Reference
Glossary
The language of markets, defined plainly — the terms our coverage uses and what they actually mean.
S
- Self-Custody
- Holding your own keys rather than leaving assets with an exchange or custodian.
- Slippage
- The difference between the price expected when an order is placed and the price at which it actually fills. It grows with order size, thin liquidity and fast-moving markets.
- Smart Contract
- A program stored on a blockchain that runs automatically when its conditions are met, without an intermediary holding the assets.
- Stablecoin
- A token designed to hold a steady value against a reference, usually the US dollar. Most are backed by reserves of cash and short-term government debt; some instead rely on algorithms or crypto collateral.
- Staking
- Committing tokens to help secure a proof-of-stake network, earning newly issued tokens and fees in return. Misbehaving validators can have part of their stake destroyed.