Crypto Glossary: 40 Terms Explained Simply, English + Arabic

Crypto Saudi Arabia editorial team Data last checked: October 2026 ~10 min read

Crypto has its own vocabulary, and in Saudi Arabia it comes in two languages at once: a P2P advert might say "تحويل سريع" while the exchange screen says "SARIE", and your cousin calls USDT "تيثر" while the app calls it "Tether USDt". This glossary puts the two side by side. It covers the forty terms that come up most for residents of the Kingdom, from the basics of buying to local payment rails and the Sharia concepts scholars use, grouped by theme so you can read one section before you need it.

Each definition is deliberately short. Where a term has a practical consequence, such as losing coins on the wrong network or a P2P seller asking you to release escrow early, we link to the guide that explains it fully. If you are starting from zero, read the beginners' guide first; it uses the same words in context. And remember the framing behind every entry: crypto is not prohibited for individuals in Saudi Arabia, but it is unregulated and no exchange holds a Saudi licence, so understanding these terms is part of protecting yourself.

Buying and selling

The words you meet the moment you try to turn riyals into crypto, or crypto back into riyals.

CEX (centralised exchange) · منصة مركزية: A company-run exchange with accounts, identity checks and customer support, such as Binance, Bybit or CEX.IO. It holds your coins for you while they sit on the platform. Compare exchanges serving Saudi residents.
DEX (decentralised exchange) · منصة لامركزية: An exchange that runs on smart contracts, with no company holding your funds and no sign-up. You connect a self-custody wallet and swap directly; mistakes cannot be reversed by anyone.
P2P (peer-to-peer) · التداول من شخص لشخص (نظير إلى نظير): Buying crypto directly from another user on an exchange, paying them by bank transfer, urpay or STC Pay. It is the main way riyals meet crypto in the Kingdom. How SAR P2P works.
Escrow · الضمان / الحجز الوسيط: Coins locked by the exchange during a P2P trade and released to the buyer only when the seller confirms the riyals arrived. It protects you only if you wait for real funds, never a screenshot.
KYC (know your customer) · التحقق من الهوية (اعرف عميلك): Identity verification with an ID document and a selfie, required before you can trade or withdraw. Saudi citizens use the national ID or passport; expats usually need a passport. KYC for expats.
P2P premium · العلاوة السعرية في P2P: The small extra that SAR sellers charge above the 3.75 riyal-per-dollar peg when selling USDT. It moves with demand, so compare a few adverts before you buy. Premium calculator on the STC Pay page.
OTC (over the counter) · التداول خارج المنصة: A large private trade negotiated with a desk at one fixed price, outside the public order book. Desks such as Binance OTC start from USD 200,000; CoinMENA and Kraken from USD 50,000. OTC desks for Saudi residents.
On-ramp / off-ramp · الدخول / الخروج (التحويل من وإلى العملة الورقية): The on-ramp turns riyals into crypto; the off-ramp turns crypto back into riyals in your bank. In Saudi Arabia both usually run through P2P or a card purchase. How to cash out to SAR.
IOU · سند دين / وعد بالتسليم (IOU): An exchange credit that tracks a coin's price but cannot yet be withdrawn to that coin's own blockchain. CEX.IO trades Pi this way, as a placeholder for future Pi Network tokens. Pi Coin explained.

Trading

Order types and price words. You need only the first two for a first purchase; the rest explain why the price you get differs from the price you saw.

Market order · أمر السوق: An instruction to buy or sell immediately at the best price available right now. Simple and fast, but on a thin market you may pay a little more than the screen showed.
Limit order · أمر محدد: An instruction to buy or sell only at a price you choose, or better. It may never fill if the market does not reach your price.
Maker / taker · صانع السوق / آخذ السوق: A maker adds a new order to the book and waits; a taker fills an order that is already there. Takers usually pay a higher fee, like the flat 0.05 USDT Binance charges P2P takers on USDT pairs.
Spread · الفارق السعري (السبريد): The gap between the best buy price and the best sell price on a market at the same moment. A wide spread is a hidden cost on top of any listed fee.
Slippage · الانزلاق السعري: The difference between the price you expected and the price your order actually filled at, usually because the market moved or the order was large.
Liquidity · السيولة: How easily you can buy or sell an amount without moving the price. USDT/SAR on the big P2P markets is liquid; a small meme coin is not.

