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Token flow analysis represents one of the most significant advantages of cryptocurrency markets over traditional finance: the ability to observe capital movements in real-time. Unlike conventional markets where institutional positioning and major transactions remain private, blockchain networks provide unprecedented transparency into how capital moves between participants.

This analysis examines cryptocurrency movements between wallets, exchanges, and other blockchain entities to reveal critical market intelligence including:

- **Accumulation and distribution patterns** by significant holders
- **Institutional positioning** preceding major market movements  
- **Sophisticated investor behaviors** that typically precede price action
- **Exchange flows** indicating directional pressure
- **Capital allocation** during significant market events

For professionals accustomed to traditional markets, this level of transparency requires new analytical frameworks and tools. Nansen Analytics provides institutional-grade infrastructure for interpreting these complex data streams.

## Essential Nansen features for token flow analysis

### Fresh wallet dashboard: identifying new market participants

The Fresh Wallet Dashboard monitors recently created addresses exhibiting significant transaction volumes. This feature provides valuable intelligence because:

**New wallet creation typically signals strategic intent**, whether for receiving substantial capital allocations or implementing transaction privacy measures. During major market events—token unlocks, institutional distributions, or regulatory developments—fresh wallet activity often precedes broader market movements.

**Strategic positioning becomes visible through fresh wallets**, particularly during token unlock events, airdrop distributions, or institutional rebalancing. These addresses frequently reveal coordination between sophisticated market participants.

**Exchange operational changes emerge through fresh addresses**, as major platforms periodically rotate cold storage infrastructure for security purposes.

**Practical Example**: Following BEAM's price appreciation from $0.018 to $0.023, sophisticated addresses transferred significant token quantities to Binance and MEXC. This pattern, visible through Fresh Wallet tracking, indicated coordinated profit-taking by informed participants ahead of broader market recognition.

### Token God Mode: comprehensive asset intelligence

This analytical dashboard aggregates multiple data streams for individual tokens:

- Real-time price and volume metrics
- Major holder identification and transaction history
- Sophisticated investor interactions and patterns
- Exchange flow analysis (inbound and outbound)
- Decentralized exchange trading behaviors

**Implementation Strategy**: When analyzing assets like Chainlink (LINK), Token God Mode enables identification of accumulation patterns through Fresh Wallet balance analysis. Wallets that maintain holdings rather than transferring to exchanges often signal confidence in long-term value appreciation.

## Professional applications of token flow analysis

### Sophisticated investor tracking

Nansen's Smart Money classification identifies addresses demonstrating exceptional performance in specific blockchain activities:

- **Decentralized exchange trading** with consistently profitable outcomes
- **Liquidity provision** generating superior risk-adjusted returns
- **NFT trading** with documented alpha generation
- **Airdrop optimization** through early protocol participation

**Analytical Process**:
1. Access Nansen's Smart Money Dashboard with appropriate time-frame filters
2. Identify tokens experiencing Smart Money accumulation or distribution
3. Monitor specific high-performing addresses for pattern recognition
4. Cross-reference behaviors across different Smart Money categories

**Strategic Insight**: When Smart DEX Traders accumulate specific tokens while Smart NFT Traders reduce exposure, this divergence may indicate sector rotation opportunities worth deeper investigation.

### Exchange flow analysis

Exchange movements provide leading indicators for directional market pressure:

**Inbound flows** to centralized exchanges typically precede selling activity, as users transfer assets to platforms for liquidation. **Outbound flows** generally indicate accumulation intentions or institutional custody transfers.

**Case Study Application**: Observing $5 million in mid-cap token transfers to Binance from multiple sophisticated addresses within 24 hours suggests potential selling pressure. Conversely, systematic weekly withdrawals of equivalent value typically indicate long-term accumulation strategies.

### Token distribution event analysis

Token unlock events create significant market volatility. Nansen enables comprehensive tracking through:

1. **Fresh Wallet monitoring** during unlock periods
2. **Source address identification** (treasury, team, or investor allocations)  
3. **Subsequent transaction analysis** (retention versus exchange transfer)

**Detailed Example**: During an ORBR unlock event, Fresh Wallet inflows totaled $502 million while ending balances measured $467 million—indicating approximately 7% distribution to secondary markets. Token God Mode confirmed these movements concentrated on Gate.io, providing advance notice of potential selling pressure.

## Advanced analytical strategies

### Custom Smart Segments creation

For multi-token analysis across specific cohorts:

1. **Define custom wallet groups** using Nansen's Smart Segments functionality
2. **Establish specific criteria** including token holdings, transaction patterns, and historical behaviors
3. **Implement collective monitoring** for cohort-based insights

**Strategic Application**: Create a "Solana Ecosystem Early Adopters" segment by identifying addresses participating in multiple protocol launches. Monitoring their subsequent allocations reveals emerging opportunities within that ecosystem.

### Real-time alert configuration

Professional-grade monitoring requires systematic notification systems:

1. **Configure threshold-based alerts** for specific tokens or address clusters
2. **Establish transaction size parameters** relevant to market impact
3. **Integrate notifications** with professional communication platforms

**Implementation Example**: Configure alerts for transfers exceeding $100,000 of specific tokens to major exchanges by Smart Money addresses, providing early warning systems for potential market movements.

### Multi-variable analysis framework

Sophisticated analysis requires combining multiple data streams:

- **Token flows + Smart Money activity + Exchange movements**
- **Fresh Wallet creation + Source identification + Transaction patterns**  
- **DEX volumes + CEX flows + Holder concentration metrics**

**Comprehensive Example**: A governance token displaying Smart Money accumulation, declining exchange balances, and expanding DEX liquidity—combined with increasing Fresh Wallet creation but minimal exchange transfers—suggests fundamental interest rather than speculative activity.

## Analytical limitations and professional considerations

Understanding Nansen's constraints ensures appropriate application:

**Exchange Internal Operations**: Only deposits and withdrawals are visible; internal trading and custody arrangements remain opaque.

**Address Classification Uncertainty**: Wallet labels rely on behavioral analysis and public disclosure rather than definitive identification.

**Privacy Implementation Complexity**: Cross-chain bridges, mixing services, and privacy protocols can obscure transaction flows.

**Correlation Versus Causation**: Token flows provide market intelligence but don't guarantee price movements without additional fundamental analysis.

## Professional integration and conclusion

Token flow analysis through Nansen provides institutional-quality intelligence typically unavailable in traditional markets. By systematically monitoring Fresh Wallets, Smart Money behaviors, exchange flows, and implementing custom monitoring frameworks, professionals can identify opportunities earlier and validate investment theses with quantitative blockchain evidence.

The most effective practitioners integrate Nansen's on-chain intelligence with fundamental analysis, macroeconomic assessment, and technical analysis to develop comprehensive market perspectives. As blockchain ecosystems increase in complexity and institutional adoption accelerates, platforms like Nansen become essential infrastructure for distinguishing meaningful signals from market noise.

For professionals transitioning from traditional finance, token flow analysis represents both a significant learning curve and a substantial competitive advantage. The transparency inherent in blockchain networks, when properly analyzed, provides unprecedented insights into market participant behavior and capital allocation decisions.

## Frequently asked questions

### Is Nansen AI worth it?

Nansen AI offers significant value for crypto investors through its token flow analysis capabilities. The platform provides unique insights into wallet behaviors, Smart Money movements, and exchange flows that aren't readily available elsewhere. Features like the Fresh Wallet Dashboard and Token God Mode deliver actionable intelligence on accumulation patterns, institutional positioning, and potential market movements. While the service requires a subscription, serious crypto investors often find the edge provided by seeing these on-chain signals before they manifest in price action to be worth the investment, especially when making decisions involving significant capital.

### How do I track my money flow in crypto?

To track money flow in crypto, you can use several approaches:

1. Monitor exchange inflows and outflows to identify buying or selling pressure
2. Track Smart Money wallets that demonstrate exceptional returns in specific on-chain activities
3. Analyze Fresh Wallet activities, which often signal strategic positioning
4. Examine token movements during unlock periods or significant market events
5. Create custom Smart Segments to monitor specific wallet groups
6. Set up Smart Alerts for real-time notifications about significant token movements

Tools like Nansen provide comprehensive dashboards for visualizing these flows, helping you identify accumulation patterns, distribution signals, and potential market opportunities before they become obvious in price action.

### How to use Nansen?

To use Nansen effectively:

1. Start with the Fresh Wallet Dashboard to identify recently created wallets showing high-volume activity, which often signals intent or strategic positioning.
2. Utilize Token God Mode for comprehensive insights into specific tokens, including price data, major holders, Smart Money interactions, and exchange flows.
3. Track Smart Money movements through the Smart Money Dashboard, filtering by relevant time periods to identify tokens being accumulated or sold.
4. Monitor exchange flows to gauge potential buying or selling pressure, with inflows typically signaling selling intent and outflows indicating accumulation.
5. Create custom Smart Segments for targeted analysis across multiple tokens based on specific criteria.
6. Set up Smart Alerts to receive real-time notifications about significant token movements.
7. Cross-reference multiple data points for the most effective analysis, combining token flows, Smart Money activity, exchange movements, and other metrics.

### How to analyse crypto tokenomics?

Analyzing crypto tokenomics effectively combines several approaches:

1. Study token distribution patterns using tools like Token God Mode to identify major holders and their activities.
2. Monitor exchange inflows and outflows to gauge market sentiment and potential price movements.
3. Track Smart Money interactions with tokens to identify accumulation or distribution patterns by sophisticated investors.
4. Analyze token unlocks and subsequent movements, particularly whether tokens are held or transferred to exchanges.
5. Examine holder concentration metrics to understand if tokens are widely distributed or concentrated among a few addresses.
6. Review DEX trading patterns and liquidity provision to assess market depth and trading interest.
7. Monitor Fresh Wallet creation and subsequent behaviors, especially during significant events like airdrops or token unlocks.
8. Assess token utility and actual usage on-chain versus speculative trading.

For comprehensive analysis, combine these on-chain metrics with fundamental research about the token's utility, governance structure, and the team's execution capabilities.

Master token flow analysis with Nansen's blockchain intelligence tools. Learn to track Smart Money movements, exchange flows, and Fresh Wallet patterns for professional crypto market insights and institutional-grade investment intelligence.

How to analyze token flows with Nansen

![Meta-dex.png](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/Meta_dex_d3eff919a4.png)


You’ve probably heard of a DEX, or decentralized exchange. But you’re probably not as familiar with DEX aggregators and probably less so with Meta DEXes. Don’t worry, you’ve come to the right place.

  

Decentralized exchanges have evolved at a rapid pace. New features and new mechanisms have emerged that make trading safer, simpler, and more customizable.

  

In this article we’ll walk you through all the different types of DEX and why Meta DEXes give more options, more features, and more peace of mind.

## What is a DEX aggregator?

  

As a starting point, it’s important to understand the differences between the types of decentralized exchanges we’re talking about in this article.

  

A DEX aggregator is a platform that searches multiple decentralized exchanges to find the best prices for your trades. In the world of crypto, the price of an asset will vary depending on where, when and what medium you use to make a trade.

  

But finding the best price manually can be time-consuming. This is where a DEX aggregator comes in. They provide a single platform where multiple options for buying and selling can be seen on one page. They search platforms such as Balncer, Uniswap, and others for the best price for your trade, and you can complete a trade without having to visit those sites yourself.

  

DEX aggregators have become pivotal to the world of decentralized finance (DeFi) by providing a single trading platform for users looking to get the best deal on their swaps.

  

DEX aggregators also provide users with a secure, non-custodial trading experience, as trades are executed directly from the user’s wallet, instead of a user having to deposit funds to the aggregator’s wallet.

## But aren’t there different types of DEX aggregator?

  

Absolutely yes. As the crypto industry has matured, so has the sophistication of DEX aggregators. Today there are lots of different types of DEX aggregator that have different features. Below is an overview of some of them.

  

-  ** Smart Order Routing (SOR) aggregators**: These DEXes use algorithms to route orders to the best markets based on factors like price, liquidity, and trading volume. SOR systems analyze real-time market data and route orders based on factors such as price, volume, liquidity, and fees. This helps traders to optimize their trading strategies and reduce trading costs by accessing multiple markets simultaneously.
    
-   **Market Maker aggregators:** These aggregators create their own liquidity by acting as market makers for and across multiple DEXs.
    
-   **Hybrid aggregators:** Combine the advantages of SOR and market maker aggregators to provide a more flexible and personalized trading experience.
    
-   **Liquidity aggregators:** Specialize in combining liquidity from multiple DEXs
    
-   **Intent-based DEX aggregators:** Offer personalized liquidity sourcing and optimized trade execution. More on these later.
    
-   **Meta DEX aggregators:** These take the DEX idea further again, by aggregating other DEX aggregators, to create one super aggregator. We’ll dive into these in a bit.
    

  

By now you’ll start to see that the DEX ecosystem is complex. DEX aggregators can help you find the best prices for your trades without you having to do all the work. But there are other reasons too why you might consider them.

### Benefits of Using a DEX Aggregator

  

DEX aggregators provide a number of benefits, simplifying trading and providing better outcomes for users. Below is a summary of some of the other benefits they can offer traders, too.

  

-   **Better Prices:** DEX aggregators look across multiple on-chain decentralized exchanges to find the best prices for any given token pair. Since most on-chain trading relies on [automated market makers (AMMs)](https://cow.fi/learn/cow-protocol-glossary#:~:text=amm), liquidity may be fragmented across various exchanges. As their name suggests, aggregators collect this liquidity in one place, giving traders the best deal for their swaps.
    
-  **Convenience:** By using a DEX aggregator, traders can reliably get good prices for their trades in one place without having to check multiple exchanges.
    
-   **Price Impact Protection**: Fragmented liquidity can sometimes make for shallow pools, meaning large trades experience significant [price impact](https://blog.cow.fi/cow-protocol-glossary-ad7313a2c71#:~:text=Price%20Impact). Aggregators can break up trades across multiple exchanges, reducing price impact and providing better prices.
    
-   **MEV Protection:** In the case of intent-based DEX aggregators, solvers execute trades on behalf of users—protecting them from price exploitation in the form of [maximal extractable value (MEV)](https://cow.fi/learn/understanding-mev-protection).
    

  

Fragmented liquidity often makes finding the best route for trades difficult. DEX aggregators bring this liquidity back together and take the work of finding the best prices off the backs of users.

  

But not all DEX aggregators are created equally. That’s why in the next section we’ll be looking at Meta DEX aggregators and how they’re shaping the future direction of DeFi.

## What is a Meta DEX Aggregator?

  

Meta DEX aggregators are a step up from traditional aggregators. As the “meta” name implies, they aggregate DEX aggregators. This leads to better liquidity coverage across more venues, while still providing users with a single interface for their trades.

  

Why would you want to aggregate an aggregator? There are many reasons. The first is that DEX and DEX aggregators have strong points and weak points. Some are better for large trades, others for small trades, and some are better across certain trading pairs. There’s a good bit of research on the strengths and weaknesses of DEX aggregators [here](https://jumper.exchange/learn/dex-aggregator). A meta DEX negates those weak points, by routing your trade to the DEX that is strong for the type of trade you’re trying to do.

  

Another key reason for a Meta DEX Aggregator is that it can integrate features not found on the DEXes themselves. We’ll discuss this more in our next section.

## CoW Swap - the Meta DEX built differently

  

CoW Swap is an Intent-Based Meta DEX Aggregator. Intent-based aggregators are the most advanced type of DEX aggregator out there.

  

That’s because they not only aggregate on-chain liquidity across exchanges and other aggregators, they also delegate execution to third parties known as “solvers.” These third parties provide additional sources of liquidity by including private inventory and, in certain cases, even matching trades peer-to-peer. This avoids protocol fees and makes for the most efficient trades in DeFi.

  

But there’s more. As a Meta-DEX, CoW Swap brings additional features, such as MEV Protection.

  

MEV or “maximal extractable value” is a hidden tax on all types of Ethereum transactions. Any time you make a DeFi trade, buy or sell an NFT, or lend tokens to a liquidity pool, opportunistic users known as “searchers” may manipulate your trades, resulting in unfavorable prices, failed transactions, and missed opportunities. With CoW Swap, you have no such worry.

  

That’s because this Meta DEX has built in MEV protection, so bots cannot see your trades. Find out how CoW Swap keeps [bots out of your business here](https://cow.fi/learn/mev-blockers-explained-how-they-protect-users).

  

Another feature found in a meta DEX like CoW Swap is different order types. Most DEXes have some order type functionality, CoW Swap goes further. Below is a list of the different types of orders you can do with CoW Swap.

  

-   **[Market orders](https://docs.cow.fi/cow-protocol/concepts/order-types/market-orders)** - buy or sell tokens as soon as possible at the current market rate.
    
-   **[Limit orders](https://docs.cow.fi/cow-protocol/tutorials/cow-swap/limit)** - set your own parameters for how much you are willing to buy and sell.
    
-   **[TWAP orders](https://cow.fi/learn/getting-to-grips-with-time-weighted-average-price-twap-orders)** - allows traders to spread their trade over a specified period of time.
    
-   **[Programmatic orders](https://docs.cow.fi/cow-protocol/concepts/order-types/programmatic-orders#:~:text=CoW%20Protocol's%20Programmatic%20Order%20Framework,elapsed%2C%20and%20much%20more).)** - create conditional orders that execute when certain on-chain conditions are met (such as asset prices, wallet balances, time elapsed, and much more)
    
-   **[Milkman orders](https://cow.fi/learn/what-is-milkman-cow-swaps-solution-for-delayed-execution-trading)**- delayed execution trading: set and forget your trades for optimum conditions.
    
-   **[CoW Hooks](https://docs.cow.fi/cow-protocol/concepts/order-types/cow-hooks)**- allow users to pair any Ethereum action (or set of actions) with an order on CoW Protocol, leveraging the [solvers](https://docs.cow.fi/cow-protocol/concepts/introduction/solvers) to execute the actions together in the sequence.
    

  

In summary, CoW Swap brings you class-leading MEV protection, liquidity access and custom order types to let you do more with less worry.

## So why should you use CoW Swap for your trades?

  

CoW Swap takes the world of DEX aggregators and takes it to the next level. CoW Swap is not only the largest intent-based aggregator, it’s also one of the largest DEX aggregators. In November 2024, it [handled $6.2 billion in trading volume](https://x.com/CoWSwap/status/1869017209345130511), and is trusted by thousands of traders.

  

Whales and DAOs (as well as retail users) rely on CoW Swap as their aggregator of choice too because CoW Swap does more than just aggregate liquidity. It also provides comprehensive [MEV protection](https://cow.fi/learn/understanding-mev-protection) and enables price optimizations — such as [CoWs](https://cow.fi/learn/what-are-cows-on-cow-swap) — that traditional aggregators can’t. Thanks to its intent-based architecture, CoW Swap supports 22 solvers that compete with each other to find the best prices for each user trade, and even provide a price surplus on top.

  

While other aggregators claim to provide the best prices, CoW Swap’s architecture is built from the ground up to incentivize the best prices and the most surplus for trades, all in an easy-to-use, worry-free interface.

  

Give CoW Swap a try for yourself at [swap.cow.fi](https://swap.cow.fi/#/swap?utm_source=medium&utm_campaign=dex-aggregator-article).

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Meta DEXes are the next step in the DeFi journey. Find out what they are and why you should be using them. 

What is a Meta DEX - and why should you use it for your trades? 

![MEV Blocker I GasHawk.png](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/MEV_Blocker_I_Gas_Hawk_88f1208a72.png)

[GasHawk](https://www.gashawk.io/), the service that optimizes trading times to help users save on gas fees has integrated MEV Blocker to help set a new standard for cost-efficiency and security in DeFi.

CoW DAO has always been at the forefront of providing users with the most efficient and secure DeFi trading experience. Its innovative Order Flow Auctions (OFAs) with a batch auction on the application layer and MEV Blocker auction at the builder level has transformed the way people trade, offering protection from Maximal Extractable Value (MEV) attacks and ensuring fairer execution for all users.

With GasHawk integrating MEV blocker, users will not only benefit from MEV protection but also enjoy lower gas costs for their Ethereum transactions.

### Enhanced Transaction Security with MEV Protection

The partnership between CoW DAO and GasHawk ensures that on-chain users continue to be protected from MEV attacks like front-running and sandwich attacks, all while benefiting from automated gas optimization.

### Seamless and Fast Block Inclusion

Ensuring that trades are confirmed quickly and efficiently. GasHawk’s users will experience not only lower gas fees but also faster block inclusion times. This combination of gas efficiency and speed creates an unmatched user experience.

### No Extra Cost for Optimization

GasHawk users will automatically benefit from MEV Blocker optimization without any additional fees or configurations. It’s an effortless way to save on gas while benefiting from MEV protection, all rolled into one smooth experience.

### More Value with Every Transaction

By optimizing gas fees and protecting against MEV, GasHawk users will see more value retained in every trade. Whether you’re a regular DeFi trader or simply someone looking to make the most of your transactions, this integration offers the best of both worlds—efficient gas usage and secured transactions.

GasHawk’s integration of MEV Blocker marks a new chapter for DeFi traders. Users will benefit from the dual advantages of secure, MEV-protected trades and optimized gas fees, all while enjoying CoW DAO’s fast and efficient block inclusion times.

As the DeFi space continues to evolve, we’re proud to be at the cutting edge, offering tools and partnerships that provide tangible value to our community.

With this new integration, CoW DAO and GasHawk users can enjoy a more streamlined, cost-effective, and secure trading experience like never before.

