CrescentSwap Crypto Exchange Review: Is This Arbitrum DEX Worth Your Time?

CrescentSwap Crypto Exchange Review: Is This Arbitrum DEX Worth Your Time?

Nov, 29 2025

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Most people think crypto exchanges mean Coinbase, Kraken, or Binance. But if you're deep into DeFi, you’ve probably heard of CrescentSwap. It’s not a big-name platform. No ads. No customer service line. No app download. Just a simple interface at app.crescent.network/swap and a wallet connection. If you’re used to buying crypto with a credit card, this isn’t for you. But if you’re trading tokens on Arbitrum and want to avoid centralized middlemen, CrescentSwap might be exactly what you need.

What Is CrescentSwap?

CrescentSwap is a decentralized exchange built on Arbitrum, Ethereum’s Layer 2 scaling network. It’s not owned by a company that holds your money. You trade directly from your wallet - like MetaMask - using smart contracts. That means no KYC. No account creation. No waiting for withdrawals. It’s pure peer-to-peer trading, following the Uniswap v3 model.

The platform’s main focus is its native token, Moonlight MNLT. Around 73% of all trading volume on CrescentSwap happens between MNLT and ETH. That’s not unusual for niche DEXs. Many small DeFi projects launch their own exchange to give their token immediate liquidity. CrescentSwap does the same. But unlike some, it’s clean, minimal, and free of flashy gimmicks.

The Crescent Foundation Limited runs the platform, but they’re clear: they don’t give financial advice. Their disclaimer says outright: "Crescent Foundation Limited does not recommend that any cryptocurrency should be bought, sold, or held by you." That’s standard for DEXs. It’s a legal shield, but also a signal: you’re on your own here.

How It Works

Using CrescentSwap is like using Uniswap - if you’ve done it before, you already know the drill.

  • Connect your wallet (MetaMask, WalletConnect, etc.)
  • Choose the token you want to swap (e.g., ETH → MNLT)
  • Set your slippage tolerance (recommended: 0.5%-1.5% for stable pairs)
  • Click "Swap" and confirm the transaction in your wallet
Transaction fees on Arbitrum are low - usually between $0.03 and $0.15 per swap as of late 2025. That’s a big reason why Arbitrum-based DEXs are growing. Ethereum mainnet fees can hit $10+ during spikes. On Arbitrum, you’re trading like it’s 2025, not 2021.

The interface is simple: two input boxes, a swap button, and a tiny info panel. No charts. No order books. No margin trading. No staking. Just swaps. That’s by design. CrescentSwap isn’t trying to be a full crypto hub. It’s a tool for one thing: exchanging tokens on Arbitrum.

Liquidity and Trading Volume

Here’s the reality check: CrescentSwap isn’t big. As of November 28, 2025, its 30-day trading volume was around $8.7 million. Compare that to Uniswap, which does over $10 billion daily across all chains. Even smaller DEXs like SushiSwap do 10x more.

Most of that volume - 92% - comes from the MNLT/ETH pair. If you want to trade anything else, you’re likely to face high slippage. One Reddit user reported a 3.2% slippage on a $500 MNLT trade. That’s not normal on major DEXs. On Uniswap, slippage under 0.5% is typical for major tokens.

Liquidity providers on CrescentSwap earn 0.30% of every trade, just like Uniswap v3. But because volume is low, earnings are minimal. Unless you’re deeply invested in the MNLT ecosystem, there’s little incentive to add liquidity here.

Hand hovering over ETH and MNLT tokens with scam shadows nearby on a stone tablet.

Token Availability

CrescentSwap only supports tokens listed on Arbitrum. That’s about 1,200 tokens as of late 2025. That sounds like a lot - until you realize most of them are obscure memecoins or experimental projects.

You won’t find Bitcoin, Ethereum, or even major stablecoins like USDT or USDC directly on CrescentSwap. You need to bridge them to Arbitrum first. That means extra steps, extra gas, and extra risk. If you’re not comfortable bridging assets between chains, this isn’t the place for you.