Wallets and security

Where coins are kept and how they are stolen. Read this group twice.

Wallet address · عنوان المحفظة: The public string of letters and numbers you share to receive coins, a bit like an IBAN. Each network has its own format; always copy and paste, never retype.
Seed phrase · العبارة الاسترجاعية / عبارة الاسترداد: The 12 or 24 words that recreate your wallet on any device. Anyone who has them owns your coins, and no exchange, bank or regulator will ever ask for them. Seed-phrase scams to avoid.
Custodial · محفظة وصائية (بحفظ طرف ثالث): A service that holds your keys for you, such as an exchange account. Convenient for small amounts, but you depend on the company staying solvent and keeping your account open.
Cold storage · التخزين البارد: Keeping the keys on a device that never touches the internet, such as a hardware wallet. Jarir sells the Ledger Nano X in the Kingdom for SAR 669 including VAT. Wallets that work in Saudi Arabia.
2FA (two-factor authentication) · التحقق بخطوتين: A second login code on top of your password, from an authenticator app or SMS. Use an app; SIM-swap fraud makes SMS the weakest option.
Whitelist · القائمة البيضاء للعناوين: A pre-approved list of withdrawal addresses on your exchange account. New addresses are blocked for a waiting period, which limits the damage if someone steals your login.

Coins and networks

How the underlying systems work, in as few words as possible.

Blockchain · سلسلة الكتل (البلوك تشين): A shared ledger copied across thousands of computers, where each new block of transactions is linked to the last. Nobody can quietly rewrite it, which is why transfers are final. Crypto basics for beginners.
Stablecoin · عملة مستقرة: A token designed to stay worth one US dollar (or another currency). USDT is the one Saudi P2P markets price in riyals; no riyal stablecoin has been authorised. Tether (USDT) guide.
Network · الشبكة: The specific blockchain a token travels on, for example TRC-20 (Tron) or ERC-20 (Ethereum) for USDT. Sending on a network the receiving wallet does not support can lose the coins.
Gas fee (network fee) · رسوم الغاز / رسوم الشبكة: The fee paid to the blockchain to process a transaction, charged in the network's own coin. Moving USDT on Tron costs far less than on Ethereum.
Memo / tag · المذكرة / الوسم (التاغ): An extra code some coins, such as XRP and TON, need so the receiving exchange can credit your account. Leave it out and the deposit may go missing.
Mainnet · الشبكة الرئيسية: The live, real-value version of a blockchain, as opposed to a testnet. Pi Network opened its mainnet to outside transfers on 20 February 2025.
Halving · التنصيف: Bitcoin's scheduled cut in the reward for new blocks, roughly every four years. It slows the creation of new coins; it does not guarantee any price move.
Staking · التخزين (الستيكينغ) / الرهن: Locking coins to help run a proof-of-stake network in return for rewards. Scholars debate whether fixed staking yields resemble interest, so check the halal page first.
Airdrop · إسقاط جوي (توزيع مجاني): Free tokens sent to users, usually as marketing. Real airdrops never ask for your seed phrase or a "gas deposit"; fake ones always do.

