haveno-primary-sources-2026-05-14

Haveno primary sources

Reviewed: 2026-05-14 UTC

Official site framing

• https://haveno.exchange/
  • Best concise public framing for the project.
  • Used to confirm the main positioning: non-custodial, decentralized exchange platform for crypto and fiat, built on Tor and Monero.
  • Also used to confirm that real usage depends on third-party installers or independently run networks rather than an official mainnet deployment by the core project.

FAQ and project-structure clarifications

• https://haveno.exchange/faq/
  • Best source for the project’s own narrative about network structure and comparison to Bisq.
  • Used to confirm that Haveno considers itself mature enough for Monero mainnet use, but that the project itself does not operate or endorse any specific mainnet network.
  • Used to confirm the base-currency model where all listed assets trade against XMR.
  • Used to confirm the no-deposit-offer limit, no-KYC stance, no-token stance, and the project’s explicit avoidance of Bisq-style DAO governance.
  • Also useful for the statement that arbitrators are the last-resort conflict-resolution layer and never have custody because they hold only one of three keys.

Documentation home and repository split

• https://docs.haveno.exchange/
• https://raw.githubusercontent.com/haveno-dex/haveno-docs/master/docs/index.md
  • Used to confirm that Haveno maintains a separate public docs repository and frames itself as a decentralized, peer-to-peer network based on Monero.
  • Helpful mainly as the entry point into the official docs tree.

Network and escrow overview

• https://raw.githubusercontent.com/haveno-dex/haveno-docs/master/docs/overview/overview.md
  • Best concise mechanism overview.
  • Used to confirm that Haveno is a place where peers exchange Monero for fiat or other assets using XMR security deposits, that the network runs over Tor, and that Haveno itself provides meeting and escrow functions rather than liquidity.

Trade-protocol baseline

• https://raw.githubusercontent.com/haveno-dex/haveno-docs/master/docs/overview/trade-protocol.md
• https://raw.githubusercontent.com/haveno-dex/haveno/master/docs/trade_protocol/trade-protocol.md
  • Core sources for the protocol flow.
  • Used to confirm the maker / taker / arbitrator role split, Monero 2-of-3 multisignature escrow, off-platform payment leg, penalty-transaction framing, and ordinary completion path where the two traders finish without arbitrator intervention.
  • Especially useful for distinguishing Haveno from atomic-swap systems: the protocol escrows XMR and coordinates the exchange, but the fiat or non-XMR leg occurs outside Haveno.

Dispute resolution and arbitrator role

• https://raw.githubusercontent.com/haveno-dex/haveno-docs/master/docs/overview/dispute-resolution.md
• https://raw.githubusercontent.com/haveno-dex/haveno-docs/master/docs/overview/roles/arbitrators.md
  • Best sources for the human-override path.
  • Used to confirm that arbitrators hold the third multisig key, investigate disputes, and can reallocate deposits when a trader misbehaves.
  • Important for the conclusion that Haveno is non-custodial but not purely automatic: it still embeds explicit human adjudication inside the settlement path.

Core-team versus publisher split

• https://raw.githubusercontent.com/haveno-dex/haveno-docs/master/docs/overview/roles/core-team.md
• https://raw.githubusercontent.com/haveno-dex/haveno-docs/master/docs/overview/roles/publishers.md
  • Most important governance / control-plane sources in this pass.
  • Used to confirm that the Haveno Core Team maintains the repositories but does not operate a live network.
  • Used to confirm that publishers release binaries, choose the initial seed nodes, provide Monero nodes, determine trade fees, and appoint arbitrators.
  • This is the sharpest reusable insight from the Haveno pass because it separates software stewardship from actual network operations.

Live-network deployment and privileged-role setup

• https://raw.githubusercontent.com/haveno-dex/haveno-docs/master/docs/admins/create-mainnet-poc.md
• https://raw.githubusercontent.com/haveno-dex/haveno/master/docs/deployment-guide.md
  • Best sources for the practical operator workflow.
  • Used to confirm that creating a public Haveno network requires seed nodes, arbitrators, a local unrestricted Monero node, optional price nodes, and multiple hard-coded public-key lists for alerts, arbitrators, filters, and private notifications.
  • Also used to confirm that network operators choose trade-fee routing and must distribute a shared codebase because seed nodes alone are not enough; users need the same public keys and other configuration compiled into their client.
  • Especially useful for showing how much practical authority sits in the deployment / fork / publisher layer rather than in any abstract protocol description.

No-deposit onboarding exception

• https://raw.githubusercontent.com/haveno-dex/haveno-docs/master/docs/users/haveno-ui/no_deposit.md
  • Used to confirm the passphrase-protected no-deposit flow for first-time buyers up to 1.5 XMR.
  • Helpful as a narrower mechanism note because it shows Haveno selectively relaxing collateral requirements while adding an out-of-band trust gate.

Repository README

• https://github.com/haveno-dex/haveno
• https://raw.githubusercontent.com/haveno-dex/haveno/master/docs/README.md
  • Used to confirm the core repo’s self-description, the statement that the official repository does not support making real trades directly, and that users must choose a third-party network or build their own.
  • Also useful for confirming the broader repo ecosystem: core Java implementation, TypeScript client, and project-meta repository.

Main takeaways from this pass

• Haveno clears the bar because it is not just a Monero exchange client or a generic Bisq fork; it makes a useful split visible between open-source reference software, publisher-run live networks, human arbitrators, and off-platform settlement.
• The sharpest comparison point is against BasicSwap and Serai. BasicSwap separates messaging and direct atomic-swap execution without an embedded human arbitrator; Serai recenters power in validator-set custody. Haveno instead keeps peer-to-peer non-custodial escrow but places practical authority in publishers, seed nodes, arbitrator appointment, and privileged network configuration.
• The most analytically valuable documents were not a whitepaper but the role docs and network-deployment guides, because they expose where real control sits once decentralized exchange rhetoric is decomposed into operators, privileged keys, binary distribution, and dispute authority.