Taking a DEX from discovery to 30,000+ trades in its first month
bitoftrade · Decentralized multi-chain trading platform on the Ethereum ecosystem
Context
bitoftrade is a decentralized multi-chain trading platform on the Ethereum ecosystem. When I joined, it ran on PancakeSwap: few tokens, few networks, and a feature set closer to a test build than a product traders would use daily.
Problem
The startup had 4 months to launch, with a long-term goal of 100,000 monthly active users. The founders wanted a full exchange with cross-chain trading and new products, but nobody had checked what traders actually lacked.
Company
bitoftrade
My role
Lead Product Designer
Team
20+ people, worked directly with the founders
Platform
Web: desktop, tablet, mobile
Timeline
Nov 2021 – Dec 2023
30,000+
trades in the first month after launch
2,000+
users recovered at wallet connection
4
products beyond the core DEX, built on one design system
01 · Decision
Letting traders set the roadmap
I screened 60+ applicants and ran 20+ in-depth interviews with traders. They showed three gaps: no swaps between chains, no leverage and no way to buy crypto with fiat. These became the roadmap.
02 · Decision
More tokens and networks without building liquidity from scratch
PancakeSwap limited the platform to a few tokens and one network. After analyzing users and competitors, I proposed switching to ParaSwap, which routes each trade to the best price across chains. The team adopted it.
03 · Decision
Fixing wallet connection after launch
After the spring 2022 launch, 2,000+ users, 20% of first-month traffic, dropped at wallet connection. I rewrote the modals in plain words and added notifications about what was happening and what to do next. People got through the flow.
04 · Decision
One design system, five products
On a design system I built, I designed four products beyond the core DEX: Swap and payment widgets, NFT listings and Markets. I also mentored 2 designers on marketing content.
05 · Reflection
What I'd do differently
I designed for traders who already knew crypto. Many users didn't: they were wary of a new platform and lost in the terms. Today I'd design for someone's first trade, explain every step in plain words and add a test mode.