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CoW DAO partners with GasHawk to combine intelligent submission strategies with MEV protection and rebates.


GasHawk integrates MEV Blocker to help raise security and lower costs 

![cover-CoW Swap-Base.png](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/cover_Co_W_Swap_Base_25636981fa.png)
CoW DAO is, for the first time, launching its suite of products: CoW Swap, CoW Protocol, and very soon, CoW AMM—on Base, a rapidly growing blockchain ecosystem known for its low fees and experimental culture.

First to launch is CoW Swap. Its deployment brings gasless, competitive-price trades with MEV protection to Base users for the first time.

Traders who already use CoW Swap on Ethereum mainnet and love its features can now seamlessly switch to Base inside CoW Swap’s existing UI with the touch of a button. You no longer need to leave CoW Swap to trade on the world’s fastest growing L2.

This launch positions CoW DAO as a foundational player in the Base ecosystem, targeting both traders and developers, while extending CoW DAO’s suite of products, which are now available to users on Ethereum, Gnosis Chain, Arbitrum and now, Base.

## Base, with Benefits

For Base users, CoW Swap’s arrival onchain offers flexibility and experimentation for those who demand more than simple swaps found on run-of-the-mill DEXes. The world’s most loved DEX brings different order types including:

  

-   [Market orders](https://docs.cow.fi/cow-protocol/concepts/order-types/market-orders) - buy or sell tokens as soon as possible at the current market rate.
    
-   [Limit orders](https://docs.cow.fi/cow-protocol/tutorials/cow-swap/limit) - set your own parameters for how much you are willing to buy and sell.
    
-   [TWAP orders](https://cow.fi/learn/getting-to-grips-with-time-weighted-average-price-twap-orders) - allows traders to spread their trade over a specified period of time.
    
-   [Programmatic orders](https://docs.cow.fi/cow-protocol/concepts/order-types/programmatic-orders#:~:text=CoW%20Protocol's%20Programmatic%20Order%20Framework,elapsed%2C%20and%20much%20more).) - create conditional orders that execute when certain on-chain conditions are met (such as asset prices, wallet balances, time elapsed, and much more)
    
-   [Milkman orders](https://cow.fi/learn/what-is-milkman-cow-swaps-solution-for-delayed-execution-trading) - delayed execution trading: set and forget your trades for optimum conditions.
    
-   [CoW Hooks](https://docs.cow.fi/cow-protocol/concepts/order-types/cow-hooks) - allow users to pair any Ethereum action (or set of actions) with an order on CoW Protocol, leveraging the [solvers](https://docs.cow.fi/cow-protocol/concepts/introduction/solvers) to execute the actions together in the sequence.
    

## Base, with better prices

  

CoW Swap's unique intent-based trading model brings better prices to Base thanks to the way it batches trades. That’s because, on CoW Swap, solvers do the hard work of finding the best prices to execute your trades.

  

Solvers can access multiple sources of liquidity, including those off-chain, ensuring when you trade on CoW Swap, you can rest assured that your trade is traveling along the best execution path for you.

On CoW Swap, solvers search for liquidity from three distinct sources:

-   AMMs (e.g. Uniswap, Sushiswap, Balancer, Curve, etc.)
    
-   DEX Aggregators (e.g. 1inch, Paraswap, Matcha, etc.)
    
-   Private Market Makers - Solvers can tap into private market maker liquidity and also their own inventory.
    
-   [Coincidence of Wants](https://docs.cow.fi/cow-protocol/concepts/how-it-works/coincidence-of-wants) - CoW Swap can complete trades by pairing buyers and sellers together in what’s called a Coincidence of Wants resulting in better prices that cant be offered by AMMs or market makers.
    

  

The wide range of liquidity that solvers tap into makes CoW Swap a meta-DEX aggregator, or an aggregator of aggregators. Now Base users get the full benefits of this unique system.

## Base, with built-in MEV Protection

MEV or “maximal extractable value” is a hidden tax on all types of Ethereum transactions. Any time you make a DeFi trade, buy or sell an NFT, or deposit tokens to a liquidity pool, opportunistic users known as “searchers” or MEV bots, may manipulate your trades, resulting in unfavorable prices, failed transactions, and missed opportunities. Not so on CoW Swap.

  

The protocol uses a unique trading mechanism that relies on batch auctions and intents to achieve the best protection from these malicious bots, and thus give the best outcome for users.

  

Thanks to a powerful combination of delegated trade execution, batch auctions, and protected transaction flow through MEV Blocker, CoW Swap users benefit from thorough MEV protection on all trades.

## A battle tested DEX for Base

  

CoW Swap handles billions of dollars worth of volume safely and securely. In November 2024, it settled twice as much volume as all other intent based trading platforms combined, ensuring more than $6 billion worth of trades took place without a blip.

  

No wonder CoW Swap has the highest retention rate among any DEX on any chain.

## Base for Developers

  

CoW Swap’s deployment on Base brings with it CoW Protocol. DeFi builders interested in integrating secure, efficient infrastructure for trade execution now have a new ally.

  

CoW Protocol’s APIs enable developers to create innovative applications while ensuring their users benefit from secure and reliable transactions.

The protocol’s battle-tested backend ensures reliable execution, addressing the trust gap that Base developers may have with smaller or newer projects.

## Base, this is just the beginning

  

CoW DAO is looking to bring more of its products onchain to Base, including CoW AMM. CoW Protocol’s automated market maker has built-in loss versus rebalancing (LVR) protection. This ensures LPs retain profits even during rebalancing events, a unique offering compared to other AMMs that let arbitrageurs take advantage of their LPs on Base.

  

But it doesn’t stop there.

CoW AMM’s ability to handle pools with multiple tokens positions it as a "DeFi ETF," offering a diversified, set-it-and-forget-it solution for LPs and investors on Base.

CoW DAO is on a mission to make the DeFi world safer, and more secure. By deploying CoW Swap on Base, users are able to do more and worry less.

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CoW DAO is bringing its class leading DEX to Base, with other products to follow

CoW DAO deploys on Base

![MEV Blockers explained.png](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/MEV_Blockers_explained_59b1dc3f93.png)
MEV or “maximal extractable value” is a hidden tax on all types of Ethereum transactions. Any time you make a DeFi trade, buy or sell an NFT, or lend tokens to a liquidity pool, opportunistic users known as “searchers” may manipulate your trades, resulting in unfavorable prices, failed transactions, and missed opportunities. Enter the MEV Blocker.

  

MEV Blockers are a relatively new piece of blockchain infrastructure. Their role is simple: protect orders from price exploitation resulting from MEV. But how do they work?

  

In this article, we’ll be exploring how MEV Blockers work, the technology behind them, and how you can use them in your own trades.

  

**Hint: use [MEV Blocker.](https://cow.fi/mev-blocker)**

  
  

## What is MEV?

First, it’s important to understand what we mean when we say MEV, as there are a number of different facets to it.

  

Blockchain technology is great at ensuring the validity of all transactions and creating new blocks with no downtime, however, not all transactions are ordered in the same manner that they are submitted.

  

While block producers have full autonomy over selecting which transactions to include in each block, they usually opt to maximize profits by ordering transactions based on who pays the highest gas price. This means that validators may re-order transactions before creating the block. Re-ordering transactions with a profit motive are known as “maximal extractable value” (MEV).

  

In other words, MEV is the profit extracted by miners or other actors in the blockchain network who insert, remove, and re-order transactions.

  

According to [Flashbots](https://www.flashbots.net/), a research and development organization focusing on MEV, well over $1 billion in MEV has been extracted just since The Merge. This value is only the recorded amount paid out to Ethereum validators; the attackers themselves have earned much more.

  

MEV creates a set of skewed incentives. On certain days, Ethereum validators earn more ETH from extracting MEV than from network fees themselves.

  

Some MEV activities are indeed legitimate, as the practice makes sure that transactions are ordered in an optimal way. Overall, however, the practice creates unfair advantages for a small minority.

  

## The different types of MEV attacks

  

Digging into MEV more specifically, what’s important to know is that there are several different types of MEV that attack different

### Frontrunning attacks

  

Frontrunning is when a bot sees a profitable transaction in a public mempool, duplicates it, and places their own order in front of the victim transaction, extracting its value for themselves.

### Backrunning attacks

  

These attacks are similar to frontrunning but in reverse. In backrunning, the attacker places a transaction after the victim transaction to capitalize on any arbitrage left by the victim’s order. Frontrunning and backrunning transactions are not very common by themselves, but a combination of the two, known as a “sandwich attack,” accounts for most MEV.

### Sandwich attacks

  

Sandwich attacks combine frontrunning and backrunning, placing a buy order before the victim transaction and a sell order directly after. This creates a “sandwich” of the victim transaction.

  

How is MEV even possible?

MEV is possible because validators are free to order blockchain transactions as they see fit in order to maximize their profits. Proof-of-stake (PoS) blockchains such as Ethereum use parties known as “validators” in order to ensure that the consensus rules of the blockchain are followed by all participants.

  

Validators get randomly selected to add the next block to the blockchain. In this process, they determine what transactions are included in the block, and in what order.

  

When you submit a transaction on Ethereum, it does not immediately get added to the next block. Instead,

it first goes into the “mempool” which is the collection of all pending transactions. Validators then pull transactions from the mempool and add them to the next block when it’s time for it to be built.

  

Here is where the opportunity to extract value through MEV comes in.

  

Validators are not required to add transactions to the block in the same order that they were submitted by users, so searchers can pay validators a fee to order transactions in a specific way. For example, they can pay to have their transactions come first if they want to frontrun someone else, or they can pay to have their transactions come right after a specific transaction if they want to perform a backrun — both are types of MEV.

  

So now that we understand how MEV works, how does an MEV Blocker stop all of this?

  

## What does an MEV Blocker do?

  

An MEV blocker is a piece of blockchain infrastructure that protects orders from price exploitation resulting from MEV (Maximal extractable value).

  

Under the hood, it’s [RPC endpoints](https://www.quicknode.com/docs/ethereum) that function as MEV Blockers by routing transactions through specialized mempools which protect them from MEV and even send rebates back to traders when their trades leave money on the table.

  

There’s a lot of moving parts when it comes to MEV blockers, so let’s break the topic down one step at a time.

## How do MEV Blockers Work?

  

Since MEV relies on [reordering transactions](https://cow.fi/learn/understanding-mev-protection) from the order in which they were submitted to a new, more profitable order, it’s possible to cut the process short by sending transactions to a specialized network of searchers bound by unique rules that ensure favorable execution for users.

  

These searchers cannot frontrun or sandwich transactions. Rather, they capture value by [backrunning](https://cow.fi/learn/what-is-backrunning-mev-attacks-explained) large orders and sending a large portion of the backrunning profits back to the users as a rebate. So, as a user, you’re not only protecting yourself from harmful price exploitation in the form of frontrunning and sandwich attacks, but you also have someone looking out for you any time you leave money on the table.

  

## What is an RPC endpoint?

  

We mentioned earlier that under the hood, MEV blockers run through RPC endpoints. An RPC endpoint is a communication layer between the blockchain and a user’s wallet. RPC endpoints relay messages from the wallet that [RPC nodes](https://www.alchemy.com/overviews/rpc-node) use to add orders to the blockchain.

  

RPC endpoints are the perfect place for MEV protection because they are an intermediary layer between the wallet and the blockchain, safely re-routing transactions towards the specialized network of searchers we mentioned earlier, rather than letting them end up in the public [mempool](https://www.blocknative.com/blog/mempool-intro) where malicious searchers lie in wait.

  

## What are Order Flow Auctions and how do they help MEV Blockers do their job?

  

MEV Blocker RPCs rely on a blockchain mechanism known as [order flow auctions](https://cow.fi/learn/understanding-order-flow-auctions). Order flow auctions are bidding mechanisms used at various levels of the Ethereum stack which pit multiple execution parties against each other to find the one that can provide users with the best value for their transaction.

  

Currently, block building incentivizes MEV extraction by awarding the privileges of creating the next block to the builder who can extract the most value from the trades. Order flow auctions invert this dynamic — incentivizing auction participants (in the case of MEV blockers, this is the specialized network of searchers) to instead find as large of a rebate as possible for the user submitting the transaction.

  

The searcher who bids the most to backrun a trade wins the auction, capturing some small value of the proceeds for themselves and sending the rest back to the user as a rebate.

  

## So, should you use an MEV Blocker?

  

While many people have yet to learn about MEV blockers, they’re quickly being adopted by some of the most savvy traders to protect their trades, NFT swaps, LP positions, and more. MEV is an increasingly significant problem for traders of all sizes and MEV blockers are designed to outsmart the searchers with the latest innovations in market mechanics.

  

You may have heard that MEV is only a problem for large trades, but as searchers get more and more sophisticated, this is becoming less true. Searchers can also extract value from small trades, especially in volatile markets, and beginner traders are especially susceptible to price exploitation as they may not yet know how to protect themselves.

  

MEV blockers provide robust protection. As a user, you install the MEV blocker through your wallet and forget about it, meanwhile it’s quietly protecting you from price exploitation and even forwarding rebates from any money your trades leave on the table.

  

[CoW DAO](https://cow.fi/) became a first mover in the MEV blocker space when it introduced [MEV Blocker](https://mevblocker.io/) (yes, we coined the term) in April of 2023.

  

MEV Blocker (capital “B”) is an RPC endpoint developed by CoW DAO in collaboration with [Beaver Build](https://beaverbuild.org/) and [Agnostic Relay](https://agnostic-relay.net/) that’s built to protect Ethereum transactions from frontrunning and sandwich attacks.

  

MEV Blocker sends transactions to a mempool of searchers who bid for the opportunity to backrun the trades, sharing any profits 90/10 with users (90% to users, 10% to searchers.)

  

To join [over 2 million Ethereum users receiving nearly 4,000 ETH](https://dune.com/cowprotocol/mev-blocker) in rebates, add MEV Blocker to your wallet by following the instructions [here](https://mevblocker.io/).

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MEV Blockers are a relatively new piece of blockchain infrastructure. Their role is simple: protect orders from price exploitation resulting from MEV. But how do they work? 


MEV Blockers Explained

![Understanding-TWAP.png](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/Understanding_TWAP_2576b17b16.png)

Have you TWAP’d yet? No? You’re in the right place. TWAPs, or Time-Weighted Average Price (TWAP) orders are a unique type of trade that lets users apply a number of different parameters to their trades.

  

TWAPs have been around for a while on centralized exchanges, but CoW TWAP — CoW Swap’s version of TWAP — comes with several important benefits that traders won’t find on CEX alternatives. Curious?

  

The below guide will take you through what TWAPs, when should you use it, and most importantly, how to use them on CoW Swap.

## What is a TWAP order?

  

TWAP orders allow traders to spread their trade over a specified period of time. In essence: a TWAP order consists of multiple smaller orders placed at regular intervals over a predefined time period. You decide on the intervals, the number of parts, and other key factors including total duration and part duration.

  

The "Total duration" is the duration it takes to execute all parts of your TWAP order. Let’s say your order consists of two parts placed every 30m, the total time to complete the order is1h. Each limit order remains open for 30m until the next part becomes active.

  

The "Part duration" meanwhile, refers to the duration between each part of your TWAP order. You can choose a shorter time to allow for faster execution of each part, potentially reducing price fluctuations. Or go for a longer duration if you’re looking to even out your trades over time.

  

Then there’s the “sell per part” and “buy per part” options. Sell per part is the estimated amount that will be sold in each part of the order. Buy per part is the estimated amount that will receive in each part of the order.

  

Last, but not least, a TWAP order allows you to specify a unique feature called Price Protection.

  

Expressed as a percentage, price protection is a feature that will stop your order from executing if the market price of your token dips more than your set price protection. So let’s say you set 10% as your price protection. Your start your twap, but before the first part of the trade is due to complete, the price of your asset drops by 12%. Because the price has dropped below the threshold you set, the trade is stopped.

  

This set-and-forget feature means you can manage your trades in more flexible ways.

## Why Should You TWAP?

  

Is ultimate control over your future trades not enough? There are several additional reasons why TWAP should be part of your DeFi arsenal.

### Dollar-cost averaging (DCA) becomes quick and easy

  

Let’s see you’re a trader and you’ve spotted a promising project you want to buy tokens over some time as part of a dollar-cost averaging (DCA) investment strategy. DCA involves investing a fixed amount of money in an asset at regular intervals, regardless of the asset’s price, to reduce the impact of market volatility.

  

In the highly volatile world of crypto, there’s always a chance you might make a large investment just before a sudden drop. ByTWAP minimizes this risk by breaking down your investment into smaller, evenly distributed purchases over time.

  

Let’s say you’re not exactly sure when’s the right time to hit the “Swap” button. With TWAP orders, you can set and forget your trade and forget about trying to find the perfect moment to trade.

  

Thinking about selling assets using a DCA strategy? You can do that too. Investors can also use TWAP to sell their positions through dollar-cost averaging. Simply switch the assets you’re swapping and TWAP will help you exit the market for an average price.

### Reduce your price impact

  

If you’ve dabbled in the world of small-cap cryptocurrencies you’ll be aware that making large trades can often mean you get a lot less than what you were planning. That’s where TWAPs come in.

  

By splitting up large trades into multiple smaller orders, TWAP helps mitigate the negative effects of price impact. A bunch of smaller orders affect liquidity pools, and therefore prices, much less than one big order, meaning you end up getting a better deal for your trades.

## When should you TWAP?

  

There are lots of different occasions when TWAP orders may be more beneficial than regular swaps. Below are a few examples.

### When you want to sell your small cap tokens

  

Built up a war chest of small caps but can’t seem to exit? TWAP orders can be useful for breaking up the trade into chunks. Trying to push large trades in small caps can often face hurdles. But with TWAP you can set your trade to execute over periods as long as a month and in multiple chunks, helping you exit small caps in one go.

### When you’re trying to reduce your slippage

  

If you’re trying to keep your slippage low, using TWAP to split up a large order into smaller parts allows you to use a smaller slippage tolerance for each part. TWAP orders are also protected from MEV, helping protect your trades. The MEV bots can look elsewhere.

### When you want to receive 100% of your order surplus

  

On CoW Swap, all order surplus is forwarded to you. If your order executes for a better price than your quoted price — thanks to [Coincidence of Wants](https://cow.fi/learn/what-are-cows-on-cow-swap) or any other price improvement that solvers are able to find — the extra price improvement will be forwarded to you.

### When you’re trying to navigate volatile prices

  

By giving traders the time-weighted average price, TWAP orders smooth out market volatility, which makes trying to predict prices a thing of the past.

### When you want to specify certain conditions or parameters

  

TWAP orders allow you to fine-tune your order by specifying the number of parts you’d like it split up into, as well as the time period you want it to execute over. On CoW Swap, TWAP orders also have a “price protection” option which protects your order from executing at an unfavorable price due to market volatility.

## How do you TWAP?

  

So now you know about all the features of TWAP orders, how do you get started? You’ll first need to ensure that you have a [Safe wallet](https://safe.global/wallet), one of the most trusted wallet providers in crypto.

  

Don’t have a Safe? No problem! Create one [here](https://app.safe.global/share/safe-app?appUrl=https%3A%2F%2Fswap.cow.fi&chain=eth). After you make a Safe, you’ll also need to upgrade your fallback handler. Learn what this means and how to do it [here](https://cow.fi/learn/all-you-need-to-know-about-cow-swap-new-safe-fallback-handler).

  

Once your Safe is fully set up, you can access TWAP directly through the [CoW Swap order interface](https://swap.cow.fi/#/1/advanced?utm_source=medium&utm_campaign=why-twap).

  

TWAP orders on Ethereum Mainnet have a $1,000 minimum per order part. This ensures that gas costs are relatively low compared to the entire order size, even with multiple parts involved. Smaller traders can also enjoy CoW TWAP on Gnosis Chain where part minimums are only $5 (and the gas is much cheaper!)

  

You can find the full how-to guide on CoW TWAP orders [here](https://cow.fi/learn/how-to-use-cow-swap-twap-orders-via-safe-wallet).

  

As a reminder, using TWAP orders with CoW Swap offers a number of additional benefits. These include:

-   All prices are aggregated from the best available on-chain and off-chain liquidity
    
-   Traders are fully protected from MEV
    
-   Orders are free to place and free to cancel
    
-   Traders never pay for failed transactions
    
-   Transactions are gasless as fees are paid in the sell token
    

### Getting to grips with the TWAP order interface
![Screenshot 2024-11-29 at 17.18.19.png](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/Screenshot_2024_11_29_at_17_18_19_fe5f650cc5.png)

To get started with TWAP orders through the [Safe](https://app.safe.global/) app, you will first need to authorize a transaction signing request that contains a batch of transactions.

  

This batch includes a “setFallbackHandler’’ function. TWAP orders are the first order type that runs on a new conditional order framework, super-charging your Safe.

  

In order for this framework to make complex trades on your behalf, an upgrade to Safe’s “fallback handler” is required. Don’t worry though, you will be automatically prompted to upgrade to use TWAP.

  

This framework allows you to do things like set fallbackhandler so that your Safe works with CoW Swap’s conditional framework. This means you can deploy your entire TWAP strategy, and trigger the first part of the TWAP in one go.

  

set up your safe works with CoW Swap conditional framework, immediately deploy my entire TWAP strategy, and trigger the first part/tx of the TWAP in one go.

  
  

The TWAP interface has several sections:

-   Trading Assets: Select the assets you want to swap and the amounts of each.
    