Saudi-specific terms

Local payment rails, documents and regulators you will see on Saudi P2P adverts and exchange sign-up screens.

mada · مدى: Saudi Arabia's domestic debit card network. mada-only cards are often declined by foreign crypto card processors; co-badged mada-Visa or mada-Mastercard cards and Apple Pay work more often. Buying with a card.
SARIE · سريع: The Saudi instant interbank transfer system used by every local bank for riyal transfers. It is what makes a P2P bank payment arrive in seconds. Bank-transfer P2P.
Iqama · الإقامة: The Saudi residence permit that expats carry as ID. Exchanges accept it with varying certainty, so most expats verify with their passport and keep the Iqama as proof of residence. KYC with an Iqama.
stc pay · إس تي سي باي: The mobile wallet now operated by stc bank, a SAMA-supervised digital bank. It appears as a payment method on SAR P2P markets in third-party reports; its terms say nothing about crypto. Buying USDT with STC Pay.
SWIFT · سويفت: The international bank messaging network behind cross-border wire transfers. It is slower and costlier than P2P, which is why some expats compare it with USDT for remittances. Crypto remittances.
VARA / CBB · سلطة دبي للأصول الافتراضية / مصرف البحرين المركزي: The Dubai and Bahrain regulators that license Gulf exchanges serving Saudi residents: Rain (CBB), CoinMENA (CBB and VARA), BitOasis (VARA). None of these is a Saudi licence. CoinMENA review.

Sharia terms

The concepts scholars use when they discuss crypto. We report their views; we do not issue rulings.

Islamic account · الحساب الإسلامي: An exchange account limited to Sharia-screened, spot-only products. Bybit launched one on 24 September 2024, certified by ZICO Shariah, with no leverage or interest-bearing products. Bybit review.
Zakat nisab · نصاب الزكاة: The minimum wealth threshold, traditionally tied to the value of gold or silver, above which 2.5% Zakat is due after a lunar year. ZATCA has issued no crypto-specific guidance for individuals. Tax and Zakat on crypto.
Riba · الربا: Interest or a guaranteed return on money, prohibited in Islamic finance. A "fixed 10% a month" crypto scheme is riba-shaped as well as almost certainly a scam.
Gharar · الغرر: Excessive uncertainty or ambiguity in a contract, which Islamic law avoids. Scholars who object to crypto often cite gharar alongside gambling-like speculation.

Missing a word? The list grows as Saudi readers ask. For the bigger picture, read what SAMA and the CMA actually say, then the exchange comparison and the five ways to buy. Crypto prices can fall sharply, so learn the vocabulary first and start small.

Frequently asked questions

What does P2P mean in crypto?

Peer-to-peer: you buy crypto from another person on an exchange such as Binance or Bybit, paying them directly by bank transfer, urpay or STC Pay. The exchange holds the seller's coins in escrow until the seller confirms your payment, then releases them to you. It is how most Saudi residents turn riyals into USDT.

What is the difference between a coin and a token?

A coin is the native currency of its own blockchain, such as Bitcoin, Ether or TRX. A token is created on top of another blockchain by a smart contract, such as USDT on Tron or Ethereum. Tokens pay their network fees in the host coin, which is why you need a little TRX or ETH to move USDT.

What is a seed phrase and who can ask for it?

A seed phrase is the list of 12 or 24 words that recreates your self-custody wallet on any device. Nobody legitimate can ask for it: not your exchange, not the wallet's support team, not a bank or regulator. Anyone who requests it is trying to steal your coins. Write it on paper and never type or photograph it.

What does IOU mean on an exchange?

An IOU is an exchange credit that tracks a coin's price but cannot yet be withdrawn to that coin's own blockchain. CEX.IO, for example, trades Pi as an IOU, describing it as a placeholder for future Pi Network tokens. You get price exposure, but you rely on the exchange to deliver the real coin later or to keep letting you sell.

What is the Arabic word for crypto?

Saudi usage mixes several terms: العملات الرقمية (digital currencies) is the most common and is what regulators use, العملات المشفرة (encrypted currencies) is the literal translation of cryptocurrency, and many people simply say الكريبتو. Our Arabic glossary lists every term on this page with the Saudi phrasing you will see on P2P adverts and exchange apps.

Sources and references

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Crypto glossary: 40 terms in English and Arabic