Unlike centralized exchanges like Coinbase, which list over 250 tokens and handle fiat on-ramps, CrescentSwap offers zero fiat options. No credit card buys. No bank transfers. No USD deposits. You need ETH or ARB already in your wallet to start trading.

Security and Risks

No custodial control means no one can freeze your funds. That’s good. But it also means no one can help you if you mess up.

If you send tokens to the wrong address? Gone forever. If you set your slippage too high and get frontrun? You lose money. If you click on a fake MNLT token that looks real? Your wallet gets drained. Chainalysis found 22% of new DeFi users lose funds this way.

CrescentSwap doesn’t verify tokens. Anyone can deploy a token on Arbitrum and list it here. There’s no official list of "safe" tokens. You have to check contract addresses manually. A scam token might have the same name and logo as the real one. The only way to avoid this is to verify the contract on Arbiscan and cross-check with the official CrescentSwap website.

There’s no customer support. No email. No live chat. No help center. If something goes wrong, you’re on your own.

How It Compares to Other Exchanges

Comparison: CrescentSwap vs. Major Exchanges
Feature CrescentSwap Uniswap (All Chains) Coinbase
Type Decentralized Exchange (DEX) Decentralized Exchange (DEX) Centralized Exchange (CEX)
Blockchain Arbitrum only Ethereum, Polygon, BNB Chain, and more Multi-chain (via bridges)
Trading Volume (30-day) $8.7M $10B+ $25B+
Fees 0.30% (to LPs) 0.30% (to LPs) 0.50% maker/taker
Fiat On-Ramp No No Yes
KYC Required No No Yes
Token Selection ~1,200 (Arbitrum only) Thousands (multi-chain) 250+ (curated)
Customer Support None None 24/7
Best For Experienced DeFi users trading MNLT or Arbitrum-native tokens Users wanting deep liquidity and multi-chain access Beginners, fiat deposits, rewards, and security
Empty browser window with CrescentSwap interface surrounded by handwritten contract notes.

Who Should Use CrescentSwap?

If you’re new to crypto, skip this. CrescentSwap isn’t beginner-friendly. No tutorials. No help buttons. No safety nets. If you don’t know what a wallet address is, or how to check a contract on Arbiscan, you’ll get burned.

But if you’re already using Arbitrum, holding MNLT, or trading niche DeFi tokens - then this is a clean, low-cost tool. You won’t find better pricing for MNLT anywhere else. The fees are low. The interface is fast. And you’re not handing your keys to a company that could get hacked or shut down.

It’s also useful if you’re early on a new Arbitrum project. Many tokens launch on DEXs like this before hitting centralized exchanges. If you want to get in before the price pumps, CrescentSwap might be your only option.

What’s Missing?

CrescentSwap doesn’t have:

  • Staking or yield farming
  • Token launchpad features
  • Mobile app
  • Wallet integration beyond MetaMask
  • Analytics or charting tools
  • Any form of rewards or cashback
It’s not trying to be a one-stop shop. It’s a swap tool. And for what it does, it does it well - if you’re in the right ecosystem.

The Verdict

CrescentSwap isn’t a replacement for Coinbase or Kraken. It’s not even a rival to Uniswap. It’s a narrow, specialized tool for a narrow group of users: those who already live on Arbitrum and trade its native tokens.

The platform is stable. The code is open. The team hasn’t disappeared. But growth is slow. Trading volume is tiny. Liquidity is thin outside MNLT/ETH. And without a roadmap or funding, it’s hard to see how it scales.

If you’re holding MNLT or planning to trade Arbitrum-based tokens, CrescentSwap is worth a try. Just don’t put in more than you’re willing to lose. And always, always verify contract addresses before trading.

It’s not the future of crypto. But for a small slice of the DeFi world, it’s a useful piece of the puzzle.

Is CrescentSwap safe to use?

CrescentSwap is as safe as the smart contracts it runs on. The code is open and hasn’t been hacked. But safety depends on you. There’s no customer support, no account recovery, and no protection against scams. If you send funds to a fake token or set slippage too high, you lose money. Always verify contract addresses on Arbiscan before trading.

Can I buy crypto with USD on CrescentSwap?