-   Price Protection: Provides protection against major price movements. Your TWAP order won’t execute if the market price dips more than this percentage (calculated from the asset price at the time of order submission).
    
-   Number of parts: Enter the number of parts you would like your order split into.
    
-   Total Duration: The total amount of time your order will take to execute.
    
-   Part Duration: Automatically calculated from your total duration and number of parts, part duration shows how long CoW Swap will wait between each part of your order.
    
-   Sell & Buy per part: Shows an estimate of how much CoW Swap will sell and buy with each part of your trade.
    

  

Each one is a simple toggle, all you have to do is set the parameters that work for you and you’re done.

  

Happy TWAP’ing!

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Have you TWAP’d yet? No? You’re in the right place. TWAPs, or Time-Weighted Average Price (TWAP) orders are a unique type of trade that lets users apply a number of different parameters to their trades. 

Getting to Grips with Time-Weighted Average Price (TWAP) orders

George Hristov


When CoW DAO released [CoW AMM](https://cow.fi/cow-amm), its goal was simple: help liquidity providers keep hold of their liquidity. Why was this a problem? Outside of stable-to-stable pools, liquidity providers typically lose 5-7% of their liquidity each year. It’s the dirty secret of automated market making: [hundreds of millions of dollars](https://cow.fi/cow-amm) of LP funds are stolen by arbitrageurs every year.

  

These losses are known as loss-versus-rebalancing (LVR). LVR is a bigger source of MEV than frontrunning and sandwich attacks combined. [CoW AMM](https://cow.fi/cow-amm) is the first product CoW DAO built that directly keeps LVR out of liquidity pools.

  

Since its inception, LPs have been protected from LVR, and also benefited from [CoW AMM](https://cow.fi/cow-amm)’s batch auction and solver system. This has meant LPs have enjoyed [additional surplus](https://dune.com/cowprotocol/cowamms), as solvers work to find the most effective way of rebalancing liquidity pools.

  

Providing liquidity on [CoW AMM](https://cow.fi/cow-amm) has changed the liquidity provider game to such an extent, CoW AMMs behave more like Enhanced Index Funds than the leaky pools of old.

  

In this article we explain why that’s happened, and what doors [CoW AMM](https://cow.fi/cow-amm)s open for more sophisticated pools in future. CoW AMMs are evolving, fast, meaning the possibilities for liquidity providers are changing too.

## What is an Index Fund?

  

An index fund is a type of mutual fund (a professionally managed investment portfolio that pools money from many investors to purchase securities) or exchange-traded fund (ETF) that tracks the performance of a specific index by buying stocks of every company in that index.

  

Index funds are a popular choice for investors because they are a low-cost way to diversify their investments, all the while being passive: no fund manager is actively creating an investment strategy, and charging hefty fees for the privilege. They are so popular, index funds, as well as other kinds of passive investors [hold 33.5% of the US stock](https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=4188052) market.

  

Index funds typically outperform hedge funds running fancy investment strategies. So much so, legendary investor Warren Buffett made a [$1 million bet](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/videos/2024-07-30/buffett-s-famous-bet-on-the-s-p-500-and-hedge-funds?sref=23bomWKL) in which he wagered that an S&P 500 index fund would outperform a hedge fund over ten years.

  

These funds can be designed to track anything from the price of a commodity to a large and diverse collection of securities. ETFs, or exchanged traded funds meanwhile, can be designed to track specific investment strategies. Those strategies could be for different purposes: income generation to speculation or to partly offset risk in an investor’s portfolio.

  

But these aren’t the only types of Index Funds. There are also Enhanced Index Funds, which we explore in the next section.

## What is an Enhanced Index Fund?

  

If an Index Fund is a passive fund, an enhanced index fund (EIF) is a fund that uses active management to improve returns. They typically use a combination of active and passive investing strategies to generate returns that are higher than the benchmark while keeping risk within a controlled level.

  

The ‘enhanced’ part of the Index Fund is where experts assess which assets inside an index are performing strongly, and which are performing poorly. Once identified, an EIF can be rebalanced, to increase the weighting of one asset, and reduce the asset for another to help the overall fund perform better.

  

This management falls under a broader category called portfolio theory. It is a branch of finance that studies how people should design their portfolios. At a super high level, it says that:

-   People should care both about expected returns and risk.
    
-   Holding multiple assets instead of a single asset (i.e., diversification) is valuable because it reduces risk.
    
-   The problem with diversification is deciding how much to invest in each asset, and several theories exist on how to do so. But broadly speaking, an asset should constitute a higher share (or weight) of the portfolio if its expected future return is high, its volatility is low, and its correlation with the rest of the portfolio is also low.
    

  

Now that we understand the principles behind Index Funds and Enhanced Index Funds, let’s turn to how [CoW AMM](https://cow.fi/cow-amm)s behave like EIFs, and what that means for crypto more broadly.

## What is a CoW AMM?

  

[CoW AMM](https://cow.fi/cow-amm) is the first product on any blockchain to tackle the Loss-Versus-Rebalancing problem head on.

  

LVR is a form of maximal extractable value (MEV) responsible for more price exploitation than all other forms of MEV combined. Many liquidity providers haven’t even heard of LVR, but it costs them 5–7% of their liquidity, resulting in hundreds of millions lost each year. In fact, when accounting for LVR, many of the largest liquidity pools are not profitable for LPs at all.

  

The [CoW AMM](https://cow.fi/cow-amm) is a special kind of automated market maker designed to help liquidity providers capture MEV from arbitrageurs.

  

Here’s how it works:

1.  Liquidity providers deposit tokens into protected [CoW AMM](https://cow.fi/cow-amm) liquidity pools
    
2.  This liquidity becomes available to CoW Swap traders, who can access it similarly to other sources of liquidity
    
3.  Solvers bid to rebalance [CoW AMM](https://cow.fi/cow-amm) pools whenever there is an arbitrage opportunity
    
4.  The solver that offers the most surplus to the pool wins the right to rebalance the pool
    

  

This design eliminates LVR by capturing arbitrage value for LPs and shielding it from MEV bots.

Said another way: while most AMMs allow arbitrageurs to make money at the expense of their LPs, CoW AMM protects this money for the LPs instead.

## Why does a CoW AMM act as an Enhanced Index Fund?

  

As highlighted in earlier sections, Index Funds passively follow an asset or strategy. Because LVR is removed, whenever prices change the AMM will be rebalanced so to make sure that its total TVL is split between the different assets in a pre-specified way: 50/50 for standard constant product, and 80/20 for 80/20 pools.

  

The AMM therefore behaves like a simple index with two components. But CoW AMM pools go one step further: liquidity providers earn trading fees whenever liquidity in the AMM is used to fulfil a user order.

  

Does this mean all liquidity pools can be considered to behave similarly to an Enhanced Index Fund. Not exactly. The simple answer is LVR. CoW AMM was the first on-chain product that solves this. Other pools leak liquidity meaning they aren’t as viable an option as a CoW AMM for investors looking for more consistent returns.

  

With the launch of 80/20 pools, LPs have more options. These pools now offer features including:

  

- Asymmetric upside

- Reduced impermanent loss

- Hedging

  

In essence, these pools can maximize exposure to the native token while providing an avenue to boost returns via trading fees and token rewards.

## But this is just the beginning

  

For now, this is limited to simple, fixed-weight rebalancing strategies, but in the future, more complex passive investment strategies will be possible. For example, a multi-token [CoW AMM](https://cow.fi/cow-amm) could have a “manager” who can change its weights and add and remove assets.

  

At present CoW AMM pools feature just two assets. But in future, CoW AMMs will be capable of hosting multi-asset pools. Over on Balancer, there are already [8-asset pools](https://medium.com/balancer-protocol/the-benefits-of-multi-token-pools-653eea3ef03a) featuring multiple tokens within a single pool.

  

Liquidity providers are able to set up their own pools with custom token splits and weights. This level of customization helps providers have full control over their portfolios and plan to reduce their exposure to risky assets. It also enables low-fee swaps for traders using those same pools.

  

CoW DAO has plans to bring multi-asset pools with customisable weights to liquidity providers in future with its class-leading LVR protection. They’re called Decentralized Trading Funds or DTFs.

  

The Decentralized Traded Fund offers the chance for holders to earn a passive income. It combines the ability to gain exposure to assets, but also the ability to enter and exit the fund whenever it is convenient. On top of that, a DTF does not require holders to pay a fee to CoW DAO. More on that in the coming weeks.

  

The end game is a market mechanism that allows retail investors who want to run simple passive investment strategies to do so by contributing liquidity to AMMs, while earning additional returns.

  

If traditional finance is an indication, these AMMs could attract up to a third of the total market cap of various assets as liquidity, providing super-efficient trading at close to zero slippage.

  

Decentralized finance will finally provide better market mechanisms than traditional finance, opening the door to rebuilding the financial system on blockchain rails.

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Thanks to CoW AMM's LVR busting capabilities, LPs can earn passive income, in new and exciting ways.

Why CoW AMMs Act as Enhanced Index Fund

![CoW-Case-Study-Qantura-main-image.png](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/Co_W_Case_Study_Qantura_main_image_3519f259be.png)
TL:DR

  

-   [Qantura](https://www.qantura.com/) provides a seamless integration layer that transforms how smart wallets engage with blockchain applications.
    
-   In order for their service to work, it needed a Meta DEX with built-in MEV protection to allow users to swap their yield tokens whenever they tap the VISA card to spend money on real-world items.
    
-   The Qantura team chose CoW Protocol to create a seamless way to rebalance customer wallets.
    
-   The result was a first-of-its-kind application that enables frictionless payments with yield-bearing assets.
    
-   Within the first month after the release, the project saw more than $100,000 USD settled.
    

## Introduction

  

CoW DAO builds products that help keep users safe. But it also builds products that other people can use and integrate. One of those is CoW Protocol. With its built-in MEV protection, simple user interface, customized order functionality, and ease of integration, projects looking for a way of providing better prices for its users while keeping them safe look no further.

## The client

  

[Qantura](https://www.qantura.com/) provides a seamless integration layer that transforms how smart wallets engage with blockchain applications. The company leverages account abstraction to simplify complex blockchain interactions while maintaining the highest security standards. Founded by crypto OGs and security experts, they're making it effortless for wallets to expand their capabilities using their plug-and-play modules. They have already partnered with industry leaders like [Zeal Wallet](https://www.zeal.app/) and [Gnosis Pay](https://gnosispay.com/).

## Identifying the problem and challenges

  

Historically, if someone wanted to pay in crypto, the merchant would have to accept that token directly or use a service provider that performed the conversion from cryptocurrency to cash. With Gnosis Pay, that’s no longer the case.

  

Gnosis Pay is the world’s first on-chain spending account with a Visa Debit Card linked to a self-custodial blockchain wallet, and thanks to [Monerium](https://monerium.com/), users with EURe, or GBPe stablecoins can now spend their currency anywhere where Visa is accepted, with a series of on-chain transactions taking place in the background. However, if a user leaves stablecoins sitting in their wallet, they’re not only missing out on yield farming but also on any capital appreciation they expect in other crypto assets.

  

Instead of simply having customers sit with idle capital on their Gnosis Pay account, Qantura wanted to offer users the opportunity to earn yield and spend that yield on whatever they liked. Qantura teamed up with Zeal and Gnosis Pay, to build a unique feature: allow customers to switch stablecoins to yield-bearing tokens in order to capture such yield, while still being able to spend money on real-world transactions.

  

While that sounds simple in theory, the devil was in the details. In order for all this to work, Qantura “needed a flexible system that worked for swapping any ERC20 token and that ensured users got competitive prices” says a member of Qantura’s team. Additionally, because most of their system is based on smart contracts, they needed a protocol that worked with [ERC1271](https://cow.fi/learn/eip-1271-explained) orders. This allowed them to have their smart contract sign the intent to trade transactions whenever the user actually tapped the card on a payment terminal.

  

Based on all these requirements, the team needed a solution that offered smart contract orders that could be customised to suit what they were building. So they turned to CoW Protocol.

## Working with CoW

  

The team were already familiar with CoW DAO’s suite of products and services, and had been regular users of CoW Swap already.

  

“CoW Protocol offered the flexibility we needed as far as token breadth goes via ERC1271 orders, and its off-chain solver competition did it for us in terms of offering a mechanism that incentivised competitive pricing in rebalancing trades.”  
  
Qantura systems use ERC-1271 smart contract signature verification for order placement. This means that when the user account is deployed, (aka the user wants to earn yield on the funds sitting on their Gnosis Pay card), the yield token is immediately approved on the CoW Protocol settlement contract.

  

This means that now, any third party can create an order as long as it satisfies the wallet’s isValidSignature() function, which in this case would be “Swap my yield token to EURe/GBPe with the best price you can find so that the user can rebalance their card after paying for the coffee bill”. For this to happen, the system places the order via CoW Protocol’s orderbook, which is eventually forwarded to solvers as part of the batch auction process.

  

While monitoring performance, Qantura analyzed nearly 4,000 trades and compared their settled sDAI/EURe prices with a proxy oracle. There’s no oracle in Gnosis chain for sDAI/EURe, so they built a sDAI/EURe proxy oracle instead.  
  

CoW Swap’s unique solver system delivered the most competitive prices than any other venue, and was on par to the comparison model.
![cow-protocol-case-study-qantura.jpeg](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/cow_protocol_case_study_qantura_4232e2e475.jpeg)


The graph above highlights Cow Swap’s performance against the price oracle. The median percentage difference between the price of the proxy oracle and CoW Protocol´s found price was just 9 basis points, meaning users typically paid just 0.09% more than the oracle. In the figure, the blue outliers are small amounts of around 1 sDAI.

## The solution

  

The finished product? Recharge. Built in partnership with Zeal Wallet and Gnosis Pay, it allows users to spend yield-bearing tokens via Gnosis Chain in the real world with a Visa card. In the backend, meanwhile, a complex rebalancing takes place to ensure assets are able to be converted for a competitive price and moved to the right places at the right time. It’s a unique showcase of what happens when TradFi meets DeFi composability.

  

Where does CoW Protocol feature in this unique solution? CoW Protocol was integral to ensuring that when rebalancing happens, the execution cost is as low as possible and the best price is achieved.

How does Recharge work? Let’s look at an example. But before you do, we need to clarify a few terms:

  

-   EURe - this is the first fully authorized and regulated euro stablecoin.
    
-   sDAI - or Savings DAI is a token that allows users to earn yield from holding DAI.
    
-   Recharge Smart Contracts - Recharge is a feature that allows Zeal wallet users to maintain a minimum amount of a given currency at any time via the Coordinator. When the amount drops below a threshold, the wallet automatically rebalances itself by swapping one currency for another. In this example, we’ll be using sDAI and EURe. The Coordinator is a smart contract that starts the rebalance once a threshold has been reached.
    

  

### Let’s take a closer look at an example:
![Screenshot 2024-10-25 at 8.39.00 AM.png](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/Screenshot_2024_10_25_at_8_39_00_AM_db0ac99d12.png)


-   (1) Alice pays 5 EURe with her Gnosis Pay card. Before that, Alice had set up rebalance with sDAI and EURe.
    

  

-   (2) Prior to the transaction at the coffee shop, Alice had 1,000 EURe in her Gnosis Pay safe account.
    

  

-   (3) She had also set up her Coordinator smart contract to top up whenever her wallet dropped below 1,000 EURe.
    

  

-   (4a) Qantura's automation service detects Alice’s setup and notices that the new balance of the account is 995 EURe. This takes her below the threshold.
    

  

-   (4b) The service sees that Alice holds 5K sDAI, enough to top up the account.
    

  

-   (4c) The bot drafts the rebalance order, making sure that it meets all conditions specified by the sDAI account including that the order is:
    

  

-   Selling sDAI
    
-   Buying EURe
    
-   Issuing a buy order for 5 EURe
    
-   Sending the funds to the intended receiver; i.e., the user’s Gnosis Pay Safe
    

  

-   (4d) A bot posts the order to CoW Protocol’s orderbook.
    

  

-   (5) The order is forwarded to all solvers as part of the auction process, where they compete to provide the best possible price at the lowest execution cost.
    

  

-   (6) CoW Protocol executes the winning solution, sending 5 EURe to the Gnosis Pay Safe and pulling the sDAI from Alice's sDAI account. The amount pulled is determined by the auction.
    

  

-   (7) Alice's Gnosis Pay Safe is now balanced again.
    

  

CoW Protocol is instrumental in allowing this to happen smoothly. CoW Protocol´s competition pushes solvers to get as much surplus as possible. In the case of Alice, solvers will submit a solution that gets 5 EURe for the least amount of sDAI.

  

## The result

  

Since Recharge launched, more than $100,000 USD has been settled. At the time of writing, there is more than 300k USD generating yield for users. You can follow live metrics on [Qantura's Recharge Dashboard](https://dune.com/steakhouse/qantura-rebalance).

  

Qantura is revolutionizing the payments industry by allowing users to remain capital-efficient in a self-custodial setup. That’s a tall order. But then again, CoW DAO is the place people go to build big things.

## CTA

  

Want to get in touch with Qantura for more details about their solution powered by CoW Swap? [Get in touch with Qantura](https://x.com/QanturaTech).

  

Want to work with CoW DAO’s class-leading suite of products? [Head this way](https://forum.cow.fi/).

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Welcome to CoW Case Studies: in this series we explore how partners used CoW Protocol to build their products.

How Qantura Harnessed CoW Swap To Power the Future of Payments

When it comes to making high volume trades, experts love CoW Swap. In the last few months, several high profile traders have all taken advantage of CoW Swap’s unique feature set to settle trades involving large amounts of tokens. DAOs and multisig wallets have also used CoW Swap to complete large volume trades. But why?

  

This article is going to explain why CoW Swap has become the go to meta-DEX for pros.

  

TL:DR it’s because CoW DAO has a number of unique features that gives traders more control over their assets.

  

## CoW Swap Reduces Slippage

[Slippage](https://cow.fi/learn/what-is-slippage-in-crypto) is the amount the price of an asset may vary between the time the trade is placed and the time it actually executes.

  

To better understand slippage, let’s take a look at an example.

  

Let’s say a user places an order to buy 1 ETH while the price of ETH is exactly $3,000. By the time the order executes, however, ETH has shifted slightly in price and the user ends up only paying $2,980 for 1 ETH. The $20 difference between the $3,000 that they initially placed their order at and the $2,980 per ETH price that the order eventually executed for is known as slippage.

  

In the world of decentralized exchanges, users can set what’s called their slippage tolerance, how far from the price they want they are willing to accept - as a percentage.

  

When it comes to high volume trades, the amount of slippage that has to be set in order for a trade to complete can become prohibitive, especially when the trade is with a token with low liquidity. It’s also a key area for exploitation. MEV bots look for trades with high slippages in order to exploit price differences. But on CoW Swap, that doesn’t have to be the case, thanks to solvers.

  

Solvers are specialized actors that search for the best prices on transactions you want to execute. One of their roles is finding the best liquidity pathway for the tokens you want to trade. They do that in two distinct ways.

  

The first is aggregation. CoW Swap solvers search all major sources of liquidity. That includes the likes of 1inch, Uniswap, 0x, and Paraswap. A CoW Swap solver does the hard work of searching through all these sources looking for the best price. But solvers go one step further. They search off-chain liquidity sources, accessing liquidity pools that aren’t found on other DEXes. If they find the right source off-chain, they can secure a better price.

  

Another key function Solvers perform is they can and do split large trades between multiple liquidity sources to reduce price impact. If a trader went to one DEX and attempted to make one single transaction, it would have a bigger impact on price. With CoW Swap, a solver will look for the most effective way to make your transaction by splitting it into smaller chunks across multiple DEXes.

  

Traders, too, have the option of breaking up their transactions into smaller chunks. They can do that via [TWAP Orders](https://cow.fi/learn/why-twap). Time-Weighted Average Price transactions, or TWAPs split the trade into lots of smaller trades over time. This helps manage the amount of slippage each trade will incur if you had made a large, single trade, thanks to a reduction in price impact.

## Protecting Slippage Tolerance

  

As we discussed in the previous section, slippage is a key part of trading in the DeFi space. Because markets never close, prices are always moving, meaning the price you sell and ultimate price you receive can often be different. While that’s a core part of the DeFi experience, another part is MEV.

  

Maximum Extractable Value is a feature that allows sophisticated actors to search the mem pool for transactions they can profit from. One of the most common attacks is to search for high slippage trades in the mem pool, and exploit them by placing trades in the queue either before or after your trade. For a full explanation of how [MEV works, step this way](https://cow.fi/learn/what-is-mev). With CoW Swap, traders do not have to worry: MEV protection is built in.

  

One of the key ways CoW Swap does that is with its Solver system. When solvers receive an order request, it is hidden from the mem pool, meaning no one can swoop in and exploit your slippage setting to make a quick buck.

  

Additionally, because the Solver system is a competition between different entities trying to find the best price, the system ensures the best prices - with the lowest slippage tolerance - wins. In other words, solvers are incentivised to find the best prices, and help achieve the biggest surplus, by finding paths that help protect against slippage tolerance attacks.

  

Lastly, when there’s a Coincidence of Wants - an economic phenomenon where two parties swap assets with one another peer-to-peer - buyers and sellers are matched directly, meaning the transaction cannot be attacked by bots lurking in the mem pool.

## Gives traders more than they ask for

The price we want and the price we get in crypto can and often is, different. On CoW Swap, there are a number of features that help traders get as close to the prices they want as possible - and sometimes even more!

