Is THORChain (RUNE) Undervalued? with Erik Voorhees and Chad Barraford

This podcast episode delves into ThorChain, a decentralized exchange (DEX) that facilitates cross-chain swapping with various layer one assets. ThorChain stands out from other DEXs by enabling transactions between multiple chains simultaneously, including Bitcoin, Ethereum, Avax, BNB, Doge, Litecoin, and more. The guests discuss ThorChain's objective of enhancing interoperability and integrability across different blockchains. Operating as a Cosmos chain, ThorChain employs a validator set and utilizes threshold signatures for wallet control, ensuring security and scalability. The conversation also touches on ShapeShift's integration of ThorChain's infrastructure, the technical obstacles faced during ThorChain's development, its economic model, and the groundbreaking nature of the platform. Overall, this episode showcases ThorChain's potential to revolutionize the crypto landscape through its ability to facilitate seamless and intermediary-free asset trading. Takeaways • ThorChain is a decentralized exchange (DEX) that allows cross-chain swapping between various chains simultaneously, including Bitcoin, Ethereum, Avax, BNB, Doge, Litecoin, and more. • ThorChain operates as a Cosmos chain with a validator set and uses threshold signatures for controlling wallets, ensuring security and scalability. • ShapeShift transformed by integrating ThorChain's infrastructure, becoming non-intermediary once again and removing KYC requirements. • ThorChain faced challenges in building its own blockchain but found the required technology and cryptography with the relaunch of Cosmos in 2019. • ThorChain's protocol-based approach distinguishes it from bridges, eliminating the need for intermediaries and reducing risk exposure. • Economic security is a core concept in ThorChain, incentivizing stakers through real yield and balancing rewards between liquidity providers (LPs) and validators. • THOR asset is issued to secure the blockchain and has a hard cap of 500 million. Rune is the native token of THORChain, directly linked to the network's adoption and trade volume. • Economic security in THORChain is interconnected with network security and the value of assets being secured. • THORChain has revolutionized asset trading by offering enhanced capital efficiency, lower fees, and significant yield opportunities for savers and liquidity providers. • ThorChain plays a crucial role in decentralizing Bitcoin's spot trading and enabling asset trading without intermediaries. • ThorChain focuses on cross-chain asset swaps and has expanded to include concepts like AMMs, synthetics, savers, and lending designs. • ThorChain has experienced significant growth and aims to improve network efficiency, introduce new features like order books and limit orders, and collaborate with integration partners.