TrocadorApp: Buy XMR Without KYC
Introduction
As most of you already know, I am a big advocate of privacy coins, including the biggest by market capitalization and trading volume, XMR (Monero). I see private cash as an absolute necessity in the years to come and not just as ‘nice-to-have’.
A question that I am receiving more often nowadays is where to buy XMR without giving away your personal information in KYC-process at centralised exchanges. Of course, you can buy XMR for example on Binance, with your full KYC’d account and hope that you will be able to withdraw soonish. You can go to CEXs like Tradeogre, however, the order books are thin most of the time, especially on the sell side. But there are other ways to get your hands on it.
In this article I want to show you a platform that was recently launched: Trocador.App. Via Trocador you can easily convert non-private cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin and Ethereum to Monero on a regular basis; without KYC.
Why You Want To Avoid KYC & Buy Monero
If you are relatively new to this space or just not aware what privacy coins as XMR exactly are, this part is for you; if you already know, feel free to skip this part.
Originally, XMR (Monero) was called ‘Bit Monero’ after its launch in 2014, but this did not meet with much approval within the community. The name “Monero” comes from the language ‘Esperanto’ and means something like ‘currency’/’coin’ and is therefore not a neologism, as many initially assume.
XMR is…
Decentralized: There is no difference in the classification of nodes, i.e. every node has the same priority in the network.
Fungible: One problem with Bitcoin is that transaction histories can be seen and thus there are “dirty” Bitcoins that were demonstrably the subject of illegal transactions, e.g. via the Darknet. This history is not clear with XMR, which is why there are no such “dirty” XMR.
Protected: By using a P2P network, encryption of the wallet, as well as the transaction, XMR is considered one of the safest cryptocurrencies.
Private: No one can prove that you have an XMR transaction or, for example, that you own XMR and/or how many you own through blockchain analysis. Thus, there is no “rich list” for Monero, which is usually openly accessible for other cryptocurrencies.
How Does Monero Work?
To achieve all of this, Monero is using several important technologies. The foundation of Monero is the CryptoNote protocol with the associated Cryptonight hash algorithm. While Cryptonote is also using a public ledger, just as regular cryptocurrencies, it is not possible to trace which wallet made a transaction/where it came from or where it went. It has been under development since 2012 and was one of the first blockchain protocols fully dedicated to privacy. The first whitepaper was published by “Nicolas Van Saberhagen”, but this is only a pseudonym. Similar to Satoshi, no one knows who is behind it.
Stealth Addresses are automatically created for each transaction; a one-time key determines the recipient of the transaction, however, outsiders cannot do anything with this key. The public key for sending and the key for viewing are formed from the 95 characters of a Monero wallet. When a transaction is made, arbitrary data is added to create a new key, which in turn can be used to issue the XMR. The private key in the wallet ensures that the coins sent arrive in the correct wallet and can be spent.
Next important part is the Ring Signatures which consist of different components, but only one part is the valid signature from the person who sent XMR. All others are randomly drawn from older transactions on the blockchain; what signature is from the sender cannot be detected.
Ring CTs (CT = Confidential Transaction) ensure that there is no information on the blockchain about how many XMR were sent. The sum of the inputs is always equal to the output. The total credit is always made up of different inputs.If you have an input of 8 XMR and want to send 6 XMR, the complete input is divided into two outputs (1. 6 XMR transaction output; 2. 2 XMR bill of exchange output).A range proof ensures that the amount of a transaction exceeds zero.
All of this leads to the biggest unique selling point of XMR - the fact that you can actually make completely anonymous transactions with this cryptocurrency. In times of upcoming CBDC implementations worldwide, limit on cash payments, mandatory reporting of cryptocurrency transactions via VASPs, something that is definitely needed.
What is Trocador exactly?
Trocador essentially functions as a middleman that facilitates a transaction between you and one of twelve crypto exchanges with XMR spot trading pairs; Trocador has never access to the coins. The aggregated exchanges being used usually have no problem with no-KYC whatsoever; and for the case that there is a problem, Trocador deals with it.
Due to the bigger volume they generate on a regular basis the exchanges solve it pretty quickly. According to one of the Trocador developers there were just three halted transactions in 2,300+ total transactions, while two of them were solved directly; the third is still pending, however, apparently the exchange will be cooperative. In the worst case a TX is delayed but will finally go through. On that note, many exchanges won’t accept connections through TOR or in some cases even VPNs.
They are not using any JavaScript on their platform, a common attack vector for bad actors. Your identity is safe, with Trocador acting as an extra privacy layer that guarantees that no exchange will log your IP or fingerprinting your device.
How Does Trocador Work In Practice?
1. Select the coins and the amount you want to exchange. Besides the classics like BTC, ETH and USDT you can also exchange a variety of other cryptocurrencies. When I tried their service the first time, I chose USDT; sending 100 USDT in order to exchange them for, you guessed it, Monero:
2. After a click on 'Exchange' and a few seconds waiting time Trocador shows you the different exchange rates they can currently offer. If you choose one, you directly see what the exchange rate (be aware of floating vs. fixed rate; in general it is better to choose the floating rate) is like, meaning how much Monero you will receive at the end.
As mentioned earlier, the success rate for Trocador exchanges is very high, just 3 out of 2,300+ transactions had an issue, 2 times it got resolved directly. However, it is wise to always fill in a refund address.
As a little help, the different exchanges are being categorized, according to how they are dealing with KYC in general:
If everything is fine, you just have to fill in your receiving address (and optionally a refund address) and you are good to go!
3. After you click on ‘Confirm Exchange’ there will be a generated address to which you have to send your funds, in this case the 100 USDT - and that’s it! After you send the funds, you will receive XMR in exchange after a few minutes:
Conclusion: Trocador.App - Convenient Way To Buy XMR
If you are looking to exchange BTC, ETH and others to XMR, Trocador is one of the best options to do so if you want to avoid any KYC; which you should. If your XMR purchases can be linked to your identity it does not make any sense at all.
Privacy is a fundamental human right and there is nothing wrong with exercising it!