  

This section explores one of the many ways CoW Swap helps give traders more than what they ask for.

### Coincidence of Wants (CoWs)

  

As discussed in the previous section, Coincidence of Wants are moments when a buyer and seller can complete a transaction directly. When this happens, sellers and buyers don’t incur the same fees or run the same risks as they might trying to complete an order on a DEX or centralized exchange.

  

That means better prices. How? When a buyer and a seller are involved in a CoW, they don’t incur the usual fees to use an AMM - which can add up if it's a large transaction.

### Privileged Pricing for Traders

  

Using CoW Swap directly often means traders can gain access to prices only reserved for pros! CoW Swap’s unique relationship with projects like Balancer allows traders to access reduced fees, [by as much as 75%](https://forum.balancer.fi/t/bip-295-fee-discount-for-cowswap-solvers/4785) when Solvers use liquidity on the network.

  

If Solvers complete their trades using CoW AMM pools meanwhile, no fees are added. That’s because CoW AMM liquidity pools are treated as standing limit orders; if they're included in a batch, it's a CoW with no AMM fees. If you want to understand how CoW AMM works, [head this way.](https://cow.fi/cow-amm)

### Batch Pricing

  

Thanks to the unique Batch Auction feature found on CoW Swap, traders get improvements on prices thanks to transactions being processed in blocks rather than one at a time. Let’s explain. The process starts with traders signaling they want to trade by sending what’s called an “intent to trade” message to CoW Swap.

  

The DEX takes these orders and groups them together into something called batches. Those batches are then sent to solvers, whose job it is to find the best prices for those transactions. The solver that finds the best price for the batch executes the order. Any surplus - the difference between the price quoted and the final price - is partially returned to the traders.

## Better UX for advanced traders

  

When traders are performing lots of trades, the last thing they need is complicated UX. CoW Swap has refined the experience to give traders ultimate control of how they execute their trades. Let’s take a look at a few examples.

### Improved multisig experience

  

Large traders, which can often include DAOs and other types of organisations, typically require transactions to be signed by more than one wallet for security purposes. On many DEXes that can be a time-consuming experience. But not on CoW Swap! That’s because traders using CoW Swap get the price at the time of execution instead of at the time of submission. What does that mean?

  

Let’s say you have to gather the signatures of five different wallets to execute a trade. Meanwhile, prices are constantly moving. By the time you have gathered your signatures, the price might have changed significantly enough to either lead to a transaction failing, or it being exploited by MEV bots. Not on CoW Swap.

  

Because it uses a solver system, the price of the trade is only confirmed when the trade is completed, not when it is started. Because solvers are working on your behalf, the user experience means you’re less likely to experience a failed transaction because you’ve missed your price.

### Milkman, CoW Swap’s secret UX sauce

  

For traders looking to trade at some point in the future, on traditional DEXes that’s a challenge. That’s why CoW DAO built [Milkman](https://cow.fi/learn/what-is-milkman-cow-swaps-solution-for-delayed-execution-trading). Milkman is a specialized smart contract for advanced traders that lets them set their slippage tolerance for trades in the future.

  

Many smart contract wallet users, such as DAOs, frequently need to create these types of orders. Take the following examples:

-   DAOs that need trades to execute after passing a governance process
    
-   Groups that need hours to collect signatures to execute trades from a multisig wallet
    
-   Applications that process automated swaps years in the future (e.g. for payroll or treasury management).
    

  

Milkman is a smart contract that solves all of this. Let’s take a look at an example.

  

Let’s say you want to sell 1000 ETH for USDC, but you want to do it far in the future. To protect yourself from volatile price movements, you can ask Milkman to create the order and specify a minimum amount you’re willing to accept for the trade. Milkman tracks prices using oracles.

  

When the time comes to execute your trade, CoW Protocol will receive it and solvers will compete to improve the price on top of that, as they always do.

It’s why DAOs like [Aave](https://cow.fi/learn/aave-trade-breakdown) and [ENS](https://cow.fi/learn/ens-trade-breakdown), have already used Milkman to trade over $20M worth of tokens. Beyond allowing these DAOs to count on reliable prices, Milkman lets them reduce their overall number of governance votes and gives them standard CoW Swap benefits like best price execution and [best-in-class](https://eigenphi.substack.com/p/sandwich-mevs-impact-on-cow-swap) MEV protection — critical for large trades.

### Programmatic Orders

  

When trades are submitted directly to CoW Protocol, via CoW Swap, traders can take advantage of programmatic orders: or orders with certain conditions that have to be met before they are executed.

  

For example, if a trader wants to set and forget a trade like a stop loss or trailing stop, they can on CoW Swap. But there’s more.

  

Wallets of all sizes can automate recurring actions using programmatic orders. DAOs can automate payroll, diversify their treasuries, collect fees and more. Individuals, meanwhile, can automate portfolio rebalancing, yield farming, and hedge market positions.

  

Users can even bundle multiple actions together into one single order. For example, if a trader wanted to withdraw and swap a token for another in the future, it can do so using programmatic orders. No need to create multiple transactions, thanks to [Hooks](https://docs.cow.fi/cow-protocol/concepts/order-types/cow-hooks). This is a unique feature of CoW Swap. How does it work?

  

They allow any user to to pair multiple steps together into a single transaction. Let’s say you want to unstake tokens to take advantage of a price movement, sell a token and swap it for another. With Hooks that can be created and executed in one single transaction. No more multiple transactions, no more multiple fees. Find out more about how to [use Hooks here](https://docs.cow.fi/cow-protocol/concepts/order-types/cow-hooks).

## In summary: Why Traders Trust CoW Swap

  

When making large transactions in crypto, there are a number of things users need to be aware of. Whether it’s slippage, what order type you’re looking to execute, MEV attacks, to the user experience of different platforms.

  

CoW Swap is designed to do the hard work for you. It combines class-leading protection from MEV attacks, alongside its unique solver system which helps find you the best prices, and also gives you the chance to earn a surplus from every trade.

  

For pros it goes even further. CoW Swap’s unique specialised smart contracts give traders the chance to set their slippage tolerance and create programmatic orders that trigger when certain conditions are met.

  

Riding the crypto waves has never been so s-moooo-th! 🐮

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Experts love using CoW Swap for high-volume trades, but why? This article explores the key features that make CoW Swap unique. 

Why Traders Trust CoW Swap for High Volume Trades


MEV or “maximal extractable value” is a hidden tax on all types of Ethereum transactions. Any time you make a DeFi trade, buy or sell an NFT, or lend tokens to a liquidity pool, opportunistic users known as “searchers” may manipulate your trades, resulting in unfavorable prices, failed transactions, and missed opportunities. But not everyone agrees that MEV is bad.

  

In this article we’ll be exploring the pros and cons of MEV and most importantly, how you can protect your transactions from MEV, if you decide it’s not for you.

## Is MEV inevitable?

  

On Proof-of-Stake blockchains such as Ethereum, validators - contributors who validate transactions to help keep the network secure - are free to select which transactions they process first. This is different from markets you would find in TradFi, where the order of transactions are strictly enforced by regulators.

  

Because of this unique feature, users can offer incentives to process their transactions faster than they might process others. This incentive typically comes in the form of a payment, or gas fee on Ethereum. This unique feature on Ethereum and other, similar chains allows MEV to take place.

  

While there are many types of MEV, the most common is frontrunning. Sophisticated traders and bots scan the mem pool, a digital holding area where all transactions wait to be processed. When it identifies a transaction it believes it can make money out of, it places a transaction for the same asset, and pays extra to have it processed before the transaction it wants to front run.

  

By the time the target transaction has been completed, the frontrunner has made a profit. But not everyone believes this is a bad thing. Let’s explore the pros in the next section.

## The good

  

The presence of MEV can lead to improvements in how markets are run. At a high level, the presence of MEV bots can help them run more smoothly by eliminating efficiencies in how markets are run.

  

Arbitrage and liquidations are common trades that flow through MEV infrastructure. Arbitrage is a useful activity that keeps prices aligned between, say, a DEX’s AMM price and the price of the broader market.

### Improved economic inefficiencies

  

Liquidations, meanwhile, are important for the smooth operation of over-collateralized lending platforms like Maker DAO, for instance.

  

MEV activity is necessary to do things like maintain stablecoin pegs and rebalancing liquidity across different pools. MEV bots compete to buy assets at a low price from one source and sell it to another as quickly as possible.

  

The profit taken from the price difference ensures AMM liquidity pools remain balanced. There are also other less obvious yet potentially beneficial effects of MEV. One of which is the incentive for validators to remain engaged in the maintenance of networks when prices are low.

  

By having a larger pool of validators, who can remain engaged during market downturns - thanks to the additional incentives earned through MEV - can help keep a network decentralized.

### Fast price corrections across decentralized exchanges

  

MEV can also bring benefit to blockchains because it incentivizes price normalization and ensures events like liquidations are efficiently executed. Because there is inherent value to capture, MEV bots can exchange assets across pools to maintain the ecosystem without liquidity providers’ or lenders’ involvement. This phenomenon also appears in other DeFi mechanisms where some form of asset rebalancing takes place.

## The bad

  

While MEV can have its benefits, it also has a number of drawbacks: namely that it creates unfairness. Sophisticated actors familiar with the mechanics of blockchains like Ethereum have developed numerous ways to exploit users with less knowledge.

  

MEV makes money for searchers, block builders, and Ethereum validators at the expense of regular users, especially beginners who don’t know how to protect themselves. As of the time of writing, sandwich attacks on AMMs and aggregators alike generate [almost $1 million in profit for searchers each week](https://eigenphi.io/mev/ethereum/sandwich).

  

Over time, persistent MEV erodes market confidence as traders realize they are at a constant disadvantage to more sophisticated actors. Ultimately, MEV may pose an existential threat to blockchain ecosystems like Ethereum so it’s imperative for solutions to emerge that protect everyday traders from price exploitation.

## The compromise

  

The reality is, there is little appetite to change the design of chains like Ethereum, meaning MEV is here to stay. While it does help prices remain consistent across different liquidity pools, it creates a hierarchy between sophisticated actors looking for arbitrage and regular users unaware that their transactions could be exploited.

  

But there are ways to guard against MEV. In the below sections we’ll be exploring each one, and also solutions that do the hard work for you.

### Methods of defense

  

There are a wide range of methods you could use to help mitigate against the effect of MEV. The good news is there are many projects - including [CoW DAO](https://cow.fi) - that are already aware of this problem, and have built a number of solutions to ensure your trades and transactions are MEV free.

  

But as you will see, while there are many different ways you can protect yourself, there are few that combine all these defenses into a single solution that’s easy to use. Like [CoW Swap](https://cow.fi/cow-swap), or [MEV Blocker](https://cow.fi/mev-blocker).

#### Off-chain single batch settlement

  

Off-chain single batch settlement is an idea that’s designed to keep prying eyes from seeing what transactions you are submitting before they are put into a block to be verified.

  

Off-chain settlements are, like they sound, transactions that take place away from the main blockchain. One such technique for using off-chain settlement is to use a layer 2, a second blockchain built on top of the main blockchain.

  

By settling off-chain, the order of those transactions, the primary attack vector for MEV bots, is irrelevant. That’s because by the time the transactions are added to the mem-pool, they have already been completed, meaning arbitrage can’t take place because the prices of the transactions have already been fixed.

#### Fair Sequencing Services (FSS)

  

Fair Sequencing Services (FSS) is a decentralized framework that helps ensure that transactions are ordered fairly and impartially, and that smart contracts process transactions in a fair manner. FSS is designed to help DeFi developers create more equitable systems for users.

  

FSS combats MEV by using an oracle network to order transactions sent to a contract. An oracle is a data source used to verify whether data is accurate. In the case of FSS, it ensure transactions are in an order that makes exploitation more difficult.

#### Explicit specification of maximum slippage

  

Slippage is the difference between the expected price of a trade and the price at which it is executed. It can occur at any time, but is more likely to happen during periods of high volatility or when orders exceed the available liquidity.

  

When it comes to transacting on a blockchain, users are able to adjust the level of slippage, which is commonly expressed as a percentage of the total value. For example, if you set slippage at 5%, this creates an acceptable range whereby the price can move before it is finalised.

  

When trading in DeFi, it’s important to set as low a number as possible to ensure you’re not being exploited by MEV bots. The lower the number, the less price variation. But there are limits. If there’s limited liquidity for the coin you’re trading, the transaction might fail if the slippage range is too small.

#### Using RPC endpoints for MEV protection

  

RPC endpoints or Remote Procedure Calls, are an intermediate layer that routes transactions from a user’s wallet to the blockchain itself. Transactions pass through RPC endpoints before getting to the mem pool, so RPCs can provide additional functionality across any blockchain application or protocol. Think of RPCs as a middle-man which can be used to improve security.

  

[CoW DAO](https://cow.fi) uses this unique feature of public blockchains to create a safety layer that helps protect transactions from MEV bots.

  

[MEV Blocker](https://cow.fi/mev-blocker) provides access to a permissionless network of searchers while hiding transactions from the public mem pool. These searchers cannot frontrun or sandwich user transactions. Instead, they capture value through backrunning. Anytime a searcher backruns a user’s transaction, the searcher keeps up to 10% of the value and sends the other 90% back to the user as a rebate.

  

Want to try MEV Blocker for yourself? [Start here.](https://cow.fi/mev-blocker)

  

CoW Swap's Uniform Clearing Prices

  

Another unique feature of CoW Swap is its uniform clearing price.

  

CoW Protocol collects and aggregates [intents](https://docs.cow.fi/cow-protocol/concepts/introduction/intents) off-chain and settles them together in groups, known as batches. These batches are then "auctioned off" through a competition to the [solver](https://docs.cow.fi/cow-protocol/concepts/introduction/solvers) offering the most surplus for the orders in the batch.

  

Batch auctions allow for Uniform Clearing Prices (UCPs), where an asset that appears multiple times across orders in the same batch settles for a consistent price. This makes transaction order irrelevant within the block, undermining the ability for MEV bots to extract value.

#### CoW Swap's Coincidence of Wants

  

A unique feature of CoW Swap is its use of what’s called a Coincidence of Wants - which also happens to be the meaning of CoW in CoW DAO!.

  

A coincidence of wants is an economic phenomenon where two parties swap assets with one another peer-to-peer. Typically users would have to use an exchange such as Uniswap to complete this trade, but on CoW Swap, you can do it off chain.

  

CoW Swap orders start out as signed “intent to trade” messages that get batched together before getting sent to on-chain liquidity sources like Uniswap. As a result, CoW Swap can match orders peer-to-peer when the opportunity arises.

  

This has two benefits: gas fees are lower, and second, it avoids transactions going through the public mem pool, adding an extra layer of security.

#### CoW Swap's Delegated Trade Execution

  

CoW Swap’s unique “solver” feature protects users from MEV by completing transactions on their behalf. Solvers are dedicated third parties whose role it is to search for the best price for trades submitted by users.

  

A group of solvers compete against each to find the best price for trades. They do this by searching across multiple DEX’s looking for the best prices - hence why CoW Swap is referred to as a meta DEX - because it searches all the other DEXes to find you th ebest price.

  

The most competitive solver is then awarded the trade, and any savings they generate for the user, they pass on to the user.

## The CoW approach to MEV protection

  

CoW DAO’s [MEV Blocker](https://cow.fi/mev-blocker) and [CoW Swap](https://cow.fi/cow-swap) have safety baked in. They are designed specifically to protect you from MEV attacks.

  

In the case of MEV Blocker - this is a stand alone product that you can add to your wallet to enjoy the full benefits of MEV protection. This works by using what is called an RPC or a Remote Procedure Call. This is an intermediate layer that routes transactions from a user’s wallet to the blockchain itself. Transactions pass through RPC endpoints before getting to the mempool, so RPCs can provide additional functionality across any blockchain application or protocol.

  

With CoW Swap meanwhile, it provides MEV protection whenever you trade on the DEX. CoW Swap is a meta DEX aggregator that finds the best prices for trades and provides comprehensive MEV protection.

  

The protocol uses a unique trading mechanism that relies on batch auctions and intents to achieve the best outcomes for users. Thanks to a powerful combination of delegated trade execution, batch auctions, and protected transaction flow through MEV Blocker, CoW Swap users benefit from thorough MEV protection on all trades.

### Interested to learn more?

  

If you want to dive deeper into MEV Protection and how CoW DAO does it, [head this way.](https://cow.fi/learn/articles/what-is-mev)

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MEV or “maximal extractable value” is a hidden tax on all types of Ethereum transactions. But some argue it can be useful. We weigh up the pros and cons. 

Is MEV good or bad?

[CoW DAO](https://cow.fi/), which builds user-protective products like CoW Swap, Cow Protocol, CoW AMM and MEV Blocker, has partnered with Sky, formerly MakerDAO to help the project migrate its tokens as it transitions to its next chapter.

  

The team behind Sky approached CoW DAO to integrate CoW Protocol into their SWAP feature to allow users to seamlessly, and safely swap their tokens between DAI and its replacement, USDS, and its governance token MKR to SKY.

  

This is sizeable task: the MakerDAO transition is one of the largest token migrations. DAI is one of the world’s largest stablecoins, with a market cap of $5.3 billion and [more than 500,000 holders.](https://etherscan.io/token/0x6b175474e89094c44da98b954eedeac495271d0f) MKR, meanwhile, has a market cap of $1.5 billion and more than [100,000 token holders.](https://etherscan.io/token/0x9f8f72aa9304c8b593d555f12ef6589cc3a579a2)

  

“Sky selected CoW Protocol as its primary partner for token migration because it recognizes that CoW's unique batch design enhances both user experience and price efficiency," says Anna George, co-founder and CEO of CoW Protocol.

  

Sky's choice to work with CoW DAO on such an important upgrade demonstrates that CoW Protocol is the place big projects go when they want to do big things.

## How will it all work?

[CoW Swap](https://cow.fi/cow-swap) is being integrated into Sky’s native swap system, meaning that, in addition to facilitating swaps between DAI, USDS, MKR, and SKY, CoW Protocol will handle all token swaps within the Sky UI going forward. This represents a step change in the amount of volume CoW Protocol will handle going forward.

This will take place on Sky.money, decentralized gateway to the Sky Ecosystem and provides access to the key features of the Sky Protocol, including upgrading DAI to USDS, and MKR to SKY. But users can also use [CoW Swap](https://cow.fi/cow-swap) to upgrade their old MKR and DAI tokens to the new SKY and USDS.

The upgraded stablecoin of the Sky Ecosystem is USDS. USDS can be upgraded from DAI or converted from USDC at a 1:1 ratio, on Sky.money and other frontends. USDS can also be converted back to DAI. Upgrading is optional.

The Governance Token of the Sky Ecosystem is SKY. MKR holders can upgrade their MKR to SKY, and SKY can also be converted back to MKR. Upgrading is optional. Users get 24,000 SKY per MKR when they upgrade.

## Bringing DeFi to a Wider Audience

Decentralized Finance is at an inflection point. The industry has successfully matured and scaled and, with the right push, is poised to begin providing large scale value to regular people. By focusing on delivering innovative ways for everyday users to unlock the inherent benefits of DeFi, Sky will do its part in bringing the benefits of DeFi to the mass market.

CoW DAO believes in this mission too. By providing a safe and simple way for DeFi users to swap tokens without fear of MEV attacks helps DeFi achieve mass market adoption.

## Follow CoW DAO

-   [X](https://x.com/CoWSwap)
    
-   [Discord](https://discord.com/invite/cowprotocol)
    
-   [Github](https://github.com/cowprotocol)
    
-   [Forum](https://forum.cow.fi/)
    
-   [Snapshot](https://snapshot.org/#/cow.eth)

cow protocol partnership with makerDAO sky

large_CoW Protocol I Sky.png

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small_CoW Protocol I Sky.png

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CoW Protocol I Sky.png

CoW Protocol has partnered with Sky, formerly MakerDAO to help the project migrate its tokens as it transitions to its next chapter. 

CoW Protocol Powers MakerDAO’s Transition


# How to create a LVR Protected Liquidity Pool on CoW AMM

## Accessing the creation page UI

CoW AMM is a new type of AMM built from the group up to protect LPs from price exploitation in the form of [LVR](https://cow.fi/learn/what-is-loss-versus-rebalancing-lvr). Liquidity providers expect their tokens to earn yield, but most liquidity pools are actually not profitable after accounting for stale prices. Arbitrageurs exploit these stale prices at the expense of LPs. CoW AMM fixes LVR once and for all, with liquidity pools proven to outperform reference Balancer and Uniswap pools.

Now, you can create your own CoW AMM pools too! To get started, navigate to the [Balancer CoW AMM pool creator](https://pool-creator.balancer.fi/cow).

You can access the pool creator in several ways. The first is to navigate to the [CoW AMM liquidity pools page](https://balancer.fi/pools/cow), scroll down to the bottom, and click “create a pool.”

![Cowamm_poolguide_1.png](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/Cowamm_poolguide_1_8dcf4f3760.png)
![Cowamm_poolguide_2.png](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/Cowamm_poolguide_2_9e8feff94c.png)
  
You can also open the pool creator from the banner on the [CoW Swap](https://swap.cow.fi/) homepage.

![Cowamm_poolguide_3.png](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/Cowamm_poolguide_3_70c3bd8093.png)

The third way is to access the pool creator directly at [https://pool-creator.balancer.fi/](https://pool-creator.balancer.fi/) and click the icon to enter the pool creation page.

