Interview: FLEX - The Order Book Exchange on Everscale: DeFi, CBDC, and DeBots

The DeFi ecosystem, which many hoped to shake the centralized traditional systems, caused many to become disillusioned in this direction. But is this disappointment justified?

Despite this, many companies are actively developing DeFi tools, where the influence of the owners will be distributed by smart contracts.

In my new interview, we'll chat with Flex co-founder Mark Feldman and learn more about Flex's decentralized cross-chain order book exchange.

About FLEX:

FLEX is a decentralized exchange with a limit order book, low latency, and guaranteed trade execution. It provides the same trading experience as Binance but implements an on-chain order book using distributed smart contracts and DeBots.

Can you explain the concept of decentralization and how FLEX implements it in its exchange platform?

Since FLEX is built on Everscale, it inherits all of its spectacular properties including decentralization. Everscale can afford a very large number of validator nodes even on a single shard level because it doesn’t get slower when more nodes are added as opposed to say BSC which is nothing more than a centralized version of Ethereum.

To understand how Everscale does it, please read more about Everscale’s solution to a blockchain trilemma. The FLEX order book is a decentralized fully on-chain limit order book, and what it means is that each order is placed into a blockchain, and each trading client deals directly with the blockchain when executing an order.

Even DEXes like Serum in reality have a centralized trading engine where all orders go into a queue and are processed sequentially which has nothing to do with centralization. Flex tech is truly unique and unmatched by nobody at this point.

Could you highlight the key features that differentiate FLEX from other DEX's and platforms? Why users should switch current platforms for FLEX?

To summarize the above, we can say that Flex is an ideal DEX because:

1. It has an order book that can match the performance of literally any centralized exchange.

   
   

2. Front running is impossible in Everscale.

   
   

3. It’s decentralized beyond and above any DEX which doesn’t even come close to its speed.

   
   

4. Its tech allows for security higher than bitcoin which has been mathematically proven. So Flex is very fast, very secure, and very reliable doing all of that fully on chain. Flex is a Lamborgini compared to Toyota Prius which is what many recent DEXes on Ethereum are. Take DYDX for example. They have tried to use polygon which as you know is Ethereum layer 2 and got frustrated with that.

Now, they are building their own blockchain because they have hit the dead-end with Ethereum-based tech. Other projects are building fast on-chain order books on layer 3! But these trades need to be settled eventually on Ethereum itself. This is like putting a supersonic jet into a container placed on a locomotive operated by a steam engine.

What is the team behind FLEX? Can you tell us more about their experience?

The tech team includes former math and programming championships winners while the business team includes former investment bankers and traders with decades of international experience.

How does Flex address security concerns associated with decentralized exchanges and ensure the safety of user funds?

Flex smart contracts are formally verified which is a process far superior to any typical security audit done by other exchanges. Like mentioned above, Everscale, in general, is far more secure compared to most blockchains, and Flex enjoys that as well. In terms of the actual storage of user funds, they are stored in cold wallets where users and users only control the keys.

Are there any plans to introduce new features or improvements to the platform in the near future? Like the web version, lower gas expenses, etc.?

A web version is already live.

1. The web version of Flex GUI is currently available on trade.flexdex.fi and supports the Surf Wallet extension. We plan to support more wallets in the Web version. It is a requirement from Venom to support Venom Wallet to be deployed in the Venom testnet.

   
   

2. We developed a new contract for Market Makers to minimize gas consumption on updating orders when following the Oracle price. It will be available in production after the next update of the DEX contracts.

   
   

3. The following steps will likely be about some kind of bridge to other networks to broaden the user base and to add the most popular tokens to the traded pairs. It will also allow the addition of trusted stablecoins, which is a prerequisite for the margin trading and implementation of derivatives trading. This will position Flex as a multi-chain DEX with an Everscale backend.

Are there any specific user requirements or prerequisites to start trading on Flex? What do they need to know before they start using your platform?

All you need is an Ever Surf wallet and some funds in it in order to trade. If you don’t have any funds on Everscale, you can use Octus Bridge to transfer your crypto from one of the most popular layer 1s. Any current DEX user can figure it out.

In your documentation, it was indicated about the role of DeBots. What is it? Can you elaborate on the role of DeBots in the Flex ecosystem? Have your plans changed to add this?

DeBots is a middle-ware technology, which facilitates interaction of dApps with on-chain contracts. It can work without a specialized API for each dApp, as all the business logic can be implemented in a DeBot, which uses a general GraphQL API.

