# What is SYMMIO?

## Protocol Introduction

Symmio is a trustless hybrid (combining on and offchain) clearing house acting as communication, settlement & clearing layer for permissionless derivatives; without relying on traditional liquidity pools or order books. Instead of trading against a pool, you trade directly against professional market makers (called [**solvers**](https://docs.symm.io/getting-started/glossary-of-terms)) who lock up collateral to guarantee the trade. It's peer-to-peer derivatives, settled on-chain.

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## For Crypto Natives:&#x20;

### Symmio is to Derivatives, what Celestia is for Rollups.

Celestia and Eigenlayer **enable Rollups as a Service (RaaS)**\
Symmio offers **“Derivatives as a Service” (DaaS)**

DaaS can be used by exchanges or "Subnets" to create a derivatives trading protocol without any technical implementation work or liquidity onboarding; Symmio and its partners take care of everything. Several 3rd parties are already running their own exchanges **using our DaaS (<https://intentx.io>, <https://based.markets>, <https://thena.fi>, <https://morphex.trade>)** on several blockchains, including on BNB.&#x20;

We are currently generating $1 Billion in monthly volume with over $10 Billion in total volume (source: <https://analytics.symm.io>) .&#x20;

Symmio takes a settlement fee from all subnets that settle on Symmio. The fees generated from settlement flow 100% back to  SYMM stakers.&#x20;

In this open ecosystem, actors (integration partners (protocol/exchanges), liquidity providers (MMs), oracles, clearing operators and traders) can collaborate and compete for the best prices and solutions, driving feature innovation and cost efficiency.
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## What makes SYMMIO different?

* **No liquidity pools.** Trades are bilateral agreements between you and a solver. No slippage from pool mechanics, no liquidity fragmentation.
* **Any asset, any direction.** Solvers can create markets for anything with a price feed — crypto, stocks, commodities, FX, even prediction markets. The protocol doesn't limit what can be traded.
* **On-chain settlement, off-chain speed.** Quotes and pricing happen off-chain for speed. Settlement and collateral are fully on-chain for security.
* **Permissionless.** Anyone can build a frontend. Anyone can become a solver. The protocol is the shared infrastructure underneath.

## The Gateway to OTC derivatives

**S‍ymmio allows anyone to permissionlessly** issue and trade any asset **with infinite leverage, in every direction.** The only DeFi primitive this industry needs. For example through our engine solvers can create:

<details>

<summary><strong>List of potential Assets</strong></summary>

* **Cryptocurrency Futures / Perpetuals / Options, Stocks & Equities**
* **Low-Cap Perpetuals, Bonds, Yield-Swaps, Low-Cap Options**
* **Forward Rate Swaps, Commodities, Volatility Indices, Real Estate Indexes**
* **FX Pairs, Inflation-Protected Assets, Basket Indices**
* **ETFs, Options, Carbon Credits, Weather Markets**
* **Energy Contracts, Macroeconomic Indicators, Credit Default Swaps**
* **NFT Floor Prices, IPO Exposure, Metaverse Land Parcels, Prediction Markets**
* **Election Outcomes, Sporting Events**

O**r any other asset not listed here, with any possible price function.**

</details>

### Who uses Symmio?

* **Traders** access Symmio through frontends like IntentX, Thena, Based Markets, and others. You don't interact with Symmio directly — you use an exchange built on top of it.
* **Frontends** (exchanges) build trading interfaces on Symmio's infrastructure. They handle UX, branding, and user acquisition while Symmio handles settlement.
* **Solvers** provide liquidity by taking the other side of trades. They're professional market makers who hedge risk externally and compete to offer the best prices.