![Cowamm_poolguide_4.png](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/Cowamm_poolguide_4_0aef667f89.png)

Once inside, you’ll see the following interface:

![Cowamm_poolguide_5.png](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/Cowamm_poolguide_5_fb12211f1f.png)

## Configuring your own LVR Protected pool for deployment

To get started, select the tokens you want to use to create your LVR-protected pool.

First, select your network. You can do that in the top-right-hand corner. 

![image (2).png](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/image_2_09ca755895.png)

After selecting your tokens, specify the deposit amounts. Keep in mind that the pool creator currently only supports 50/50 pools so add an equivalent dollar amount of both assets.

![Cowamm_poolguide_7.png](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/Cowamm_poolguide_7_124b34dcdb.png)

After selecting your assets and amounts, tick the checkbox confirming that you understand assets must be added proportionally or you risk loss of funds via arbitrage. Once you’ve done this, click the “Preview” button.

![Cowamm_poolguide_8.png](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/Cowamm_poolguide_8_84c160ab40.png)

## Deploying your LVR Protected pool onchain

Creating a pool requires several approval and swap steps through your wallet. The first is the actual pool creation, to initiate this click the “Create Pool” button and check your connected wallet interface.

![Cowamm_poolguide_9.png](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/Cowamm_poolguide_9_7a477d22d7.png)

In your wallet, approve the pool creation by signing. Remember to double check that you are signing the correct transaction!

![Cowamm_poolguide_9.1.png](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/Cowamm_poolguide_9_1_bed5d89c73.png)

Once you’ve created the pool, click “Approve” to approve the first token you want to create a pool for.

![Cowamm_poolguide_9.2.png](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/Cowamm_poolguide_9_2_bfdabb689f.png)

Sign the transaction in your wallet.

![Cowamm_poolguide_9.3.png](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/Cowamm_poolguide_9_3_08ff4c5184.png)

The next step is to approve the second asset you’re adding to the pool by clicking the “Approve” button once again.

![Cowamm_poolguide_9.4.png](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/Cowamm_poolguide_9_4_1cf27aeeaa.png)

Sign the transaction in your wallet.

![Cowamm_poolguide_9.5.png](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/Cowamm_poolguide_9_5_2493187384.png)

The next transaction adds the initial funds for your first asset to the pool.

![Cowamm_poolguide_9.6.png](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/Cowamm_poolguide_9_6_0717143d89.png)

Sign the transaction in your wallet.

![Cowamm_poolguide_9.7.png](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/Cowamm_poolguide_9_7_3ad3877cea.png)

The transaction after that adds the initial funds for your second asset to the pool.

![Cowamm_poolguide_9.8.png](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/Cowamm_poolguide_9_8_f05506ce78.png)

Sign the transaction in your wallet.

![Cowamm_poolguide_9.9.png](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/Cowamm_poolguide_9_9_4dd69d06c0.png)

Almost there! The second to last transaction sets the swap fee for the pool. Currently, all CoW AMM pools must set the swap fee to the maximum amount (99.99%)

![Cowamm_poolguide_9.91.png](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/Cowamm_poolguide_9_91_3d71ad96df.png)

Sign the transaction in your wallet.

![Cowamm_poolguide_9.92.png](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/Cowamm_poolguide_9_92_f8caadd193.png)

Last, click the “Finalize” button to make your last transaction and finalize the pool creation.

![Cowamm_poolguide_9.93.png](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/Cowamm_poolguide_9_93_f703a7b940.png)

Sign the transaction in your wallet.

![Cowamm_poolguide_9.94.png](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/Cowamm_poolguide_9_94_02c63b4721.png)

Once created, you can view your pool by clicking the “View on Balancer” button.

![Cowamm_poolguide_9.95.png](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/Cowamm_poolguide_9_95_377e64c199.png)

Your new pool will now appear in the [list of CoW AMM pools on Balancer](https://balancer.fi/pools/cow)! Once created, users can LP their own tokens, growing the size of the pool for the two assets you’ve selected.

![Cowamm_poolguide_9.96.png](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/Cowamm_poolguide_9_96_6c0d9f5c17.png)

You can click on the pool to view its current size, APR, yield, and more.

![Cowamm_poolguide_9.97.png](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/Cowamm_poolguide_9_97_374dca4ee9.png)

The interface also showcases the exact amount of liquidity you specifically have added out of everyone for this pool, as well as the pool composition split between assets.

![Cowamm_poolguide_9.98.png](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/Cowamm_poolguide_9_98_2fd5e07452.png)
![Cowamm_poolguide_9.99.png](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/Cowamm_poolguide_9_99_1636bf73fd.png)

Congratulations! You’ve created your first CoW AMM Balancer pool.

large_Pool creation guide.webp

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Pool creation guide.webp

A step-by-step guide to creating a LVR Protected Liquidity Pool using CoW AMM on Balancer. CoW AMM safeguards liquidity providers from price exploitation due to stale prices, ensuring better yield protection and profitability than traditional pools.

How to create a LVR Protected Liquidity Pool on CoW AMM

Welcome back to another CoW update, where we break down the most notable developments of the last few weeks at CoW DAO.

## TL;DR

-   During the month of June, CoW Protocol handled a total volume of **$2.66B** and generated a surplus of **$20M**
-   In exciting news, CoW DAO [attended ETHcc](https://x.com/CoWSwap/status/1815455776183632116), [crossed 1,000 ETH in generated revenue](https://x.com/CoWSwap/status/1818015130959183883), and had a [breakout month for MEV Blocker](https://x.com/CoWSwap/status/1819460894109368446)
-   In terms of Governance, CoW DAO executed CIPS [46](https://snapshot.org/#/cow.eth/proposal/0xbb18689e82d15b23ba2b755123777afc3579a0a86ae76f9b4eb73557b493c90a), [47](https://snapshot.org/#/cow.eth/proposal/0x7456f84721dbbe164b30324112accf976ff3be397b1957e68abe6953801a1f97), [48](https://snapshot.org/#/cow.eth/proposal/0x563ab9a66265ad72c47a8e55f620f927685dd07d4d49f6d1812905c683f05805), and [49](https://snapshot.org/#/cow.eth/proposal/0x153a2e42936b6b99e825d5ebf4aa7a64c176243138c491274fd199b74ed23f6a)

## Protocol Stats

This month, CoW Protocol settled a total of **$2.65B in trading volume.**

![1-july-2024-highlights.png](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/1_july_2024_highlights_2786b81422.png)

The top batches worth highlighting are the following:

**Batch containing the highest volume** **(**[**Transaction details**](https://explorer.cow.fi/tx/0xfbb0878ea2b18b20baeac86bc5352fbeefab43dabc74989c5b137633c5526601?tab=orders&vis=transfers)**)**: The total batch volume was **$61,110,239** and it was created by a single trader swapping **wETH to wstETH.**

![2-july-2024-highlights.png](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/2_july_2024_highlights_46d1d601b2.png)

**Batch with the highest amount of surplus** **(**[**Transaction details**](https://explorer.cow.fi/tx/0xaa7dc317ae0e14c63c0d44bae9c8c01cc30c01dcd9bf2ccdca5e7d4ffc2cc0ab?tab=orders)**)**: The total batch volume was exactly **$10M** and it was created by a single trader swapping USDT for ETH**.** The batch achieved a surplus of **69.94 ETH** **(2.14%).**

![3-july-2024-highlights.png](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/3_july_2024_highlights_354e76463c.png)

During the month of July, the top 10 traders traded a total of **$31,713,561.**

![4-july-2024-highlights.png](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/4_july_2024_highlights_39c86a9d5c.png)

In the table below you can see the total volume for this month’s biggest trades. The most active trader executed a whopping **$10,220,367** in trades with CoW Protocol this month.

![5-july-2024-highlights.png](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/5_july_2024_highlights_fa113c7901.png)

## Solvers

In  July, solvers generated a total of **$20.2M** in surplus, which is money in the pockets of traders.

![6-july-2024-highlights.png](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/6_july_2024_highlights_3fd2853012.png)

Below you can find a breakdown of how each solver performed in July.

![7-july-2024-highlights.png](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/7_july_2024_highlights_5294aebf33.png)

## Governance

It has been a hectic month in terms of governance! The CoW cannot be stopped 💪

![8-july-2024-highlights.png](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/8_july_2024_highlights_c9cef5d2ac.png)

## Executed Proposals

The DAO executed four important proposals this month:

-   [CIP-46: Funding for Marketing & Business Development Services — Service Agreement No 1](https://snapshot.org/#/cow.eth/proposal/0xbb18689e82d15b23ba2b755123777afc3579a0a86ae76f9b4eb73557b493c90a)
-   [CIP-47: Funding for the purpose of facilitating the listing COW token on CEXs](https://snapshot.org/#/cow.eth/proposal/0x7456f84721dbbe164b30324112accf976ff3be397b1957e68abe6953801a1f97)
-   [CIP-48: Solver rewards budget renewal and update of CoW DAO bonding pool operations](https://snapshot.org/#/cow.eth/proposal/0x563ab9a66265ad72c47a8e55f620f927685dd07d4d49f6d1812905c683f05805)
-   [CIP-49: Extending the Revenue Model Testing Period for CoW Protocol](https://snapshot.org/#/cow.eth/proposal/0x153a2e42936b6b99e825d5ebf4aa7a64c176243138c491274fd199b74ed23f6a)

## Draft Proposals

This month, there were two new proposals asking for feedback before moving into the next phase, final CIPs, in their current form:

-   [CIP-Draft: Wintermute <> COW Liquidity Provision Partnership](https://forum.cow.fi/t/cip-draft-wintermute-cow-liquidity-provision-partnership/2530/1)
-   [CIP-Draft: Amendment Balancer & Cow Protocol Strategic Partnership — Launching CoWAMM Pools](https://forum.cow.fi/t/cip-draft-amendment-balancer-cow-protocol-strategic-partnership-launching-cowamm-pools/2525)

Make sure to read them and leave comments — your feedback is highly appreciated and will help move these important topics forward. If you are interested in submitting a proposal to the CoW DAO, make sure to use the following [template](https://forum.cow.fi/t/cip-0-template/28).

## CoWmunity News

-   The CoW team attended ETHcc, giving several talks [including a feature on the first MEV-capturing AMM mechanism — CoW AMM](https://x.com/CoWSwap/status/1815455776183632116)
-   CoW DAO has paved the way toward sustainability by [generating just over 1,000 ETH](https://x.com/CoWSwap/status/1818015130959183883) in protocol revenue during the last 7 months
-   In July, MEV Blocker [protected 13.8B in trading volume and returned a whopping 213 ETH in rebates to 416,000 users across 2.8M transactions](https://x.com/CoWSwap/status/1819460894109368446)
-   Safe{Wallet} got CoW Swap TWAP orders [natively integrated](https://x.com/CoWSwap/status/1811105186578055329) into the wallet swap
-   Attention web3 governance fans! CoW DAO is [searching for applicants](https://x.com/CoWSwap/status/1809237051327562214) to join the Delegate Council and play a crucial role in the new COW Token Vote Delegation Program
-   Convex [enabled mints for $cvxCRV](https://x.com/ConvexFinance/status/1808497404439585273) directly from the CoW Swap interface
-   Stackly, the DCA tool built on top of CoW Swap, [launched on Arbitrum](https://x.com/Stacklydapp/status/1808883040606667099)
-   Hot off the heels of our launch on Arbitrum, CoW Swap [crossed $40M in trading volume](https://x.com/CoWSwap/status/1808166051437596899) on the L2

## Open Job Positions

[**Growth Marketing Manager**](https://job-boards.eu.greenhouse.io/cowswap/jobs/4375232101?utm_source=cow.fi&utm_medium=web&utm_content=job-Growth%20Marketing%20Manager)

[**Product Marketing Manager**](https://job-boards.eu.greenhouse.io/cowswap/jobs/4377355101?utm_source=cow.fi&utm_medium=web&utm_content=job-Product%20Marketing%20Manager)

[**Senior Data Engineer**](https://job-boards.eu.greenhouse.io/cowswap/jobs/4362645101?utm_source=cow.fi&utm_medium=web&utm_content=job-Senior%20Data%20Engineer)

[**Senior Backend Engineer With Rust**](https://job-boards.eu.greenhouse.io/cowswap/jobs/4368543101?utm_source=cow.fi&utm_medium=web&utm_content=job-Sn.%20Backend%20Engineer%20with%20Rust)

large_cow-dao-july-2024-highlights-cover-photo.png

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small_cow-dao-july-2024-highlights-cover-photo.png

thumbnail_cow-dao-july-2024-highlights-cover-photo.png

cow-dao-july-2024-highlights-cover-photo.png

Welcome back to CoW DAO highlights, where we break down the most notable developments of the last few weeks at CoW DAO.


CoW DAO July 2024 Highlights


## TL;DR

-   During the month of June, CoW Protocol handled a total volume of  **$2.19B**  and generated a surplus of  **$14M**
-   In exciting news, CoW DAO  [received a new look](https://x.com/CoWSwap/status/1805606262744531260)  and CoW Protocol  [launched on Arbitrum](https://x.com/CoWSwap/status/1797996272349323412)
-   In terms of Governance, CoW DAO executed CIPS  [46](https://forum.cow.fi/t/cip-46-funding-for-marketing-business-development-services-service-agreement-no-1/2476/1)  and  [47](https://forum.cow.fi/t/cip-47-funding-for-the-purpose-of-facilitating-the-listing-cow-token-on-cexs/2458)

## Protocol Stats

This month, CoW Protocol settled a total of  **$2.19B**

![1-june-2024-highlights.webp](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/1_june_2024_highlights_bbbd21676b.webp)

The top batches worth highlighting are the following:

**Batch containing the highest volume**  **(**[**Transaction details**](https://explorer.cow.fi/tx/0x15a8acee86e3ddd8943f6cb7bf7b6c9dfc98219f0d49dede6501f30e1e6ad327?tab=orders&vis=transfers)**)**: The total batch volume was  **$27,086,967** and it was created by two traders who were swapping  **WeETH to WETH**  and  **USDT to USDC**.

![2-june-2024-highlights.webp](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/2_june_2024_highlights_997a9b5cf0.webp)

**Batch with the highest amount of surplus**  **(**[**Transaction details**](https://explorer.cow.fi/tx/0xfde66662c4df3e9c7e4ea1cf0dc6e645b53912486826f892d2c7b4dc37947518?tab=orders)**)**: The total batch volume was  **4,119 ETH** and it was created by two traders — one swapping  **WEETH to WETH**  and the other swapping  **ETH to ZAAR.** The batch achieved a surplus of  **$71,600**  **(0.49%).**

![3-june-2024-highlights.webp](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/3_june_2024_highlights_5ed5d8db9d.webp)

During the month of June, the top 10 traders traded a total of  **$17,397,532.**

![4-june-2024-highlights.webp](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/4_june_2024_highlights_9025cd7c9a.webp)

In the table below you can see the total volume for this month’s biggest trades. The most active trader executed a whopping  **$4,143,954**  in trades with CoW Protocol this month.

![5-june-2024-highlights.webp](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/5_june_2024_highlights_e205f5c02b.webp)

## Solvers

In  June, solvers generated a total of  **$14M**  in surplus, which is money in the pockets of traders.

![6-june-2024-highlights.webp](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/6_june_2024_highlights_f3e48e0cc2.webp)

Below you can find a breakdown of how each solver performed in June.

![7-june-2024-highlights.webp](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/7_june_2024_highlights_87f40f594b.webp)

## Governance

It has been a hectic month in terms of governance! The CoW cannot be stopped 💪

![8-june-2024-highlights.webp](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/8_june_2024_highlights_8ec68b11a8.webp)

## Executed Proposals

The DAO executed one important proposal this month:

-   [CIP-45: Balancer & Cow Protocol Strategic Partnership — Launching CoWAMM Pools](https://snapshot.org/#/cow.eth/proposal/0x5a7435a287fda55133fa5973b4979465687c341def703564986f2771780352b0)

## Draft Proposals

This month, there were two new proposals asking for feedback before moving into the next phase, final CIPs, in their current form:

-   [CIP-46: Funding for Marketing & Business Development Services — Service Agreement No 1](https://forum.cow.fi/t/cip-46-funding-for-marketing-business-development-services-service-agreement-no-1/2476/1)
-   [CIP-47: Funding for the purpose of facilitating the listing COW token on CEXs](https://forum.cow.fi/t/cip-47-funding-for-the-purpose-of-facilitating-the-listing-cow-token-on-cexs/2458)

Make sure to read them and leave comments — your feedback is highly appreciated and will help move these important topics forward. If you are interested in submitting a proposal to the CoW DAO, make sure to use the following  [template](https://forum.cow.fi/t/cip-0-template/28).

## CoWmunity News

-   CoW DAO has a  [new look](https://x.com/CoWSwap/status/1805606262744531260)  including a new logo, new landing pages for each product, and an entirely overhauled brand feel!
-   CoW Protocol  [launched on its first L2](https://x.com/CoWSwap/status/1797996272349323412)  — Arbitrum and  [participated in an X Space with members of the Arbitrum foundation](https://x.com/CoWSwap/status/1800544944396075390)
-   Curve finance  [launched a fee burner using the Programmatic Order Framework](https://x.com/CoWSwap/status/1806001775335580016)
-   Published a  [report on the findings of the second fee test](https://x.com/CoWSwap/status/1799172243995693195)
-   Put  [out a call for CoW DAO delegates](https://x.com/CoWSwap/status/1806741521594720490)
-   Reduced TWAP order minimums to just  [$1,000 per order segment](https://x.com/CoWSwap/status/1799446283662536789)
-   Helped facilitate  [Gnosis DAO’s $30 million buyback program](https://x.com/CoWSwap/status/1800974615264756174)
-   Got  [featured in the “Our Network” newsletter](https://x.com/ournetwork__/status/1807202388538978436)
-   Published a flagship “[What is MEV](https://cow.fi/learn/what-is-mev)” article

## Open Job Positions

[**Content Marketing Manager**](https://boards.eu.greenhouse.io/cowswap/jobs/4343031101)

[**Senior Data Engineer**](https://boards.eu.greenhouse.io/cowswap/jobs/4362645101)

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Welcome back to another CoW update, where we break down the most notable developments of the last few weeks at CoW DAO.


CoW DAO June 2024 Highlights

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MEV, or maximal extractable value, is a $1.3 billion hidden tax on Ethereum transactions. Learn how MEV works and how to protect yourself from MEV attacks.

What is MEV? — Maximal Extractable Value Explained


## TL;DR

-   During the month of  **May**, CoW Protocol handled a total volume of  **$2.4B**  and generated a surplus of  **$16.5M**
-   In exciting news, the CoW Swap widget got integrated by Safe {Wallet], MEV Scanner was launched, and CoW DAO Revenue & CoW AMM Performance dashboards went live
-   In terms of Governance, CoW DAO executed CIPS 43 & 44

## Protocol Stats

This month, CoW Protocol settled a total of  **$2.4B.**

![1-may-2024-highlights.webp](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/1_may_2024_highlights_a5aa5bc848.webp)

The top batches worth highlighting are the following:

-   **Batch with the highest % of CoW trades**  **(**[**Transaction details**](https://explorer.cow.fi/tx/0x80335524b00f7fb0ca810781b8097acd9f3a26c160a3829e6d2fbe49caa08fc0?tab=orders)**)**. The total batch volume was  **$2,165,670**, and it was created by two traders who were perfectly CoWed for  **90% ($1.9M)**  of their volume. One trader was buying  **WETH-WFTM**, and the other trader was selling  **WETH-WFTM**.

![2-may-2024-highlights.webp](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/2_may_2024_highlights_3a87975f5a.webp)

-   **Batch containing the highest volume**  **(**[**Transaction details**](https://explorer.cow.fi/tx/0x93f390d0a9ba487cadca006270ec5b092df9a1104438fdb7f630a0cbf64271c8?tab=orders&vis=transfers)**)**: The total batch volume was  **$15,968,035.14** and it was created by three traders who were swapping  **DAI** to **USDC, ETH** to **BTRFLY,** and **WETH** to **TOKE**.

![3-may-2024-highlights.webp](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/3_may_2024_highlights_c5df911595.webp)

-   **Batch with the highest amount of surplus**  **(**[**Transaction details**](https://explorer.cow.fi/tx/0xc8c849f6e8f1638b366782946b2004b6c2225f74fe9821004e9107d7b3788531?tab=orders)**)**: The total batch volume was  **$8,534,108.21** and it was created by a single trader who was swapping  **ETH to**  **USDC**. This trader achieved the largest surplus for the month of May by getting  **$173,922.78 USDC**  extra, which was roughly 2**%**  surplus.

![4-may-2024-highlights.webp](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/4_may_2024_highlights_152ab79f09.webp)

During the month of  **April**, the top 10 traders traded a total of  **$22M.**

![5-may-2024-highlights.webp](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/5_may_2024_highlights_8e3c3abf09.webp)

In the table below you can see the total volume for this month’s biggest trades. The most active trader executed a whopping  **$5.6M**  in trades with CoW Protocol this month.

![6-may-2024-highlights.webp](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/6_may_2024_highlights_c078f604e4.webp)

## Solvers

In  **May**, solvers generated a total of $16M in surplus, which is money in the pockets of traders.

![7-may-2024-highlights.webp](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/7_may_2024_highlights_c0bac7f1ea.webp)

Below you can find a breakdown of how each solver performed in May.