No. CrescentSwap is a decentralized exchange and doesn’t support fiat on-ramps. You need ETH or ARB in your wallet to trade. You must first buy crypto on a centralized exchange like Coinbase, then bridge it to Arbitrum before using CrescentSwap.

What’s the trading fee on CrescentSwap?

CrescentSwap charges a 0.30% fee on every trade. This fee goes directly to liquidity providers, not to the platform. It’s the same as Uniswap v3. Gas fees on Arbitrum are separate and typically cost between $0.03 and $0.15 per transaction.

Why is CrescentSwap’s liquidity so low?

Most of CrescentSwap’s volume comes from its native token, Moonlight MNLT. Outside of MNLT/ETH, liquidity is thin because few users are trading other tokens on the platform. Low volume means higher slippage and less reliable pricing. This is common for new or niche DEXs without strong marketing or funding.

Is CrescentSwap better than Uniswap?

Only if you’re trading Arbitrum-native tokens like MNLT. Uniswap has far deeper liquidity, supports multiple chains, and has a larger user base. CrescentSwap is faster and cheaper on Arbitrum, but it’s not a replacement. Use Uniswap for major tokens. Use CrescentSwap only if you’re focused on its ecosystem.

Does CrescentSwap have a mobile app?

No. CrescentSwap works only through a web browser. You can access it on mobile via MetaMask’s built-in browser, but there’s no official app. The interface is responsive, so it works fine on phones - but you’re still responsible for your own security.

What happens if CrescentSwap shuts down?

If the website goes offline, your funds are still safe. CrescentSwap runs on smart contracts on the Arbitrum blockchain. Even if the team disappears, you can still access your tokens by connecting your wallet directly to the contract address using another DEX or blockchain explorer. The platform is just a frontend - the real system is on-chain.

14 comments

  • Murray Dejarnette
    Posted by Murray Dejarnette
    17:38 PM 11/29/2025

    This thing is a ghost town. I swapped 0.1 ETH for MNLT and got slapped with 4% slippage. Meanwhile, Uniswap on Arbitrum would’ve done it for 0.2%. Why are people still clinging to this? It’s like buying a typewriter because you hate Wi-Fi.

    Also, no customer support? Cool. I’ll just cry into my wallet when I send funds to the wrong contract. Thanks for nothing, Crescent.

    Also also - why does the site look like it was coded in 2017? No animations, no hover effects, just raw HTML. I respect the minimalism, but damn.

    And don’t even get me started on the token list. Half of them have ‘moon’ in the name and a logo that looks like a toddler drew it with crayons. I’m not even mad - I’m just bored.

  • Sarah Locke
    Posted by Sarah Locke
    18:54 PM 11/29/2025

    Hey everyone - I just want to say how proud I am of the DeFi community for building tools like this, even when the world isn’t watching.

    CrescentSwap isn’t for everyone, and that’s okay. It’s for the ones who believe in permissionless finance. The ones who don’t need a bank to validate their worth. The ones who’d rather lose a few bucks than hand over their keys.

    If you’re new, take your time. Learn how to check contract addresses. Use Arbiscan. Watch tutorials. Join Discord communities. You don’t need a fancy app to be powerful.

    This isn’t a product. It’s a philosophy. And I’m so glad it exists. 💪✨

  • Mani Kumar
    Posted by Mani Kumar
    15:37 PM 12/ 1/2025

    Low liquidity. No fiat. No support. Minimalist UI. This is not innovation. This is negligence dressed as decentralization.

    Real DeFi infrastructure requires scale, not ideological purity. CrescentSwap is a hobby project masquerading as a protocol. The 0.3% fee structure is identical to Uniswap - but without the liquidity, it’s just a tax on the gullible.

    Arbitrum needs serious institutional adoption, not this.

  • Tatiana Rodriguez
    Posted by Tatiana Rodriguez
    06:26 AM 12/ 2/2025

    Okay, I’ll admit - I came in skeptical. I thought this was just another dead DEX with a cute logo and zero traction.

