How do I quickly swap one asset to another with LOBSTR?

Direct access to the Stellar Decentralized Exchange (SDEX) lets you buy and sell XLM and other Stellar assets inside your LOBSTR account.

LOBSTR offers trading options both for beginners and pros.

The 'Trade' option is better suited for those familiar with SDEX and who are looking for the full trading experience. See more about trading on LOBSTR

The 'Swap assets' option is perfect if you are new to trading or just looking to exchange one asset for another, quickly and at the best rate. 

How do 'asset swaps' work?

The ‘Swap assets’ functionality is a simplified version of the 'Trade' feature that allows exchanging/converting an asset you hold for another asset at the best available market rate in just one click.

The asset exchange is made using the Path Payment transaction, which is the Stellar network feature of sending an asset from one user to another and having the asset converted into a different one before arriving in the recipient’s wallet.

With the 'Swap assets' feature, Path Payments facilitate the process of creating a trade offer by using the most optimal path from an asset you are selling to another asset you are buying.

The trade may be either direct, e.g. USD -> BTC, or a chain of multiple trades involving up to 5 assets, e.g. USD -> NGNC -> CNY -> XLM -> BTC. As a result, you always get an asset at the best available price within seconds.

Note: The swap transaction won't go through if the final amount changes by more than 1% after the transaction is submitted. This percentage can be adjusted by a user manually through a setting called 'Slippage tolerance'. 

The liquidity of the SDEX market pairs directly influences the exchange rates you see for the selected swap pair. Swapping unpopular assets may result in significant losses. Always make sure to carefully check the exchange rate before making a swap.

A fee is automatically factored into the exchange rate when buying assets via Swaps and Market trades, which supports ongoing development to make LOBSTR better. 

This fee will differ depending on the category of the asset you buy in the swap. The following fees apply to Market trades and Swaps on LOBSTR:

• for assets reported as Scam by a wider Stellar community: 15%
• for Unknown assets: 1%
• for Known assets: 0.75% 
• for assets on the Curated list: 0.3% 
• for assets on the Featured list (XLM included): 0.2%

Placing limit orders is not subject to any fees.

*LOBSTR reserves the right to change the swap fee at any time.

You will see details about fees to be applied in the alert displayed before you purchase an asset.

LOBSTR has introduced the Loyalty Tiers Program, which extends benefits depending on the amount of AQUA and ICE tokens you hold in your portfolio balance. By upgrading your tier to Silver or Gold, you can get a 50% or 100% discount on Swap fees. Learn more 

*This discount applies to all asset categories except assets marked as Scam.

How to swap an asset to another one

Follow this tutorial to perform an 'asset swap':

1. Select the 'Swap' option in the side menu of LOBSTR mobile apps.

2. Fill in the required fields on the 'Swap Assets' screen.

— Choose an asset you'd like to sell in the selection menu of the 'You sell' field.

— Choose an asset you'd like to buy in the selection menu of the 'You buy' field.

Note: You can buy one of the assets you already hold or an asset you don't have on your account.

— Specify the exact amount you'd like to buy/sell. 

When you enter the ‘sell’ amount, the ‘You buy’ field will automatically select the maximum amount you can get at that time.

When you enter the ‘buy’ amount, the ‘You sell’ field will automatically select the minimum amount you must sell at that time.

Make sure to carefully check the exchange rate before making a swap. 
 

3. Tap the 'Swap' button at the bottom of the screen to perform the swap.

— The swap transaction won't go through if the final amount changes by more than 1% after the transaction is submitted.

— If the app states that the swap is not available and the 'Swap' button is disabled, there are no offers that can satisfy your swap request.

Try adjusting the amounts or choose another asset to buy/sell. 

Note: In accordance with the Stellar Network rule (not decided by LOBSTR), the base minimum balance (1 XLM) raises by 0.5 XLM with each created trustline or active trade offer.

If there is no available 0.5 XLM on your account, you will not be able to perform a swap to the asset you do not currently hold. 

4. (Optional) Sign the transaction in LOBSTR Vault or the signature service of your choice if you have multisignature enabled in your Stellar wallet.

Done! You've swapped assets at the best exchange rate. 

You will receive a push notification notifying you of the completed asset swap.