Key Points
- Bitcoin Runes protocol’s activity has significantly decreased despite its promising start.
- Despite a decline in activity, non-fungible token collections on the Runes platform have market caps exceeding $100 million.
The Bitcoin Runes protocol, a decentralized finance (DeFi) platform that was launched on April 19, has experienced a significant decrease in activity. This platform was designed to create a new way of creating fungible tokens on the Bitcoin blockchain.
On April 24, activity on the Bitcoin Runes protocol surged, accounting for about 57% of all transactions recorded in the Bitcoin ecosystem after the 2024 halving event. This surge led to record fees for Bitcoin miners due to high competition for block space during the halving event.
Decrease in Runes Protocol Activity
In its first week, Runes generated approximately $107 million in transactions in a single day and $135 million in Bitcoin transactions weekly. However, investor interest in the protocol seems to have decreased amidst the current market downturn.
Crypto analytics firm Dune’s on-chain data shows that activities on the Runes protocol have dropped significantly, reaching their lowest level since May 10. This decrease could be due to fewer new mints and a decrease in new wallets interacting with the protocol since its April debut, leading to reduced fees.
The protocol has continued to experience low engagement, reducing its market share of the Bitcoin ecosystem. Despite recording thousands of transactions daily, Runes has struggled to reach another $1 million milestone in daily transaction fees. In the past 12 days, the protocol has only surpassed $1 million in transaction fees twice.
Runes NFT Collections Maintain High Market Caps
Despite the recent decrease in activity on the Runes network, the protocol continues to stand out. Various non-fungible token (NFT) collections on the platform have already surpassed market caps exceeding $100 million.
According to data from Magic Eden, an NFT marketplace, some of the Runes collections, such as DOG•GO•TO•THE•MOON, PUBS.WORLD.PEACE, and EPIC.EPIC.EPIC have market capitalizations of $2.44 billion, $171.60 million, and $37.78 million, respectively.
On May 11, Casey Rodarmor, the developer behind both Runes and Bitcoin Ordinals, hinted at a new NFT project during an event in Asia. The software engineer said he is working on a new audioreactive generative art project.
