What is Base, and why it matters for a stablecoin wallet
Base is a layer-2 network built on top of Ethereum by Coinbase. In plain terms, that means it inherits Ethereum's security while offering much faster and cheaper transactions — sending or swapping stablecoins on Base typically costs a fraction of a cent and confirms in seconds, instead of the higher fees and slower confirmations you'd see on Ethereum mainnet. Base has also grown into one of the most active on-chain ecosystems around, with a large and growing set of apps, tokens, and liquidity built on top of it. It's one of FAX's core supported chains, which is why so much of what you do in FAX — holding USDC, swapping, moving funds — happens on Base.
What is Aerodrome
Aerodrome is the leading decentralized exchange (DEX) on Base. A DEX is just a way to trade one token for another directly on-chain, using pools of funds supplied by other users (called liquidity) instead of a traditional order book run by a company. Aerodrome is where most of Base's on-chain trading liquidity actually concentrates — if you've heard of Uniswap, the DEX that anchors trading on Ethereum mainnet, Aerodrome plays the equivalent role on Base.
That concentration of liquidity matters. FAX integrated directly with Aerodrome's own smart contracts — not routed through a third-party aggregator — so that when you swap tokens on Base inside FAX's FX/swap tab, the trade executes through Aerodrome's liquidity pools.
Not all liquidity pools are equal. A DEX with deeper liquidity gives you a better price and less slippage — the difference between the price you're quoted and the price you actually get on a trade. Because Aerodrome is where Base's liquidity is deepest, routing swaps through it directly, rather than through a thinner secondary pool, means better rates for you.
How swapping works inside FAX
Swapping on Base inside FAX is a simple, three-step flow:
- Pick your assets. Choose what you're swapping from and what you want to swap into, in the FX/swap tab.
- See the quote. FAX shows you the rate — sourced from Aerodrome's pools — before you confirm anything, consistent with FAX's no-hidden-fees approach.
- Confirm and done. You sign the swap directly from your own wallet. It's non-custodial the entire way through — FAX never takes custody of your funds mid-swap. The trade executes through Aerodrome's contracts and settles on Base.
Stable vs. volatile pools, explained simply
Aerodrome organizes its liquidity into two kinds of pools. Stable pools are built for assets that are meant to trade close to a 1:1 ratio, like two different stablecoins — the pricing math is optimized for that tight peg. Volatile pools are built for pairs that can swing more in price relative to each other, like a stablecoin and a non-pegged token. Each pool type prices trades differently, so the better rate for a given swap can come from either one depending on the pair.
You don't have to think about any of this. FAX checks both pool types automatically and routes to whichever gives the better rate, so you always get the more favorable price without having to know which pool it came from.
What's next
Swaps are just the first piece of FAX's Aerodrome integration. Liquidity provision and staking on Aerodrome — letting your holdings earn from the same pools that power these swaps — are on the roadmap as future additions beyond simple swaps. Nothing to do today except swap; more is coming.
Swap tokens on Base through Aerodrome
Open FAX and try a swap on Base — see the quote before you confirm.