![8-may-2024-highlights.webp](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/8_may_2024_highlights_5277340481.webp)

## Governance

It has been a hectic month in terms of governance! The CoW cannot be stopped 💪

![9-may-2024-highlights.webp](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/9_may_2024_highlights_25544c8f9c.webp)

## Executed Proposals

The DAO executed three important proposals this month:

-   [CIP-43: Operational CoW DAO Safe Renewal](https://snapshot.org/#/cow.eth/proposal/0xcf0cea1d434e3036d07cb61d3d155b2bd45af0d83d280897eb11ce69f5e1f34b)
-   [CIP-44: Reduced bonding requirements](https://snapshot.org/#/cow.eth/proposal/0x1b6f1171633ec3d20c4370db37074aa1bd830486d4d0d6c26165915cc42d9412)

## Draft Proposals

This month, there was one new proposals asking for feedback before moving into the next phase, final CIPs, in their current form:

-   [CIP-Draft: Balancer and CoW jointly creating CoWAMM pools](https://forum.cow.fi/t/cip-draft-balancer-and-cow-jointly-creating-cowamm-pools/2429)

Make sure to read them and leave comments — your feedback is highly appreciated and will help move these important topics forward. If you are interested in submitting a proposal to the CoW DAO, make sure to use the following  [template](https://forum.cow.fi/t/cip-0-template/28).

## CoWmunity News

-   [Safe{Wallet} launched Native Swaps powered by CoW Swap widget](https://x.com/CoWSwap/status/1790352311124213912)
-   In collaboration with CoW Grants,  [MEV Scanner was launched](https://x.com/CoWSwap/status/1796184453007458496)  — a new tool to find how much MEV various wallets have suffered. Available on X, Discord, and Telegram!
-   Released the new  [CoW DAO Revenue Dashboard](https://x.com/CoWSwap/status/1792657133861056513)  so that anyone can check in real time how much money CoW DAO is making.
-   [Published a CoW AMM digest](https://forum.cow.fi/t/4-months-of-cow-amm-what-we-have-learned-and-the-next-steps/2432)  explaining all things happening around CoW AMM for the 4 months that it has been live
-   [Released a CoW AMM Dune Dashboard](https://x.com/CoWSwap/status/1788616025635967222)  that includes stats like aggregate pool APYs and CoW AMM performance compared to a reference pool.
-   [CoW AMM got extensively covered on the latest Blockworks Research deep dive on LVR.](https://x.com/blockworksres/status/1791184122951704758)
-   Hear our  [story how we got started in crypto](https://x.com/CoWSwap/status/1791891046668136919)
-   Had our say in the DOJ episode with our  [“MEV is theft” tweet](https://x.com/CoWSwap/status/1790889428887470243)
-   [FairyCoW Swap launched](https://x.com/CoWSwap/status/1787514538692096264)  its programmable encryption on top of CoW Protocol orders
-   Published an example of what  [optimal settlements in DeFi look like](https://x.com/CoWSwap/status/1787893735453564992)
-   Participated in  [FuruRadio Episode 8](https://x.com/furucombo/status/1790773019872465355)  twitter spaces cover all things Solver related
-   Published several blog articles:  [How to Avoid MEV Bots](https://blog.cow.fi/how-to-avoid-mev-bots-38c63584921e),  [What is a Smart Contract?](https://blog.cow.fi/what-is-a-smart-contract-13a7f33ed7c7), and  [What is Slippage in Crypto?](https://blog.cow.fi/what-is-slippage-in-crypto-59937f801663)

## Product Updates

**Backend**

The backend team has been working hard to improve the product infrastructure. In  **May**, we:

-   Allowed solvers to simulate orders without needing to hit another backend endpoint
-   Worked on solver competition by verifying solver quotes
-   Worked on collocated driver solver quoting
-   Worked on backend refactoring to enable running a circuit breaker in the autopilot (a requirement for actual colocation where solvers run their own drivers)
-   Merged CoW AMM fixes, unblocking further progress on the CoW AMM feature
-   Worked on Arbitrum deployment, including various fixes, gas price estimator, and a core component that subscribes to new blocks from the blockchain
-   Made further progress on full colocation, creating an execution plan and starting implementation
-   The backend team attended DappCon

**Frontend**

The frontend team has been working hard on improvements in the UI front, as well as the overall UI infrastructure. In  **May**, we:

-   Fixed automatic IPFS publishing with a new ENS deployment (good for the decentralization of CoW Swap and the protocol): [https://cowswap.eth.limo](https://cowswap.eth.limo/)
-   The frontend team had a retreat in Turkey, where they worked on several new and upcoming features
-   Launched CoW Swap and the CoW Explorer on Arbitrum
-   Launched EIP 6963 (injected wallets), reducing the number of default wallets and finally supporting Rabby and all wallets that support the standard
-   Worked on several features that will soon be revealed

## Open Job Positions

### Marketing

[Content Marketing Manager Remote or Lisbon](https://boards.eu.greenhouse.io/cowswap/jobs/4343031101)

### Other

[Name Your Role Remote — Lisbon](https://boards.eu.greenhouse.io/cowswap/jobs/4341959101)

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Welcome back to another CoW Update, where we break down the most notable developments of the last few weeks at CoW DAO.


CoW DAO May 2024 Highlights

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This article summarizes the “Order Flow Auctions on the MEV Supply Chain” talk presented by CoW Swap at the Prague DeFi Summit

Understanding Order Flow Auctions

# MEV Bots: how to protect yourself

[Maximal extractable value, or MEV](https://cow.fi/learn/what-is-mev), is a pernicious form of price exploitation responsible for over $1.3 billion in losses for everyday traders. Most MEV occurs on the Ethereum ecosystem and adversely affects transactions across decentralized exchanges, liquidity pools, NFT marketplaces, and more.

MEV bots capture MEV by seeking out and exploiting price differences. Since blockchain markets are built to be always-on, there are always arbitrage opportunities on networks like Ethereum. MEV bots exploit beginners and seasoned traders alike, so it’s important to understand how they work and how to avoid them.

## What is MEV?

Before diving into the specifics of how to avoid MEV bots, let’s first make sure we understand MEV conceptually.

  
[Maximal Extractable Value](https://cow.fi/learn/what-is-mev) is, as the name suggests, a measure of the maximum amount of value that can be extracted from the contents of a given Ethereum block. Ethereum transactions are not all equally valuable, and validators (the parties responsible for creating the blocks) can pick and choose how to order transactions in blocks to maximize their profits. This means that transactions are not necessarily executed in the order they are received; instead, validators arrange them in a way that maximizes their compensation.
![1-how-to-avoid-mev-bots.webp](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/1_how_to_avoid_mev_bots_ffb5692931.webp)


## How MEV occurs in an Ethereum block

  

Upon order submission, Ethereum transactions get sent to a “mempool” where they wait to be added to a block. In this mempool, MEV bots (also known as “searchers”) can view pending transactions and bribe validators to reorder them, exploiting the little guy and profiting in the process.

## What is an MEV Bot?

An MEV bot is a program designed to monitor decentralized exchanges, NFT marketplaces, lending platforms, and other on-chain venues to spot profit opportunities. There are several distinct types of MEV bots, each targeting different kinds of transactions.

  

### Trading MEV bots

The most common type of MEV bots exploit decentralized exchanges that users rely on to swap cryptocurrencies. They specifically take advantage of the mechanisms used by [automated market makers (AMMs)](https://cow.fi/learn/cow-protocol-glossary#:~:text=amm).

  
When users trade on decentralized exchanges, they set a [slippage](https://cow.fi/learn/what-is-slippage-in-crypto) tolerance to manage the price difference between the time an order is submitted and when it actually executes. Normally, slippage tolerances range from around 0.1% for stable assets like stablecoins, to 1–2% for blue-chip cryptos like Ethereum, and sometimes upwards of 10% for highly volatile cryptocurrencies like memecoins.

![1-how-to-avoid-mev-bots.webp](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/1_how_to_avoid_mev_bots_ffb5692931.webp)

_How MEV occurs in an Ethereum block_

Upon order submission, Ethereum transactions get sent to a “mempool” where they wait to be added to a block. In this mempool, MEV bots (also known as “searchers”) can view pending transactions and bribe validators to reorder them, exploiting the little guy and profiting in the process.

## What is an MEV Bot?

An MEV bot is a program designed to monitor decentralized exchanges, NFT marketplaces, lending platforms, and other on-chain venues to spot profit opportunities. 

## Different bots target different MEV transactions

There are several distinct types of MEV bots, each targeting different kinds of transactions.

##Trading MEV bots 
The most common type of MEV bots exploit decentralized exchanges that users rely on to swap cryptocurrencies. They specifically take advantage of the mechanisms used by  [automated market makers (AMMs)](/learn/cow-protocol-glossary#:~:text=amm).

When users trade on decentralized exchanges, they set a slippage tolerance to manage the price difference between the time an order is submitted and when it actually executes. Normally, slippage tolerances range from around 0.1% for stable assets like stablecoins, to 1–2% for blue-chip cryptos like Ethereum, and sometimes upwards of 10% for highly volatile cryptocurrencies like memecoins.

![2-how-to-avoid-mev-bots.webp](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/2_how_to_avoid_mev_bots_311ef2c62c.webp)


### How a [sandwich attack](https://docs.cow.fi/mevblocker/concepts/mev-concepts/sandwich-attacks) occurs

  

One of many techniques that DEX MEV bots use to exploit the slippage tolerance set by users to manipulate trades through is a “[sandwich attack](https://cow.fi/learn/what-is-a-sandwich-attack-and-how-can-you-protect-yourself).” In a sandwich attack, MEV bots identify a target trade and execute a frontrunning trade just before it, driving up the asset’s price to the slippage tolerance limit. Once the victim’s transaction goes through and raises the price further, the bots dump the token, keeping the profits for themselves. MEV bots also use techniques like [frontrunning](https://cow.fi/learn/what-is-frontrunning) and [backrunning](https://cow.fi/learn/what-is-backrunning-mev-attacks-explained) to exploit decentralized exchanges.

  

### LP MEV bots

Liquidity providers (LPs) on decentralized exchanges can also fall prey to MEV bots. MEV for LPs is known as “[loss versus rebalancing” or LVR](https://cow.fi/learn/what-is-loss-versus-rebalancing-lvr). This value extraction arises from the arbitrage between a given LP pool and a reference rebalancing pool that has more up-to-date pricing.

LVR is a problem on decentralized exchanges because price discovery for assets typically occurs off-chain. Centralized exchanges like Binance generally have more liquidity for tokens so they serve as the most accurate source of truth for up-to-the-minute prices.

MEV bots exploit this arbitrage opportunity by continuously trading against DEX pools, capturing upside for themselves at the expense of the LPs.

### NFT MEV bots

MEV bots can also hijack NFT mints through a process called “frontrunning.” If an MEV bot detects a transaction in the mempool from a user attempting to purchase a valuable NFT, it can submit an order to buy the NFT for itself that executes before the user’s transaction. This is similar to frontrunning swaps on DEXs but applied to NFT mints instead.

![what-is-frontrunning-cover-photo.webp](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/what_is_frontrunning_cover_photo_11a9eec4fe.webp)

## How to Avoid MEV Bots

While MEV is a pervasive problem across all of Ethereum, there are multiple ways to keep yourself safe.

### Use tight slippage when trading

The simplest way to defend against MEV is by setting a low slippage tolerance.

Since MEV exploits slippage for price manipulation, transactions with a lower slippage tolerance provide searchers with less opportunity to exploit trades.

  

For users not using any other MEV protection tools, setting a lower slippage tolerance can serve as an initial line of defense. However, it’s not a complete solution. Setting the slippage tolerance too low can often result in failed transactions. Even with optimal slippage, MEV bots may still manage to extract value from your trades.

### Trade on pools with large liquidity

Fundamentally, MEV relies on arbitrage opportunities. One way to reduce exposure to such arbitrage is to restrict your trading only to pools with large liquidity. On these pools, individual trades won’t have much [price impact](https://cow.fi/learn/cow-protocol-glossary#:~:text=Price%20impact), so it will be more difficult for MEV bots to extract value.

This strategy limits much of DeFi, of course, as there are constantly new coins launched, and even popular coins may suffer from low liquidity on certain exchanges or during certain times.

### Install an MEV protection RPC

An increasingly popular type of MEV protection that provides a comprehensive solution to the problem is the use of an MEV blocking RPC like [MEV Blocker](https://mevblocker.io/).

  

An RPC (Remote procedure call) is a piece of software that sits between a user wallet and the blockchain, transmitting transactions. Normally, RPCs are a boring piece of blockchain infrastructure.

  

Recently, however, specialized RPCs have begun incorporating extra security guarantees for transactions before they reach the blockchain.

  

#### MEV Blocker

The most popular specialized RPC endpoint is [MEV Blocker](https://mevblocker.io/). As its name suggests, MEV Blocker protects against MEV across the entire Ethereum network.

  

This RPC manages a permissionless network of searchers and conceals transactions from the public mempool. These searchers cannot frontrun or sandwich user transactions; instead, they capture value through [backrunning](https://cow.fi/learn/what-is-mev). Whenever a searcher backruns a user’s transaction, they keep up to 10% of the value and return the remaining 90% to the user as a rebate. This means that even when a transaction leaves money on the table, MEV Blocker ensures users get most of that value back.

  

MEV Blocker protects all types of Ethereum transactions, not just swaps, and is compatible with all Ethereum wallets. You can install the MEV Blocker RPC endpoint by following the instructions [here](https://mevblocker.io/).

### Use intent-based trading solutions

While RPC endpoints protect against MEV across many different types of trades, the most comprehensive solutions take place at the application level.

  

In recent years, there has been a surge in the popularity of intent-based trading solutions like CoW Swap, with leading exchanges like 1inch and Uniswap launching their own intent-based solutions in 1inch Fusion and Uniswap X. Unlike traditional decentralized exchanges, intent-based trading solutions rely on professional execution parties known as “solvers’’ to execute trades on behalf of users.

  

Delegating execution to professional third parties helps users get the best prices for their trades, as solvers can determine the optimal liquidity sources to tap into. It also means that solver themselves take the risk of MEV, and users are protected from direct price exploitation.

![3-how-to-avoid-mev-bots.webp](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/3_how_to_avoid_mev_bots_523b1b6663.webp)

_The flow of a transaction on CoW Swap_

### (For LPs) Use an MEV-capturing AMM

Until recently, there wasn’t a great solution to MEV in the form of loss-versus-rebalancing (LVR). LPs basically had to accept that providing liquidity for tokens comes with a tax paid to the MEV bots that constantly rebalance the pools (at the expense of the liquidity providers themselves).

  

This all changed, however, with the launch of [CoW AMM](https://cow.fi/cow-amm) — a first-of-its-kind MEV-capturing AMM that redirects profits from pool rebalancing to liquidity providers. CoW AMM works sort of like MEV Blocker in that it makes the MEV bots work FOR users rather than against them. To trade against the liquidity in CoW AMM pools, solvers must bid to provide the most surplus to the pool, thereby giving the majority of LVR profits to the LPs.

## Why MEV bots are bad for Ethereum

As a permissionless, public platform, Ethereum serves as a battleground of opinions on whether [MEV is good, bad, or should even be allowed in the first place](https://cow.fi/learn/is-mev-good-or-bad).

  

Those sympathetic to the practice argue that MEV is a natural market mechanism that enhances market efficiency and encourages price discovery. While litigating the specifics of the issue is beyond the scope of this article, there are important arguments to be made for why MEV bots are harmful to individual users.
![4-how-to-avoid-mev-bots.webp](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/4_how_to_avoid_mev_bots_c7aafd4451.webp)

_A snapshot of total MEV value extraction_

### Reduce fairness

At its core, value extraction prioritizes sophisticated traders with the means and know-how to exploit transactions and profit off minute arbitrage opportunities.

  

Users who may simply be making trades on exchanges or minting NFTs have no way to compete with these value extractors unless theycan write better bots to protect their transactions.

### Disproportionately target beginners

Those new to DeFi are particularly vulnerable to being exploited. The world of decentralized trading is complex for beginners, who may not even understand settings like slippage tolerance, making them easy prey for bots waiting to take advantage of inexperienced traders.

  

This creates a negative equilibrium for decentralized trading that may drive newcomers away, hurting the ecosystem as a whole.

### Engage in market manipulation

While there are arguments to be made for MEV encouraging market efficiency and price discovery, this is not the case with every type of MEV.

  

For example, trading MEV bots rely on exploiting slippage tolerances by raising prices up to a threshold and then selling immediately after in a sandwich attack. In this scenario, the AMM does not benefit from price discovery, but instead experiences an artificial pump-and-dump at the expense of a single trader. In traditional markets, such a move could be considered market manipulation as it adds nothing to the market and is designed solely to profit off a market participant.

## CoW DAO: Protecting Ethereum Users from Negative Outcomes

Ultimately, the goal of Ethereum is to serve as a public platform that enables innovation. MEV as a problem emerges from a largely unrestricted marketplace. This benefits innovation by encouraging novel market mechanisms, but it also poses risks to uninformed traders.

  

For this reason, it’s important for users to be aware of the solutions available for protecting themselves. Regardless of what side of the MEV debate you stand on, most of us agree that we don’t want our trades exploited. To this end, [CoW DAO](https://cow.fi) has your back with products that protect you from Ethereum’s dangers and work to ensure positive outcomes.

  

Install MEV Blocker here: [www.mevblocker.io](http://www.mevblocker.io/)

LP on CoW AMM: [https://cow.fi/cow-amm](https://cow.fi/cow-amm)

Swap on CoW Swap: [www.swap.cow.fi](https://swap.cow.fi/#/swap?utm_source=medium&utm_campaign=protect-from-mev-bots-article)

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The nasty culprits of MEV lurk in every corner of Ethereum… Find out how to keep yourself safe.

MEV Bots: how to protect yourself

# Smart contracts: how they power DeFi 

Blockchains eliminate the need for a central authority or intermediary in running a large, decentralized network of nodes. Smart contracts bring these benefits to specific use cases by enabling the creation of decentralized apps (dApps).

## What is a smart contract?

A smart contract is an executable program on a blockchain network. Smart contracts make up the backbone of the web3 industry as they enable many of the use-cases that blockchains are known for including staking, swapping, lending, borrowing, and much more.

## How do Smart Contracts Work?

Smart contracts are created as computer code that is hosted and executed on a blockchain network. A decentralized set of nodes keep a copy of the entire state of the blockchain, including all deployed smart contracts, in order to ensure that the smart contracts are executed in a reliable and transparent way.

Let’s take a look at the process of creating and deploying a smart contract:

- **Contract Creation**: Developers write smart contracts using programming languages compatible with the blockchain, such as Solidity for Ethereum. The code within the smart contracts include rules for execution and the logic necessary for the smart contract to perform its function — such as lending, swapping, borrowing, etc.

- **Compiling**: After it’s written, the smart contract is compiled into bytecode. This is the machine-readable language that execution environments such as the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) use.

- **Deployment**: Once it’s compiled, the smart contract is deployed to the blockchain through a transaction that includes the contract’s code. This transaction is then broadcast to the network and assigned a unique address on the blockchain, similar to how blockchain wallets have addresses.

- **Trigger**: Smart contracts are designed to automatically execute when predefined conditions are met. They can be triggered by various events, including receiving a certain amount of cryptocurrency, the expiration of a timer, receiving a trigger from an external data source, and more.

- **Execution**: Once a contract is triggered, blockchain nodes execute the contract’s code. Since every node on the network independently runs the code, the execution is verified and validated multiple times. This multi-party validation is what provides the security and transparency smart contracts are known for.

- **State Change**: All actions taken by a smart contract are treated as transactions. These transactions can change the state of the contract, interact with other contracts, alter user balances, and more.

- **Results**: The state change caused by the execution of the smart contract is recorded on the blockchain and assimilated by the various nodes. Changes in balances, variables, ownership records, and more are recorded on the blockchain in an immutable manner.

- **Continuous Interaction**: Smart contracts can remain on the blockchain indefinitely, ready to be triggered again under the right conditions.

An important aspect of smart contracts is that they are permisionless, meaning that anyone can develop and deploy a smart contract on any public blockchain. All they have to do is pay the necessary gas fees to deploy the smart contract.

## What are Smart Contracts Used For?

Smart contracts are at the heart of decentralized apps (dApps). They power the entire world of decentralized finance (DeFi) as well as other fields like blockchain insurance, gaming, NFTs, social networks, and much more.

### Decentralized Exchanges

dApps that enable trading, like Uniswap, rely on smart contracts for processing user funds, [finding liquidity](https://cow.fi/learn/understanding-automated-market-makers-a-beginner-s-guide-to-de-fi-liquidity), and executing swaps.

More complex decentralized exchanges such as [CoW Swap](https://swap.cow.fi/#/swap?utm_source=medium&utm_campaign=smart-contracts-article) use smart contracts to power solver competitions where multiple independent parties find liquidity on behalf of users. In this case, smart contracts are essential for enforcing the rules of the competition and ensuring users get the best deal for their trades.

### Lending & Borrowing Platforms

Platforms like [Aave](https://aave.com) allow blockchain users to take out overcollateralized crypto loans without relying on traditional counterparties. These dApps utilize smart contracts to allow users to lend out their crypto assets or borrow against them.The platform works by having users deposit crypto tokens into liquidity pools managed by smart contracts and allowing borrowers to take out loans from these liquidity pools by providing collateral. Smart contracts automatically enforce the terms of the loan, such as collateral requirements, interest rates, and repayment terms. They also manage liquidations whenever necessary.

