Skip to main content
All CollectionsGlossary
What is a currency pair and how to find the market on CEX.IO?
What is a currency pair and how to find the market on CEX.IO?
Rick Alexsson avatar
Written by Rick Alexsson
Updated over a month ago

Currency pair is one of the basic concepts for trading on the crypto and other markets. The currency pair compares the value of one currency to another and indicates how much of the quoted currency is needed to purchase one unit of the base currency.

For example, BTC/USD is a currency pair that shows the price of BTC in terms of USD. In this case, Bitcoin is a base currency, while the US Dollar is a quoted one.

Currency pairs represent markets where one currency can be exchanged for another one. When you buy a currency pair, you buy the base currency and sell the quoted one (for example, buy BTC for USD in BTC/USD pair). Conversely, when you sell a currency pair, you sell the base currency to get quoted currency (sell BTC to get USD in case of a BTC/USD pair).

In the crypto market, there are two types of currency pairs โ€” crypto-to-fiat and crypto-to-crypto. The first type means trading cryptocurrency against fiat currencies (ETH/USD). In the second type, cryptocurrency is quoted to another crypto (ETH/BTC).

With CEX.IO Spot Trading, you can trade on numerous crypto-to-fiat and crypto-to-crypto markets. To select the market, go to the Spot Trading service.

The currency pair selector is located in the upper left below the site logo. If you click a currency pair in the selector, the price chart will open for this market


The web content provided by CEX.IO is for educational purposes only. The information and tools provided neither are, nor should be construed as, an offer, or a solicitation of an offer, or a recommendation, to buy, sell or hold any digital asset or to open a particular account or engage in any specific investment strategy. Digital asset markets are highly volatile and can lead to loss of funds.

The availability of the products, features, and services on the CEX.IO platform is subject to jurisdictional limitations. To understand what products and services are available in your region, please see our list of supported countries and territories. This page includes additional links to information about individual products, and their accessibility.

CEX.IO Corp. is not a registered broker-dealer or FINRA member. Crypto is not insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) or the Securities Investor Protection Corporation (SIPC).

Taxes may be payable on any return and/or on any increase in the value of your digital assets and you should seek independent advice on your tax obligations.

Did this answer your question?