Moreover, a simple dApp can be implemented as a DeBot without any front-end development and accessed via a public DeBot browser, e.g., Surf DeBot browser, which has the chat interface.

Running DeBots in the Surf DeBot Browser has a major advantage in that it allows developers to implement their own business logic without any actions on the side of the Surf team and securely use the Surf Owner keys to sign transactions in dApps.

The main disadvantage of the Surf DeBot Browser is that it's limited to the chat interface. At the same time, we want to pay attention that the DeBot technology is not equal to the chat interface. dApp developers may use DeBots within GUI as well.

Historically, the official Flex GUI was developed with the DeBots under the hood, and Flex API & Flex SDK were added later to the Evercloud so that other developers could easily write bots and dApps to trade with DEX contracts.

Currently, we still use DeBots in Flex GUI in such important flows as authorization and trading because it allows us to add new features and improvements much faster than they can be supported in the Flex API & SDK in Evercloud.

Examples:

1. In the desktop version of Flex GUI, we implemented Auth flow with delegation of funds, where the Flex Trader has different keys from the Wallet Owner keys. The Wallet Owner authorizes the Flex Trader and delegates his funds in the chat interface of the Surf DeBot Browser. This is an example of the Auth DeBot implemented in the chat interface for signing transactions with the Wallet Owner keys.

   
   

2. In the web version of Flex GUI, there is no delegation of funds. The Flex Trader and the Wallet Owner are one person, and the Auth flow is much simpler as the Owner keys are stored in the Wallet extension and used for signing ALL transactions in Flex GUI. It is an example of the Auth DeBot implemented within GUI without referring to the chat interface.

   
   

3. When users make orders in Flex GUI, they use the Trade DeBot under the hood even if they know nothing about it. It is also an example of using DeBots within GUI, both in the Desktop and Web versions.

Could you tell us about your vision of DeFi? In your opinion, what is needed for the attitude towards it to change and justify the expectations placed on it?

I’m absolutely convinced that it will be DeFi that will change the entire world forever both politically and economically. No army in the world and no government agency can effectively deal with decentralized finance which does not and will not comply with its agenda.

Not even a very successful concerted CBDC effort even by a large group of countries can change this.

Decentralization will eventually declare a crushing victory. DeFi will be at the forefront of all news in the coming years and it will be very interesting to watch. This future was predicted in the book which essentially invented crypto written in 1997, and I recommend it to everybody. It’s called “The Sovereign Individual.''

DeFi needs to be integrated with a real economy. We are working on it, and many people are working on it. Governments are working on it too. When we will see an oil trade done on a DEX and settled on a public blockchain this will mark the beginning of a new era. This will happen soon, very soon, much sooner than most people think.

The old system will create a lot of damage when it collapses. There will be more wars and conflicts, but none of it will change the future in which DeFi technology will win.

Do you support bridges with other blockchains like cross-chain DEX?

I already mentioned Octus Bridge which will soon be integrated into Flex. With regards to cross-chain DEX, we have thought about it from the very beginning. This is in the works but I can’t say when it will be implemented right now.

Do you have any plans to be integrated with Venom/TON or other blockchains?

The answer is yes, and both are in the process.

What are your plans for attracting liquidity on the FLEX platform?

Liquidity on Flex depends very heavily on liquidity on Everscale, which in turn, depends on liquidity on all integrated and interconnected TVM layer 1s like Venom/TON/Gosh, etc. At the same time, we are working on attracting retail users pretty much like other DEXes do. The third line of attack on this is real-world, real economy-related use cases.

We are working in different directions on this. One example is a dequity project that aims to tokenize Miami residential real estate.

Other efforts include trading metals and even oil, but I can’t talk about these a lot until they become official. And we will get it done because now is the best time for it.

What do you think about the future of the DeFi ecosystem? Will it down or go up?

Up without a question, but it will relive many evolutions and incarnations going forward.

What would you like to tell our readers?

I’d like to end this interview by reiterating that we believe that Flex is the most important technology to change the financial system forever. CEXes can be controlled, their CEO can be thrown in jail, servers arrested, fiat rails closed, and so on.

When it comes to DEXes nothing really can be done. Especially because real businesses all around the world are moving to accepting crypto. Crypto fiat rails soon will be a thing of the past. And of course, we are very excited to be part of that.

We are not crypto-anarchists, and we are not against working with governments. I'm just saying that the technology that we have developed is truly transformational and should not be underestimated.

Not everybody understands this today, but as time goes by, more and more people will. It may seem to many that crypto lost to SEC at the moment, but just wait and see :)

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