Runes
TL;DR
Runes is a fungible token standard on Bitcoin launched by Casey Rodarmor at the April 2024 halving as an efficient alternative to BRC-20.
Runes uses Bitcoin's native UTXO model to represent fungible tokens without extra inscription overhead. The protocol is much more blockspace-efficient than BRC-20: one rune transfer is comparable in size to a normal Bitcoin tx. Launched at halving block 840,000 (April 2024). Quickly popular; some large mints caused temporary mempool congestion.
Example
'UNCOMMON•GOODS' was the first rune, launched at the halving block. Market cap exploded in the weeks after to hundreds of millions, then fell as speculation cooled.
Frequently asked questions
Are runes NFTs?
No. Runes is fungible (like ERC-20, not ERC-721). For non-fungible assets: Ordinals inscriptions.
Related terms
Further reading
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