Additionally, on-chain lending platforms use algorithmically determined dynamic interest rates, which adjust based on the current supply and demand for each asset in the pools. Smart contracts calculate and update these rates in real-time, ensuring that lenders receive competitive returns and borrowers pay fair rates.

### Liquidity Providing

Exchanges that rely on [automated market makers (AMMs)](https://cow.fi/learn/understanding-automated-market-makers-a-beginner-s-guide-to-de-fi-liquidity) use smart contracts not only for the swap process, but also for allowing users to provide liquidity. [AMMs](https://cow.fi/learn/cow-protocol-glossary#:~:text=amm) allow users to trade assets without the need for a centralized intermediary, or even a traditional orderbook.

Whenever a user swaps tokens, they interact with the appropriate liquidity pool’s smart contract. The contract calculates the amount of tokens that can be received based on the current ratio of tokens in the pool, with the goal of ensuring that the pool remains balanced. The transaction is then executed automatically by the smart contract without requiring a traditional buyer-seller match.

### Staking

Many smart-contract-enabled blockchains, such as Ethereum, use proof-of-stake consensus mechanisms. These systems require users to lock up, or “stake,” tokens in order to validate the state of the blockchain. Smart contracts are essential to this process.

Tokens used for staking are locked in a smart contract that ensures that the tokens cannot be spent elsewhere while they are staked. This contract typically specifies conditions such as the minimum staking period, the minimum and maximum stake amounts, and other rules governing the staking process.

Smart contracts also calculate the rewards distribution for stakers, select which validators should create the next block, penalize validators in case of misconduct, and facilitate unstaking and withdrawals.

## What are the Benefits of Smart Contracts?

So far, we’ve seen that smart contracts ensure that dApps are online 24/7 and function without the need for counterparties. Below we take a look at some additional benefits.

-   **Automation:** Smart contracts are automatically executed, meaning they effectively eliminate counterparty risk. Various parties in transactions also have their funds transferred automatically without having to wait for signatures, notaries, or other forms of manual verification.
    
-   **Transparency:** Smart contracts deployed on blockchains are publicly visible, meaning anyone can audit the code and determine what the smart contract does. This transparency encourages trust as malicious code can be quickly identified and there is no doubt about what steps a smart contract will take when executed.
    
-   **Immutability:** As a corollary to transparency, smart contracts are also immutable, meaning that they cannot be changed without these changes becoming public. This adds an additional layer of transparency which ensures smart contracts perform what they are supposed to with no malicious code and without censoring outputs.
    

## What are the Limitations of Smart Contracts?

The main downside of smart contracts is (aptly) known as “smart contract risk” — which is the risk that the smart contract has a bug that prevents it from executing properly or puts user funds at risk.

A powerful benefit of smart contracts is their immutability, meaning no one can sneak changes in. This can also prove to be a headache, however, if a smart contract is deployed with an error. For this reason, it’s extremely important that code deployed on blockchains is as error-free as possible. In service of this goal, the cottage industry of smart contract audit services has emerged to help make sure deployed code has no bugs and smart contract risk is well managed.

## How Smart Contracts Enable Decentralized Finance

Decentralized finance, or “DeFi”, is an emerging field that aims to transform the way individuals move money, ending the reliance on centralized intermediaries like banks. A core DeFi function is the ability to swap cryptocurrencies from one to another permissionlessly. One of the leaders in this space, CoW Swap, is a [meta DEX aggregator](https://cow.fi/learn/what-is-a-meta-dex-and-why-should-you-use-it-for-your-trades) that enables the most efficient and price optimal swaps in DeFi.

![1-what-is-a-smart-contract.webp](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/1_what_is_a_smart_contract_80275c1ffb.webp)

## How CoW swap uses smart contracts

CoW Swap relies on smart contracts for much of its functionality. Not only do smart contracts enable the nuts and bolts of processing user funds, they also govern the solver competition that sets CoW Swap apart from other decentralized exchanges.

Smart contracts ensure that CoW Swap users receive the best prices for their trades through a decentralized solver competition where independent third parties compete for the right to settle user trades. The best solution is algorithmically determined based on which solver provides the most surplus to users. Thanks to smart contracts, CoW Swap users know that they are getting the best deals for their trades.

Give CoW Swap a shot and put its smart contracts to work for you:  [swap.cow.fi](https://swap.cow.fi/#/swap?utm_source=medium&utm_campaign=smart-contracts-article.


# FAQs about smart contracts

### What makes smart contracts different from traditional contracts?

Smart contracts automatically execute when conditions are met without requiring third-party verification. They operate 24/7 on blockchain networks, eliminating counterparty risk through immutable code. Traditional contracts need manual enforcement and often involve intermediaries like lawyers or notaries to verify and execute terms.

### How are smart contracts created and deployed on blockchains?

Developers write smart contracts in languages like Solidity (for Ehereum contracts) before compiling them into bytecode. The compiled code is then deployed to the blockchain through a transaction that generates a unique address. Once deployed, the contract remains on the blockchain indefinitely, ready to execute when triggered by specific conditions.

### What are the primary risks associated with smart contracts?

Smart contract risk stems from potential bugs or vulnerabilities in the code that could compromise user funds. Once deployed, contracts cannot easily be modified due to their immutable nature on the blockchain. This is why professional audits are essential before deployment to minimize errors and protect user assets.

### How do smart contracts benefit DeFi applications like CoW Swap?

Smart contracts enable CoW Swap to run solver competitions that find the best prices for users. They process user funds securely while ensuring transactions execute automatically without intermediaries. Smart contracts also provide transparency, as anyone can verify the code's functionality, building trust in the decentralized exchange ecosystem.

### How do smart contracts enable the CoW Swap solver competition?

Smart contracts govern the rules of CoW Swap's solver competition where independent parties compete to find liquidity. They algorithmically determine which solver offers the best execution price for users' trades. This process ensures users receive optimal prices while maintaining a trusted and permissionless trading environment.

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Discover how smart contracts power DeFi, enabling decentralized apps, lending, borrowing, staking, and more on blockchain networks.


Smart Contracts: How They Power DeFi | CoW Swap

## TL;DR

-   During the month of  **April**, CoW Protocol handled a total volume of  **$2.38B**  and generated a surplus of  **$16.6M**
-   In exciting news, CoW DAO began a  [token buyback program](https://twitter.com/CoWSwap/status/1785339850394304608), MEV Blocker  [started collecting revenue](https://x.com/CoWSwap/status/1778084900610228559), and CoW Swap ran an “[I’m feeling lucky”](https://x.com/CoWSwap/status/1774725067567681674)  campaign for April Fool’s day
-   In terms of Governance, CoW DAO executed  [CIP-40: MEV Blocker Fees](https://snapshot.org/#/cow.eth/proposal/0x67aaf4f3e14f833ea496a5cf29d3c58cd12e36a72b7f36c60393083b87422070),  [CIP-41: Claim and Delegate CoW DAO’s SHU Token Allocation](https://snapshot.org/#/cow.eth/proposal/0x86686d2546586696370f87313cf1dff4705e9d7edeee03e560a84470eaa3f57e), and  [CIP-42: Enhancing Treasury Asset Usage](https://snapshot.org/#/cow.eth/proposal/0xb6edd841020478bf3c10b51a897c4bde511f11ddf53bf6352edc0fe2b949518a)

## Protocol Stats

This month, CoW Protocol settled a total of  **$2.38B.**

![1-cow-dao-april-2024-highlights.webp](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/1_cow_dao_april_2024_highlights_36cbd49453.webp)

The top 3 batches worth highlighting are the following:

-   **Batch with the highest % of CoW trades (**[**Transaction details**](https://explorer.cow.fi/tx/0xf191aa1a7280c1c5ea51c91f11d3b1d3456c57ec37712923b6d030453571b09c?tab=orders)**):**  The total batch volume was  **$2.26M**, and it was created by two traders who were CoWed for  **$2,000,000, (88.5%)**  of the total volume. One trader was buying USDC, the other was selling USDC.

![2-cow-dao-april-2024-highlights.webp](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/2_cow_dao_april_2024_highlights_cdd6a84049.webp)

-   **Batch containing the highest volume (**[**Transaction details**](https://explorer.cow.fi/tx/0xe71b7b029dd274087ef0148d9af8203b62cd0368fb42b6231c4db5dfb985d240?tab=orders&vis=transfers)**):**  The total batch volume was  **$15,474,023** and it was created by two traders — one swapping  **USDT for USDC**  and one swapping  **ETH for FRAX**.

![3-cow-dao-april-2024-highlights.webp](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/3_cow_dao_april_2024_highlights_fa24438f19.webp)

-   **Batch with the highest amount of surplus (**[**Transaction details**](https://explorer.cow.fi/tx/0xfc720a40a9cf1366b7a00c6a4f0f72a64316e07143ba523e672b12ca4b2244f6?tab=orders)**):**  The total batch volume was  **1,000 ETH**, and it was created by a trader swapping ETH for WBTC. They received  **1.05 WBTC (2.09%)**  as surplus.

![4-cow-dao-april-2024-highlights.webp](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/4_cow_dao_april_2024_highlights_97d7d45c4c.webp)

During the month of  **April**, the top 10 traders traded a total of  **$40,343,807.**

![5-cow-dao-april-2024-highlights.webp](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/5_cow_dao_april_2024_highlights_861a8be332.webp)

In the table below you can see the total volume for this month’s biggest trades. The most active trader executed a whopping  **$14,687,148**  in trades with CoW Protocol this month.

![6-cow-dao-april-2024-highlights.webp](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/6_cow_dao_april_2024_highlights_0947456c82.webp)

## Solvers

In  **April**, solvers generated a total of  **$16M**  in surplus, which is money in the pockets of traders.

![7-cow-dao-april-2024-highlights.webp](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/7_cow_dao_april_2024_highlights_e3f24ac5b9.webp)

Below you can find a breakdown of how each solver performed in April.

![8-cow-dao-april-2024-highlights.webp](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/8_cow_dao_april_2024_highlights_0b729fd1b0.webp)

## Governance

It was an active month in terms of governance! The CoWs cannot be stopped 💪

![9-cow-dao-april-2024-highlights.webp](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/9_cow_dao_april_2024_highlights_ccaeab6849.webp)

### Executed Proposals

The DAO  **executed three important proposals**  this month:

-   [CIP-40: MEV Blocker Fees](https://snapshot.org/#/cow.eth/proposal/0x67aaf4f3e14f833ea496a5cf29d3c58cd12e36a72b7f36c60393083b87422070)
-   [CIP-41: Claim and Delegate CoW DAO’s SHU Token Allocation](https://snapshot.org/#/cow.eth/proposal/0x86686d2546586696370f87313cf1dff4705e9d7edeee03e560a84470eaa3f57e)
-   [CIP-42: Enhancing Treasury Asset Usage](https://snapshot.org/#/cow.eth/proposal/0xb6edd841020478bf3c10b51a897c4bde511f11ddf53bf6352edc0fe2b949518a)

### Draft Proposals

There were no new draft proposals this month.

## CoWmunity News

-   With CIP-40 passing, MEV Blocker  [began earning revenue from builders](https://x.com/CoWSwap/status/1778084900610228559)
-   CoW DAO began converting all collected protocol fees from ETH to COW, effectively creating a  [buyback program for the COW token](https://twitter.com/CoWSwap/status/1785339850394304608)
-   MEV Blocker  [received an Etherscan integration](https://x.com/CoWSwap/status/1785007216485130550)  that allows users to view pending transactions submitted through the private RPC
-   CoW Swap  [supported Safe’s token launch](https://x.com/CoWSwap/status/1782433684219638205)  by offering pre-launch limit orders
-   CoW Swap welcomed April with a  [one-day-only “I’m Feeling Lucky” swap feature](https://x.com/CoWSwap/status/1774725067567681674)
-   Enabled limit orders for  [amounts larger than the current token balance a user has in their wallet](https://x.com/CoWSwap/status/1777504272487223712)
-   The Den multisig project  [integrated the CoW Swap widget](https://x.com/CoWSwap/status/1782412887778333001)  for easy swaps
-   The CoW Swap team traveled to Token 2049 to represent the project

## Product Updates

### Backend

The backend team has been working hard to improve the product infrastructure. In  **April**, we:

-   Finalized the partner fee implementation
-   Cleaned up rank-by-surplus and fee features
-   Worked on exempting CoW AMM orders from protocol fees
-   Tested support for 0x liquidity
-   Worked on colocating Gnosis solvers as quoters
-   Implemented performance improvements to make the system more stable with colocated price estimator

### Frontend

The frontend team has been working hard on improvements in the UI front, as well as the overall UI infrastructure. In  **April**, we:

-   Improved responsiveness on the CoW Swap widget
-   Launched support for creating limit orders beyond the current wallet balance as well
-   Launched the partner fee for the CoW Swap widget
-   Supported a number of integrations including Nanse, Den, Shapeshift, Memeswap, and more
-   Iterated on proposals for adding cross-chain swaps to CoW Swap
-   Worked on migrating CoW Swap blog content to an internal CMS

## Open Job Positions

### Engineering

[Support Engineer with Python](https://boards.eu.greenhouse.io/cowswap/jobs/4332254101)

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CoW DAO April 2024 Highlights

Slippage is the difference between the price at which a cryptocurrency order is submitted and the price at which it’s executed.

Since crypto prices fluctuate constantly, it’s necessary to set a “slippage tolerance” for every trade which allows users to accept a slightly higher or slightly lower price for their trades at execution time.

## What is Slippage?

Slippage is the amount that a trade price may vary by between the time the trade is placed and the time it actually executes.

To better understand slippage, let’s take a look at an example.

Let’s say a user places an order to buy 1 ETH while the price of ETH is exactly $3,000. By the time the order executes, however, ETH has shifted slightly in price and the user ends up only paying $2,980 for 1 ETH. The $20 difference between the $3,000 that they initially placed their order at and the $2,980 per ETH price that the order eventually executed for is known as slippage.

## What is a Slippage Tolerance?

![1-what-is-slippage.webp](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/1_what_is_slippage_0b1a557216.webp)

_The slippage setting on_ [_CoW Swap_](https://swap.cow.fi/#/swap?utm_source=medium&utm_campaign=slippage-article)

Decentralized exchanges require users to set a “slippage tolerance” percentage every time they make a trade. This determines how much deviation the trader is willing to accept in the price of the asset they are trading.

For example, if a user wants to buy 1 ETH, it might cost them $3,000 at the time they place their trade, but by execution time that price may have changed to $2,950 (approximately 2% less). If they had no slippage tolerance, their trade would fail, potentially still incurring gas fees and forcing them to resubmit the transaction.

Meanwhile, if they set a slippage tolerance of 2% when they place their trade, their trade would be able to execute at prices 2% below or 2% above the quoted price. In this example, this would allow the trade to go through as long as 1 ETH is between $2,940 and $3,060 at execution time.

All decentralized exchanges use slippage tolerances for user trades, so it’s important to understand the concept and know what percentage to use.

## What Slippage Tolerance Should I Use?

As a rule, you should try to use the smallest slippage you can get away with. On most exchanges, the default slippage tolerance is between 0.5% and 2%, however, the optimal slippage tolerance depends on the type of asset you’re trading.

Generally speaking, the more volatile a crypto asset is, the higher a slippage tolerance you’ll need to use.

**For stable assets**: Assets like stablecoins generally require a low slippage tolerance because their prices don’t fluctuate by much. Exchanges specializing in stablecoins (such as Curve) set the default slippage tolerance for these assets at between 0.25% and 0.5%.

**For standard assets**: The standard slippage tolerance for most trades is between 0.5% and 2%. This is a good range to stick to when trading established assets with medium volatility profiles such as Ethereum.

**For volatile assets**: When it comes to cryptocurrencies whose prices jump wildly — such as memecoins or new token launches — users will often need to use a higher slippage tolerance than 2%. There is no hard and fast rule here. Depending on the volatility of the asset, user trades may require a double-digit slippage, maybe even in the high double-digits, in order for the trade to go through.

It’s important to understand, however, that setting a high slippage tolerance leaves you vulnerable to price exploitation in the form of maximal extractable value (MEV).

## The Dangers of High Slippage

While setting a high slippage tolerance helps ensure that your transaction goes through, using too high of a slippage tolerance can be dangerous.

Blockchains like Ethereum process transactions sequentially, meaning that transactions in a block execute one after the other. This, combined with the mechanism of  [automated market makers (AMMs)](/learn/cow-protocol-glossary#:~:text=amm), means that value-extracting bots can strategically place transactions before and after your trade to exploit your slippage tolerance and extract value from you. This type of price exploitation is known as maximal extractable value (MEV).

### Sandwich Attacks

![2-what-is-slippage.webp](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/2_what_is_slippage_e0af2a8fb5.webp)

_The flow of a sandwich attack_

A  [sandwich attack](/learn/what-is-a-sandwich-attack-and-how-can-you-protect-yourself)  is a form of MEV that can occur whenever a user places a trade with a high slippage tolerance. Specifically, this is a slippage tolerance that is larger than what the market price may call for.

When a user places this trade, an MEV bot (known as a “searcher”) places another transaction before the user transaction, pushing the price of the traded asset up to the original user’s maximum slippage tolerance. The original user’s transaction then goes through, pushing the price up even further. Finally, the searcher sells the asset, cashing out on the price difference.

In the end, the user loses out because their transaction could have gone through at a lower slippage. Instead, the searcher forced the user’s transaction to execute at the limit of its slippage tolerance and kept the difference for themselves.

This isn’t a rare occurrence either, MEV is a systemic problem for chains like Ethereum where MEV losses total over $1.3 billion to date.

## What is Auto-Slippage?

Unfortunately, there is no perfect way to predict what the ideal slippage should be for every trade. In crypto, users are often competing against more sophisticated trading parties and bots who can take advantage of their sub-optimal traders for their own profit.

To protect users from MEV, some exchanges offer auto-slippage functions which automatically calculate the slippage tolerance that trades should use based on the assets they are trading and market conditions.

## CoW Swap: Premium Auto-Slippage and Delegated Trade Execution

![3-what-is-slippage.webp](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/3_what_is_slippage_4170bdeb89.webp)

One of the exchanges with the most advanced auto-slippage features is CoW Swap. CoW Swap is an intents-based DEX aggregator that uses third parties known as “solvers” to execute trades on behalf of users. Solvers calculate the optimal slippage tolerance for user trades and take on all the risks of MEV.

![4-what-is-slippage.webp](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/4_what_is_slippage_4f3c2ce1e4.webp)

In fact,  [data shows](https://blog.cow.fi/do-cows-slip-age-less-389150154f84)  that CoW Swap offers a low default slippage the overwhelming majority of the time compared to 0x and 1inch.

On CoW Swap, you can make the perfect trade every time, even if you’ve never heard of “slippage” before!

Trade worry-free at  [swap.cow.fi](https://swap.cow.fi/#/swap?utm_source=medium&utm_campaign=slippage-article).

## **FAQs**



## What is slippage in crypto?

Slippage is the difference between the price at which a cryptocurrency order is submitted and the price at which it's actually executed. For example, if you place an order to buy 1 ETH at $3,000 but the transaction completes at $2,980, the $20 difference is slippage. This occurs because crypto prices fluctuate constantly, making some price difference between order placement and execution almost inevitable.

## What is a slippage tolerance?

Slippage tolerance is the percentage deviation in price that a trader is willing to accept when executing a cryptocurrency trade. For instance, setting a 2% slippage tolerance when buying 1 ETH at $3,000 means your trade can execute as long as the final price falls between $2,940 and $3,060. Without setting an appropriate slippage tolerance, trades may fail during price fluctuations, potentially still incurring gas fees and requiring you to resubmit the transaction.

## What slippage tolerance should I use for different assets?

For stable assets like stablecoins, a low slippage tolerance of 0.25% to 0.5% is typically sufficient since their prices don't fluctuate much. Standard assets with medium volatility profiles like Ethereum generally work well with a slippage tolerance between 0.5% and 2%. Highly volatile assets such as memecoins or new token launches may require double-digit slippage tolerances to ensure trades go through, though this comes with increased risk of exploitation.

## What are the dangers of using high slippage tolerance?

Setting a high slippage tolerance can expose you to price exploitation through maximal extractable value (MEV) attacks, particularly sandwich attacks. In a sandwich attack, MEV bots place transactions before and after yours, pushing the price to your maximum slippage tolerance and then selling at the elevated price, essentially extracting value from your trade. These attacks are not rare—MEV losses on Ethereum total over $1.3 billion to date, making it important to use the lowest workable slippage tolerance.

## What is auto-slippage and how does it help traders?

Auto-slippage is a feature offered by some exchanges that automatically calculates the optimal slippage tolerance based on the assets being traded and current market conditions. CoW Swap, for example, uses an advanced auto-slippage system where third-party "solvers" calculate optimal slippage and execute trades on behalf of users, taking on all MEV risks. Data shows that CoW Swap offers lower default slippage than competitors like 0x and 1inch, allowing even beginners to trade without worrying about slippage settings.

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Slippage occurs in most crypto trades, and it’s an important concept for traders to understand


What is Slippage in Crypto?


The rise of permissionless trading venues known as decentralized exchanges (DEXs) allow users to swap between virtually any cryptocurrency assets. Navigating multiple decentralized exchanges, however, can be cumbersome and inefficient.

This is where a decentralized exchange (DEX) aggregator comes in.

## What is a DEX aggregator?

A DEX aggregator is a platform that searches multiple decentralized exchanges to find the best prices for crypto trades.

