About ThorChain

ThorChain was created with a single, powerful goal: to make cryptocurrency truly interoperable. In a world where Bitcoin, Ethereum, and dozens of other blockchains operate in isolation, ThorChain acts as the universal bridge — allowing anyone to swap native assets across chains without ever giving up custody of their funds.

We believe in a future where financial infrastructure is open, permissionless, and owned by its users. ThorChain embodies that vision by providing liquidity that anyone can access and anyone can contribute to, governed transparently on-chain.

ThorChain uses a continuous liquidity pool (CLP) model, where liquidity providers deposit assets into pools paired with RUNE, the protocol's native token. When a user wants to swap BTC for ETH, for example, their Bitcoin enters the BTC/RUNE pool, converts to RUNE, and then immediately converts from RUNE into ETH via the ETH/RUNE pool — all in a single, atomic transaction.

This design means there are no wrapped tokens, no synthetic assets, and no reliance on centralized custodians. Every swap is settled natively on the respective blockchain, giving users true ownership of their assets throughout the entire process.

ThorChain is built on a purpose-designed blockchain using the Cosmos SDK. This gives the protocol its own sovereign execution environment, tuned specifically for cross-chain liquidity operations. The network is secured by a rotating set of nodes that are incentivized through a carefully balanced reward system.

Outbound transactions to external blockchains like Bitcoin and Ethereum are managed through TSS (Threshold Signature Scheme) vaults — distributed cryptographic wallets that require a supermajority of nodes to authorize any outbound transfer. This eliminates single points of failure while keeping everything non-custodial.

ThorChain is a truly decentralized protocol — there is no company or foundation that controls it. The network is governed by its node operators, liquidity providers, and RUNE token holders, who can propose and vote on changes through an on-chain governance process.

Development is carried out by independent teams and contributors from around the world, united by a shared commitment to building open financial infrastructure. The community gathers on Discord, GitLab, and social channels where anyone can contribute ideas, report issues, or build on top of the protocol.

Whether you are a developer integrating ThorChain into your wallet, a liquidity provider earning fees, or a user swapping assets — you are part of an ecosystem that belongs to everyone and no one at the same time.

ThorChain supports swaps between the world's most important blockchains natively. There are no wrapped or synthetic versions of these assets — when you swap Bitcoin on ThorChain, you receive actual Bitcoin in your wallet.