THORChain, known by its native token RUNE, is a decentralized liquidity protocol that allows users to exchange cryptocurrency assets across various networks without relinquishing full custody of their assets. It's a revolutionary platform that simplifies asset swapping in a permissionless setting, eliminating the need for order books to source liquidity.
THORChain is unique in that it doesn't have a CEO, founder, or directors. The protocol's development is organized via Gitlab, with nodes being the ultimate deciders of which codebase to run. The team working on the project remains largely anonymous to ensure the project's decentralization and protection.
As of June 2022, there are 308.0 million RUNE in circulation out of a total supply of 500 million. The token was initially launched following an IDO on the Binance DEX, where 20 million RUNE were sold. Prior to this, a total of 130 million RUNE were sold in earlier funding rounds.
RUNE is available to purchase and trade on a large number of both centralized and decentralized exchange platforms. The most prominent of these are Binance (centralized) and THORChain interfaces found at THORSwap (decentralized). As of June 2022, most RUNE trading pairs are crypto/crypto pairs. However, RUNE can be bought with Korean won (KRW) on ProBit Exchange and US dollars (USD) on Binance.
THORChain's primary use is to facilitate the seamless exchange of cryptocurrency assets. It uses a unique system to mitigate the issue of "impermanent losses" that a liquidity provider can experience when contributing to liquidity pools. It achieves this by using a slip-based fee to ensure liquidity stays where it is needed. The protocol isn't profit-oriented, and all fees generated go directly to the participants, such as node operators and liquidity providers.
THORChain's single-chain chaosnet launched in April 2021, and the multi-chain upgrade was launched in April 2021. The Mainnet is now live as of June 2022. The platform combines a range of novel technologies, including one-way state pegs, a state machine, the Bifröst Signer Module, and a TSS protocol to facilitate cross-chain token swaps permissionlessly. This is all kept behind the scenes, making the platform accessible to even inexperienced traders.
THORChain, a decentralized liquidity protocol, recently experienced a security breach where $5 million in Ether and ERC20 tokens were stolen. Despite this setback, the project has been making significant strides in technological advancements. Notably, the protocol has rolled out synthetic assets, a feature that allows users to create derivative versions of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. This development has sparked a surge in the THORChain price.
In recent THORChain news, the protocol has expanded its support to include Dogecoin (DOGE), enabling users to swap DOGE or earn yields on their holdings. This move has given Dogecoin a new level of self-sovereignty. Furthermore, THORChain has successfully integrated with Terra Luna, a development that has been positively received by both Bitcoin and Luna communities.
THORChain has been actively engaging with its community, launching new tools like NodeOp and a monitoring bot. The team is also preparing for an upcoming hard fork. Looking ahead, THORChain plans to release a suite of new features called "Thorfi", which has already contributed to a significant increase in the THORChain price today.
Despite experiencing some volatility, THORChain's native token, RUNE, has shown strong performance recently. The token's price surged by 34% in a single trading day following the activation of synthetic assets on the THORChain network. If you're wondering where to buy THORChain, it's available on various cryptocurrency exchanges.