DEX aggregators are decentralized applications that search decentralized exchange trading platforms (like Uniswap, Balancer, and others) to find the best prices for any given trade. DEX aggregators have become pivotal to the world of decentralized finance (DeFi) by providing [a single trading platform for users looking to get the best deal](https://cow.fi/cow-swap) on their swaps.

## Why traders are using DEX aggregators

DEX aggregators provide a number of benefits, simplifying trading and providing better outcomes for users.

-   Better Prices: DEX aggregators look across multiple on-chain decentralized exchanges to find the best prices for any given token pair. Since most on-chain trading relies on [automated market makers (AMMs)](https://cow.fi/learn/cow-protocol-glossary#:~:text=amm), liquidity may be fragmented across various exchanges. As their name suggests, aggregators collect this liquidity in one place, giving traders the best deal for their swaps.
    
-   Convenience: By using a DEX aggregator, [traders can reliably get good prices for their trades in one place](https://cow.fi/learn/mev-transparency-ensuring-fairness-in-defi-markets) without having to check multiple exchanges.
    
-   Price Impact Protection: Fragmented liquidity can sometimes make for shallow pools, meaning large trades experience significant [price impact](https://blog.cow.fi/cow-protocol-glossary-ad7313a2c71#:~:text=Price%20Impact). Aggregators can break up trades across multiple exchanges, reducing price impact and providing better prices.
    
-   MEV Protection: In the case of intent-based DEX aggregators, solvers execute trades on behalf of users—protecting them from price exploitation in the form of [maximal extractable value (MEV)](https://cow.fi/learn/understanding-mev-protection).
    

Fragmented liquidity often makes finding the best route for trades difficult. DEX aggregators bring this liquidity back together and take the work of finding the best prices off the backs of users.

## How does a DEX aggregator work?

DEX aggregators search various sources of liquidity to find the best trade route for on-chain assets.

Since liquidity is often fragmented across various sources, different decentralized exchanges may quote different prices for the same asset. DEX aggregators “aggregate” quotes from decentralized exchanges and fulfill user orders at the best available price. Sometimes, DEX aggregators may even route a single trade across multiple decentralized exchanges to reduce [price impact](https://cow.fi/learn/cow-protocol-glossary#:~:text=Price%20impact) and [provide better execution.](https://cow.fi/learn/mev-transparency-ensuring-fairness-in-defi-markets)

## How different DEX aggregators find better prices for traders

There are multiple types of DEX aggregators and the last few years have seen ever-more advanced versions of these platforms become available.

### Traditional DEX Aggregators (such as 1inch)

![1-what-is-a-dex-aggregator.webp](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/1_what_is_a_dex_aggregator_b90efd4ea4.webp)

_1inch DEX Aggregator_

Traditional DEX aggregators such as 1inch have been around for years. Their interfaces look very similar to those of regular decentralized exchanges. A user is presented with a swap module that takes in two cryptocurrencies: a sell token and a buy token. After the user clicks “swap,” the aggregator automatically finds the best liquidity for the trade and executes the transaction on-chain.

### Meta DEX Aggregators (such as DeFi Llama)

![2-what-is-a-dex-aggregator.webp](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/2_what_is_a_dex_aggregator_2323d5b3ed.webp)

_DeFi Llama Meta DEX Aggregator_

**[Meta DEX](https://cow.fi/learn/what-is-a-meta-dex-and-why-should-you-use-it-for-your-trades) aggregators are a step up from traditional aggregators.** As the “meta” name implies, they aggregate DEX aggregators. This leads to better liquidity coverage across more venues, while still providing users with a single interface for their trades.

### Intent-Based DEX Aggregators (such as CoW Swap)

![3-what-is-a-dex-aggregator.webp](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/3_what_is_a_dex_aggregator_198d1d6719.webp)

_CoW Swap Intent-Based DEX Aggregator_

Intent-based aggregators are the most advanced type of DEX aggregator out there.

They not only aggregate on-chain liquidity across exchanges and other aggregators, they also delegate execution to third parties known as “solvers.” These third parties provide additional sources of liquidity by including private inventory and, in certain cases, even matching trades peer-to-peer. This avoids protocol fees and makes for the most efficient trades in DeFi.

## Benefits of Using a DEX Aggregator

DEX aggregators provide a number of benefits, simplifying trading and providing better outcomes for users.

**Better Prices**: DEX aggregators look across multiple on-chain decentralized exchanges to find the best prices for any given token pair. Since most on-chain trading relies on  [automated market makers (AMMs)](/learn/cow-protocol-glossary#:~:text=amm), liquidity may be fragmented across various exchanges. As their name suggests, aggregators collect this liquidity in one place, giving traders the best deal for their swaps.

**Convenience**: By using a DEX aggregator, traders can reliably get good prices for their trades in one place without having to check multiple exchanges.

**Price Impact Protection**: Fragmented liquidity can sometimes make for shallow pools, meaning large trades experience significant  [price impact](https://blog.cow.fi/cow-protocol-glossary-ad7313a2c71#:~:text=Price%20Impact). Aggregators can break up trades across multiple exchanges, reducing price impact and providing better prices.

**MEV Protection**: In the case of intent-based DEX aggregators, solvers execute trades on behalf of users—protecting them from price exploitation in the form of  [maximal extractable value (MEV)](/learn/understanding-mev-protection).

Fragmented liquidity often makes finding the best route for trades difficult. DEX aggregators bring this liquidity back together and take the work of finding the best prices off the backs of users.

## What is the Best DEX aggregator?

There are a number of DEX aggregators on the market today. By market share, the most popular DEX aggregator is 1inch. **However, when it comes to innovation, [intent-based protocols like CoW Swap go the furthest.](https://cow.fi/cow-swap)**

## CoW Swap: The Leading Intent-Based Aggregator

![4-what-is-a-dex-aggregator.webp](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/4_what_is_a_dex_aggregator_8768b6d9fb.webp)

CoW Swap is a leading innovator in the intent-based aggregator space. It’s the second most popular DEX aggregator after 1inch, and a leader among DAO & Safe wallets.

Whales and DAOs (as well as retail users) rely on CoW Swap as their aggregator of choice because CoW Swap does more than just aggregate liquidity. It also provides comprehensive [MEV protection](https://cow.fi/learn/understanding-mev-protection) and enables price optimizations — such as [CoWs](https://cow.fi/learn/what-are-cows-on-cow-swap) — that traditional aggregators can’t. Thanks to its intent-based architecture, [CoW Swap supports 22 solvers](https://docs.cow.fi/cow-protocol/concepts/introduction/solvers) that compete with each other to find the best prices for each user trade, and even provide price surplus on top.

While other aggregators claim to provide the best prices, CoW Swap’s architecture is built from the ground up to incentivize the best prices and the most surplus for trades, all in an easy-to-use, worry-free interface.

Give CoW Swap a try for yourself at  [swap.cow.fi](https://swap.cow.fi/#/swap?utm_source=medium&utm_campaign=dex-aggregator-article).

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Decentralized exchange (DEX) aggregators are used to find the best prices for user trades


Why would I use a DEX aggregator?

Since its inception, DeFi has relied on  [automated market makers (AMMs)](/learn/cow-protocol-glossary#:~:text=amm)  directly to facilitate the majority of trading volume. More recently, however, auctions have emerged as an innovative trading mechanism that addresses some of the major shortcomings of AMMs.

Below, we examine these shortcomings and compare and contrast two popular auction solutions— Dutch auctions and batch auctions.

## The Shortcomings of AMMs

CF-AMMs, first proposed by Gnosis in 2017 and later popularized by protocols like Uniswap, are a natural fit for a world of frequent token launches and volatile assets. The core function of a CF-AMM is the rebalancing of token prices as orders come in. These AMMs rely on permissionless liquidity pools to facilitate trades for any ERC-20 token pair.

Due to their design, however, CF-AMMs leave traders exposed to price exploitation in the form of  [maximal extractable value (MEV)](/learn/understanding-mev-protection). Since orders on AMMs get executed sequentially, malicious parties can re-order trades in the Ethereum mempool and take advantage of users. MEV has become a lucrative industry for the most resourceful traders out there, but those profits come directly out of the pockets of everyday users.

The propensity of AMMs to be exploited indicates that continuous-time venues may not be the ideal solution for trading on decentralized exchanges.

## The Benefits of Auctions

![1-batch-auctions-vs-dutch-auctions.webp](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/1_batch_auctions_vs_dutch_auctions_20effdf8c3.webp)

At its core, Ethereum is an auction — each block is limited in space, so validators auction off “blockspace” to the highest bidders. It turns out that a similar mechanism works well when it comes to trading. Auctions have presented a viable alternative to continuous-time trades in a new field known as “[Order Flow Auctions](/learn/understanding-order-flow-auctions).”

There are several points to consider when examining how auctions make sense in the context of blockchains:

1.  Blockchains aren’t continuous, so trading on a continuous system doesn’t make sense. It only leads to a “first come, first serve” mode of operation that ultimately becomes a race to the bottom.
2.  Auctions work to benefit traders as there can be multiple bidders for any given order, providing better prices by aggregating fragmented liquidity.
3.  Grouping multiple orders together in an auction presents opportunities for matching liquidity peer-to-peer rather than having to tap on-chain AMMs.

Auction mechanisms are not monolithic however. There are multiple types of auctions to take into account when considering what may make the most sense for Ethereum traders.

## Dutch Auctions

![2-batch-auctions-vs-dutch-auctions.webp](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/2_batch_auctions_vs_dutch_auctions_fbaf900f7b.webp)

_([Source](https://medium.com/coinlist/a-primer-on-dutch-auctions-525036d24d10))_

One of the most common auction mechanisms is the Dutch auction. Dutch auctions work by offering an asset at a high starting price and then lowering the price over time until a willing bidder is found. This method identifies buyers quickly, making for a fast settlement.

Trading solutions like  [UniswapX](https://blog.uniswap.org/uniswapx-protocol)  employ Dutch auctions to settle trades with the speed of a traditional AMM, but with some added benefits.

### Pros

**Solver Competition**: Multiple parties, or “solvers,” can bid on a given asset, finding the most competitive price for the user’s assets.

**MEV Protection**: Dutch auctions protect users from MEV by relying on a third party for execution, meaning the user is never exposed to an AMM where their trade could be front-run or sandwiched.

### Cons

**Centralized**: Market makers have to have the assets in their inventory, leading users to essentially be at the mercy of the liquidity that the bidding parties have on hand.

Dutch auctions provide important benefits over continuous order trading. However, they only support auctioning one token at a time and they suffer from liquidity fragmentation as liquidity for a single token is spread across various venues.

It was this problem that inspired the creation of Gnosis Protocol V1 — the precursor to CoW Swap. This protocol relied on a different auction mechanism: the batch auction.

## Batch Auctions

![3-batch-auctions-vs-dutch-auctions.webp](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/3_batch_auctions_vs_dutch_auctions_7431306f4d.webp)

_An illustration of the batch auction mechanism on CoW Swap_

A batch auction groups together a set of orders intents and executes the entire batch as a single transaction.

This allows multiple users to trade multiple assets within a single auction (unlike Dutch auctions). Having multiple orders in a single batch even enables  [peer-to-peer swaps](/learn/what-are-cows-on-cow-swap)  which provide better prices than any on-chain venue.

Finally, while Dutch auctions rely on a price-decay bidding process, batch auctions encourage solvers to find the best execution route for each trade, incentivizing better execution rather than just the quickest settlement.

### Pros

**Solver Competition & MEV Protection**: Just like Dutch auctions, batch auctions rely on a delegated execution model where solvers compete to find the best prices for users and protect orders from MEV.

**Surplus Capturing Orders**: Batch auctions provide an extra layer of efficiency over Dutch auctions by grouping multiple orders together. This allows liquidity to be shared between orders peer-to-peer, providing better prices than any on-chain venue. When orders  _do_  have to go on-chain, batching provides gas efficiency, further contributing to savings.

**Multiple Trades Per Auction**: Batch auctions aren’t limited to just a single asset per auction. This means that a single settlement may include multiple traders, each trading a different asset.

### Cons

**Speed**: While other modes of trading settle orders instantaneously, batches have to be open for some period of time to collect orders before executing them on-chain. Speed issues can be mitigated by executing one batch per Ethereum block, making batch auctions run at the speed of Ethereum block settlement.

Batch auctions make sense as a natural fit for Ethereum, mirroring the Order Flow Auction mechanism of the block but at the dApp level. Today,  [CoW Swap](https://swap.cow.fi/#/swap?utm_source=medium&utm_campaign=dutch-vs-batch)  is the largest production-scale implementation of batch auctions for DeFi trades.

## The CoW Approach to Batch Auctions

![4-batch-auctions-vs-dutch-auctions.webp](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/4_batch_auctions_vs_dutch_auctions_eb922dc3cf.webp)

[CoW Swap](https://swap.cow.fi/#/swap?utm_source=medium&utm_campaign=dutch-vs-batch)  utilizes batch auctions to ensure traders get optimal prices while being protected from MEV.

The process starts with traders sending signed “intent to trade” messages to an order book, which CoW Swap then groups into batches. Solvers then search both on-chain and off-chain liquidity pools for the best prices. An auction is conducted for each batch to select the solver that provides the highest price surplus (the difference between the quoted and actual execution prices) for the orders. Finally, the winning solver executes these orders on-chain, ensuring users benefit from a uniform clearing price for all assets.

The future of batch auctions lies in targeting smaller batches where one batch is equal to one Ethereum block. This mitigates all speed issues related to batch auctions, making them execute as quickly as any other type of DeFi trade.

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Auctions are all the rage these days… but which auction method is really the best?


Batch Auctions vs. Dutch Auctions in Crypto


## TL;DR

-   During the month of  **March**, CoW Protocol handled a record-breaking total volume of  **$3.42B**  and generated a surplus of  **$23.4M**
-   In exciting news, CoW Protocol saw its  [largest month ever in terms of trading volume](https://dune.com/queries/2508216/4127586), the CoW team touched grass with an off-site retreat in Portugal, and a protocol fee report  [showed 130 ETH generated with no impact on user retention](https://twitter.com/CoWSwap/status/1773163707331461620?s=20)
-   In terms of Governance, CoW DAO executed  [CIP 39](https://snapshot.org/#/cow.eth/proposal/0xd4b23381a63b19d971e625e1fcef6ffa26d6d685df8b28ca590c251506669a53)  and received several important proposals regarding  [MEV Blocker fees](https://forum.cow.fi/t/cip-40-mev-blocker-fees/2366),  [CoW DAO’s SHU token allocation](https://forum.cow.fi/t/cip-41-claim-and-delegate-cow-daos-shu-token-allocation/2360), and  [strategies for enhancing treasury asset usage](https://forum.cow.fi/t/cip-42-enhancing-treasury-asset-usage/2361)

## Protocol Stats

This month, CoW Protocol settled a total of  **$3.42B.**

![1-cow-dao-march-2024-highlights.webp](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/1_cow_dao_march_2024_highlights_2ba332d346.webp)

The top 3 batches worth highlighting are the following:

**1. Batch with the highest % of CoW trades (**[**Transaction details**](https://explorer.cow.fi/tx/0x613e4155d95f1f9ca7e15a210e54a6b446c5f69ae2638da572289cddc099e4aa?tab=orders&vis=transfers)**):**  The total batch volume was  **$89,900**, and it was created by two traders who were CoWed for  **$85,813, (95.5%)**  of the total batch volume. One trader was buying USDC, the other was selling USDC, and the CoW was facilitated through a common hop in WETH.

![2-cow-dao-march-2024-highlights.webp](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/2_cow_dao_march_2024_highlights_1e110aa48d.webp)

**2. Batch containing the highest volume (**[**Transaction details**](https://explorer.cow.fi/tx/0xe2f795665577f65b4985b6003761ab8e6364222cbec122388b7ee467644dd712?tab=orders)**):**  The total batch volume was  **$20,193,757** and it was created by a single trader swapping  **ETH for USDC**.

![3-cow-dao-march-2024-highlights.webp](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/3_cow_dao_march_2024_highlights_5e00b79ce8.webp)

**3. Batch with the highest amount of surplus (**[**Transaction details**](https://explorer.cow.fi/tx/0xe2f795665577f65b4985b6003761ab8e6364222cbec122388b7ee467644dd712?tab=orders)**):**  The batch with the highest surplus was the same as the batch with the highest volume, for a total volume of  **$20,193,757** and a surplus of  **325,762 USDC (1.58%).**

![4-cow-dao-march-2024-highlights.webp](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/4_cow_dao_march_2024_highlights_adfaa341fe.webp)

During the month of  **March**, the top 10 traders traded a total of  **$44,898,507.**

![5-cow-dao-march-2024-highlights.webp](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/5_cow_dao_march_2024_highlights_468f2d3834.webp)

In the table below you can see the total volume for this month’s biggest trades. The most active trader executed a whopping  **$19,601,868**  in trades with CoW Protocol this month.

![6-cow-dao-march-2024-highlights.webp](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/6_cow_dao_march_2024_highlights_3095ac6111.webp)

## Solvers

In  **March**, solvers generated a total of  **$23M**  in surplus, which is money in the pockets of traders.

![7-cow-dao-march-2024-highlights.webp](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/7_cow_dao_march_2024_highlights_e1caf63a45.webp)

Below you can find a breakdown of how each solver performed in March.

![8-cow-dao-march-2024-highlights.webp](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/8_cow_dao_march_2024_highlights_2c3cb003af.webp)

## Governance

It was an active month in terms of governance! The CoWs cannot be stopped 💪

![9-cow-dao-march-2024-highlights.webp](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/9_cow_dao_march_2024_highlights_d5eee98f7e.webp)

## Executed Proposals

The DAO  **executed one important proposal**  this month:

-   [CIP-39: Continued funding for development services — Service Agreement №3](https://snapshot.org/#/cow.eth/proposal/0xd4b23381a63b19d971e625e1fcef6ffa26d6d685df8b28ca590c251506669a53)

## Draft Proposals

This month,  **there were three new proposals**  asking for feedback before moving into the next phase, final CIPs, in their current form:

-   [CIP-40: MEV Blocker fees](https://forum.cow.fi/t/cip-40-mev-blocker-fees/2366)
-   [CIP-41: Claim and Delegate CoW DAO’s SHU Token Allocation](https://forum.cow.fi/t/cip-41-claim-and-delegate-cow-daos-shu-token-allocation/2360)
-   [CIP-42: Enhancing Treasury Asset Usage](https://forum.cow.fi/t/cip-42-enhancing-treasury-asset-usage/2361)

Make sure to read the proposals and leave comments — your feedback is highly appreciated and will help move these important topics forward. If you are interested in submitting a proposal to the CoW DAO, make sure to use the following  [template](https://forum.cow.fi/t/cip-0-template/28).

## CoWmunity News

-   In March, CoW Protocol had its  [largest month ever](https://dune.com/queries/2508216/4127586), with a trading volume of over  **$3.4 billion**. The CoW is quickly becoming a bull 😈

![10-cow-dao-march-2024-highlights.webp](https://celebrated-gift-f83e5c9419.media.strapiapp.com/10_cow_dao_march_2024_highlights_ae68c0eeda.webp)

-   The CoW team came together in Portgual for a yearly off-site that included a hackathon, presentations, and valuable in-person quality time
-   After taking the DeFi world by storm in February, CoW AMM  [received a Safe App announced by none other than Steve Ballmer](https://x.com/CoWSwap/status/1767587714826956807)  in a new video
-   A  [first report](https://twitter.com/CoWSwap/status/1773163707331461620?s=20)  of the newly-enabled out-of-market limit orders has identified they’ve generated 130 ETH for the protocol with no negative impact on user retention
-   The marketing team featured a new  [Widget](https://x.com/CoWSwap/status/1770489389900292344?s=20)  campaign, added new terms to the  [CoW glossary](https://x.com/CoWSwap/status/1765396565504717225?s=20), and posted a  [transaction highlight featuring surplus-capturing limit orders](https://twitter.com/CoWSwap/status/1773759519522533509?s=20)
-   CoW Protocol  [joined in the call to unblock crypto](https://x.com/CoWSwap/status/1765756459755634824)  together with some of the biggest names in DeFi
-   Anna from the CoW team was featured on the  [Deus Ex DAO](https://x.com/CoWSwap/status/1764621816633385090?s=20)  podcast
-   The blog received an update with a new article: “[MEV Bots: Switch From Searcher to Solver](/learn/mev-bots-switch-from-searcher-to-solver)”

## Product Updates

**Backend**

The backend team has been working hard to improve the product infrastructure. In  **March**, we:

-   Replaced orders with custom appdata
-   Transitioned solvers to a new API
-   Made steady progress on protocol and partner fees
-   Rolled out verified quotes on staging

**Frontend**

The frontend team has been working hard on improvements in the UI front, as well as the overall UI infrastructure. In  **March**, we:

-   Released CowSwap 1.62.0 which includes a partner fee option for the Cow Swap Widget, a “recreate limit order” option which allows users to duplicate their limit orders in a couple of clicks, and a redesign of the fee display
-   Prepared the CoW Swap “I’m Feeling Lucky” feature as an April Fool’s joke
-   Worked on a feature that allows placing limit orders for amounts beyond what a user currently has in their wallet

## Open Job Positions

### Engineering

[DevOps Engineer](https://boards.eu.greenhouse.io/cowswap/jobs/4311312101)

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Welcome back to another CoW Update, where we break down the most notable developments of the last few weeks at CoW Protocol.


CoW DAO March 2024 Highlights

CoW DAO develops the most user-protective products in Ethereum - so you can do more with less worry.

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