    But then I tried it. I connected my wallet, swapped 0.05 ETH for MNLT, and it went through in under 10 seconds for $0.07 in gas. No lag. No pop-ups. No forced newsletter signups. Just pure, unfiltered trading.

    I’ve used Uniswap, Sushi, QuickSwap - all of them feel like shopping malls. CrescentSwap feels like a quiet coffee shop where the barista knows your name because you’ve been there every Tuesday for months.

    It’s not flashy. It’s not loud. But it’s honest. And in crypto, that’s rare.

    Also, I found a token called ‘DogeMoonBlast’ on there and I swear to god I laughed out loud. It’s not a scam. It’s a meme. And I love it.

    Maybe we don’t need giants. Maybe we just need spaces like this - where weird, small, passionate people can trade without being sold to.

    So yeah. I’m staying. And I’m telling my friends. Not because it’s perfect - but because it’s real.

  • Britney Power
    Posted by Britney Power
    14:09 PM 12/ 3/2025

    Let’s be brutally honest: CrescentSwap is a liquidity trap wrapped in a minimalist aesthetic and sold as a DeFi utopia. The 73% MNLT dominance isn’t a feature - it’s a red flag. This isn’t a DEX; it’s a token pump disguised as infrastructure.

    The team’s disclaimer is a legal fig leaf. They’re not ‘neutral’ - they’re complicit in enabling speculative gambling under the guise of decentralization. The fact that you can’t even find USDC on-chain here without bridging proves how isolated and fragile this ecosystem is.

    And let’s not pretend the ‘low fees’ are a win. When your slippage is 3% on a $500 trade, you’re paying 15x more than you think. That’s not efficiency - it’s exploitation of the uninformed.

    Worst of all? The interface is so clean it’s sterile. No charts. No analytics. No risk indicators. It’s designed to make you feel in control while quietly removing every safeguard. This isn’t DeFi. This is financial nihilism with a UI kit.

    And yet, people call this ‘liberty.’ I call it negligence with a blockchain.

  • Jay Weldy
    Posted by Jay Weldy
    11:10 AM 12/ 4/2025

    I get why people hate this place - but I also get why I keep coming back.

    I’m not trading for profit. I’m trading to learn. I’ve lost money here. I’ve sent tokens to the wrong address once (RIP 0.02 ETH). But I learned how to read contract hashes. I learned how to check Arbiscan. I learned that no one’s coming to save me - and that’s actually kind of empowering.

    CrescentSwap doesn’t babysit you. It doesn’t sell you NFTs or staking rewards. It just lets you swap. And in a world full of crypto influencers and ‘earn $5000/month’ scams, that’s kind of beautiful.

    It’s not for beginners. But if you’re willing to be patient, it’s one of the purest places left in crypto.

    Also, I found a token called ‘CatsOnArbitrum’ and I bought 0.001 of it just because the logo was a cat wearing a tiny hat. It’s gone up 12%. I didn’t even research it. I just liked the cat.

    That’s the magic of this place. It’s chaos. But it’s *our* chaos.

  • Melinda Kiss
    Posted by Melinda Kiss
    01:28 AM 12/ 6/2025

    Hi everyone! I just wanted to say how much I appreciate this community for taking the time to share thoughtful insights - even when we disagree.

    For anyone new to DeFi, I want to gently remind you: safety first. Always verify contract addresses on Arbiscan. Always check the token name and symbol against the official website. And never, ever trust a token just because it has a cool logo or a trending name.

    I’ve seen so many people lose funds because they clicked ‘approve’ without reading the fine print. It’s heartbreaking.

    If you’re unsure, pause. Take a breath. Ask someone. Watch a 5-minute YouTube video. You don’t need to rush. Crypto will still be here tomorrow.

    And CrescentSwap? It’s not perfect. But it’s teaching us something important: real decentralization means responsibility. No one else is holding your hand.

