RUNE is the native cryptocurrency that powers the decentralized liquidity network known as THORChain. Its origins date back to 2017 when the THORChain project was first conceptualized by a group of anonymous developers. The team sought to build a cross-chain liquidity platform, which allows users to swap assets from different blockchains in a permissionless, decentralized manner.
THORChain was officially introduced to the public through a Binance hackathon in 2018. While the project did not win, it gained a substantial amount of attention due to its focus on solving the critical issue of cross-chain swaps within the crypto space. Prior to THORChain, blockchain networks were siloed, causing challenges when users wanted to trade tokens across different blockchain networks without the need for intermediaries or centralized exchanges.
In 2019, the THORChain team launched its initial token, RUNE. It was introduced as an integral part of the platform, designed to facilitate liquidity pools, governance, staking, and security within the THORChain ecosystem. The role of RUNE is diverse — it is required as collateral by liquidity providers, acts as a settlement asset for swap transactions, and serves as a governance token for the protocol's decentralized decision-making processes. Additionally, the token is used to secure the network via staking mechanisms that incentivize validators.
The THORChain mainnet was launched in 2021, enabling native cross-chain swaps for various cryptocurrency assets. Its unique approach employed Continuous Liquidity Pools (CLPs), and RUNE further evolved as it became the base asset that connects all pools within the protocol. Liquidity providers must provide an equal amount of RUNE when supplying assets to ensure that all swaps occur with RUNE as the intermediary, thus encouraging the use of the token.
Over time, the THORChain project has encountered challenges, including several network exploits and security vulnerabilities. These incidents prompted the team to halt the network multiple times in order to investigate and implement patches. RUNE’s role in the ecosystem became more important as its staking process was key to restoring security by ensuring strong validator participation after these exploits.
The THORChain protocol, supported by RUNE, continues to develop its decentralized vision, gradually adding support for additional blockchain networks and liquidity solutions.
