its lightning-fast trading speed. The platform uses the Solana blockchain’s high throughput and low latency to deliver near-instantaneous order execution. That makes the platform ideal for day traders and those who require rapid trade confirmations.

• Wide range of trading pairs: Raydium offers a diverse selection of trading pairs, allowing you to trade a variety of cryptocurrencies. Whether you’re interested in popular Solana ecosystem projects like Pyth Network and Jito or exploring lesser-known altcoins, you’re likely to find suitable trading opportunities on Raydium.

• Yield farming and staking: In addition to trading, Raydium also provides opportunities for passive gains through yield farming and staking. By contributing liquidity to liquidity pools or staking your tokens, you can earn rewards in the form of additional tokens or fees.

• One thing to note when you’re providing liquidity is the option to choose between ‘Concentrated’ and ‘Standard’. This represents the type of liquidity pool you want to participate in. Standard pools offer a wider range of trading pairs but may have lower returns due to the spread of liquidity across multiple assets. Conversely, Concentrated pools focus on a narrow range of trading pairs, allowing for higher returns but potentially exposing you to higher risk if the price of one asset fluctuates significantly. Ultimately, the choice between concentrated and standard pools depends on your personal risk appetite.

Orca vs Raydium: a brief look at Solana’s leading DEXs

Orca and Raydium remain two prominent DEXs on Solana, each offering unique features and benefits to DeFi enthusiasts. While both platforms serve as marketplaces for trading crypto, their approaches differ.

Orca is a more decentralized DEX, relying solely on its own liquidity pools for trading. This approach offers greater control and potentially lower fees but can limit liquidity for less popular tokens. Orca also boasts a user-friendly interface and a variety of features, including yield farming, token launchpads, and staking.

Raydium previously used the Serum DEX protocol but has since shifted to a unique hybrid model. This change has allowed Raydium to offer a more flexible and efficient trading experience, while also maintaining its access to a deep liquidity pool. Raydium's features include yield farming, token launchpads, and a bi-directional routing engine for optimized trade execution.

Key differences when comparing Orca vs Raydium

Choosing the right DEX

The best choice between Orca and Raydium depends on individual preferences and trading strategies. The factors to consider include the following.

• Liquidity: Raydium’s access to a deeper liquidity pool can be advantageous for high-volume traders given its integrations with OpenBook.

• Features: As both Orca and Raydium offer similar features to complement their swapping services, it’s key to consider the specific features that are important to you. That could include yield farming, token launchpads, or staking. It's also wise to consider the user experience as you interact with these features.

• Performance: While your overall experience with each DEX may vary, traders will need to consider factors like trading speed, slippage, and gas fees when it comes to executing timely swaps on either DEX.

Ultimately, both Orca and Raydium offer valuable services within the Solana ecosystem. By carefully considering your individual needs and preferences, you can select the DEX that best aligns with your trading goals.

How to use Raydium exchange

Getting started with Raydium Exchange is relatively straightforward. Here’s a step-by-step guide to help you.

1. Create a wallet: To interact with the Raydium decentralized app, you’ll need a compatible wallet that supports the Solana blockchain. Popular options include OKX Wallet, Phantom, and Solflare.

2. Connect your wallet: Once you have a wallet set up, connect it to the Raydium Exchange interface. This will allow you to access your funds and place trades.

3. Deposit funds: To start trading or swapping, you’ll first need to deposit funds into your Raydium wallet. You can transfer funds from other wallets or exchange platforms that support Solana.

Once you’re set up, you’ll be ready to interact with Raydium and take advantage of its various features.

What is RAY?

As the native token of the Raydium exchange, RAY serves as a multi-purpose utility token that incentivizes users to participate actively in the Raydium ecosystem, and provides them with opportunities for governance, yield generation, and potential benefits within the broader Solana DeFi landscape.

RAY tokenomics

The basic tokenomics for RAY are as follows.

• Total supply: 555,000,000

• Circulating supply: 263,751,341

• Fully diluted valuation: $894,467,904

According to the team, the Raydium protocol currently emits about 2.1 million RAY annually from the Raydium mining reserve. This mining reserve consists of 188.7 million RAY and makes up 34% of RAY’s total supply. This acts as a form of inflation and should be taken into account by crypto traders who are keen to build a long-term position on RAY. To counteract this annual emission, Raydium has gone on to state that 12% of all Raydium trading fees are used to buy back RAY tokens.

Curious about the remaining allocation of RAY's 555 million total supply? Check out the table below for more information.

Final words and next steps

With its user friendly UI V3 interface, high-speed trading, and wide range of trading opportunities thanks to its deep liquidity, Raydium has positioned itself as a leading player in the Solana ecosystem. As the Solana blockchain continues to grow and evolve, Raydium’s commitment to innovation and user-centric features positions it well to remain at the forefront of the DeFi revolution.

Has Raydium piqued your interest? You can learn more about other projects within the Solana ecosystem by checking out our guides to Kamino Finance and Neon EVM.