    You’ve got this. 💛

  • Greer Dauphin
    Posted by Greer Dauphin
    10:33 AM 12/ 6/2025

    so i swapped eth for mnlt and the interface said ‘success’ but my wallet didn’t update for 12 mins??

    turned out i had slippage set to 0.1% and the tx got frontrun by a bot and i paid 0.5 eth for 0.000000000001 mnlt

    lol

    also the website looks like my high school’s computer lab from 2003

    but hey at least it’s not centralized right??

    also who made the mnlt logo? it looks like a crescent moon made by a toddler with a glitter pen

  • Bhoomika Agarwal
    Posted by Bhoomika Agarwal
    12:49 PM 12/ 6/2025

    USA thinks this is ‘decentralized finance’? Ha! This is a joke. In India, we have real DEXs with volume, real teams, real audits. This? This is a sandbox for Americans who think ‘no KYC’ means ‘no responsibility.’

    You call this innovation? I call it digital colonialism - exporting your tech failures as ‘crypto culture.’

    Arbitrum is great. But CrescentSwap? It’s not even a footnote in real DeFi history.

    Go back to Coinbase and leave the real work to those who actually build.

  • Nelia Mcquiston
    Posted by Nelia Mcquiston
    14:41 PM 12/ 7/2025

    There’s something quietly profound about a platform that refuses to grow.

    Most projects chase users, hype, volume, partnerships. CrescentSwap doesn’t care. It doesn’t advertise. It doesn’t promise returns. It doesn’t even have a blog.

    It just… exists.

    And in a world where every app is trying to sell you something - your attention, your data, your future - this quiet refusal feels radical.

    It’s not about being the biggest. It’s about being the most honest.

    Maybe the future of crypto isn’t in billion-dollar valuations. Maybe it’s in tools that ask nothing but your responsibility.

    I don’t know if this survives. But I hope it does - not because it’s profitable, but because it’s true.

  • Mark Stoehr
    Posted by Mark Stoehr
    13:21 PM 12/ 9/2025

    mnlt is a scam

    no support

    slippage is a joke

    you think this is degen? no it’s just dumb

    why are you still here

    go trade on uniswap

    or just buy btc and chill

    stop pretending this is finance

    it’s a casino with bad wifi

  • Shari Heglin
    Posted by Shari Heglin
    09:46 AM 12/11/2025

    The premise that CrescentSwap is a ‘tool for experienced DeFi users’ is fundamentally flawed. If a platform requires manual contract verification for every transaction, it is not a tool - it is a liability. True usability in DeFi means reducing cognitive load, not amplifying it.

    Furthermore, the absence of fiat on-ramps is not a feature of decentralization - it is a barrier to adoption. DeFi cannot be considered mature if it remains an exclusive club for those who already possess ETH or ARB.

    This is not innovation. It is regression disguised as purity.

  • Reggie Herbert
    Posted by Reggie Herbert
    20:22 PM 12/12/2025

    Look - I get the ‘no KYC, no rules’ vibe. But this isn’t crypto freedom. It’s crypto laziness.

    You want to trade MNLT? Fine. But why not just use Uniswap? It’s the same contract structure, same fees, same gas - but with 1000x more liquidity.

    CrescentSwap isn’t better. It’s just smaller. And smaller doesn’t mean better. It just means easier to manipulate.

    Also, ‘no app’? That’s not a feature. That’s a bug. People use phones. You’re not saving the world by making it harder.

    And let’s be real - if you’re trading tokens with names like ‘DogMoonBlast’ or ‘CatsOnArbitrum,’ you’re not a DeFi pioneer. You’re a gambler with a wallet.

    Stop romanticizing incompetence.

  • Murray Dejarnette
    Posted by Murray Dejarnette
    00:14 AM 12/14/2025

    Wow. So you guys are all mad because CrescentSwap doesn’t have a mobile app or customer service?

    Let me guess - you also cried when your Coinbase account got frozen last year?

    Here’s the truth: you don’t want decentralization. You want convenience with a blockchain label.

    CrescentSwap is the antidote to your laziness.

    And if you’re still mad about the 3% slippage? Maybe next time, don’t trade $500 on a token with $8M volume.

    Just saying.

    Also - I just swapped 0.001 ETH for ‘CatsOnArbitrum’ and now I own 2.3 million of them.

    They’re worthless.

    And I love it.

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