What Is renBTC (RENBTC)?

renBTC (RENBTC) is a token developed by the Ren organization. The token is part of the Ren protocol project and the ERC-20 token. renBTC enables the decentralized representation of Bitcoin and Ethereum. The renBTC token aims to produce such a token whose value is tied to the value of Bitcoin.

The renBTC token is minted on the Ren platform. According to its whitepaper, Ren is a virtual machine protecting users' privacy while running zero-knowledge financial applications. Ren aims to be a driving force behind a new type of trustless distributed computation and also aims to protect the privacy of all users and data. Ren uses zkSNARK, which stands for "Zero-Knowledge Succinct Non-Interactive Argument of Knowledge." A zkSNARK is a cryptographic proof that permits a party to prove it has certain information without disclosing it. zkSNARK helps Ren build, deploy, and preserve the privacy of applications. 

Ren is based on RenVM, a decentralized virtual machine that conducts private computations over a decentralized network and does not reveal the underlying information. RenVM is not an application but a network that permits developers to add functions of cross-chain to their DeFi applications. Also, RenVM brings interoperability to DeFi by allowing a permissionless exchange of values between blockchains. One can execute any program on RenVM, keeping its inputs, outputs, and state completely secretive.

Furthermore, RenVM is powered by Darknodes, a decentralized network of physical machines that provide their storage space and computer power in exchange for fees. All the programs executed on RenVM are hidden from the Darknodes that power the virtual machines. Darknodes is permissionless; however, a good behavior bond of one hundred thousand REN tokens is required to register and manage a Darknode to prevent the forging of many identities. REN is the platform's native token that is used as a bond to run a Darknode.

There are various Bitcoin backed tokens available. But unlike those tokens, the RENBTC token is not a synthetic token, collateral-backed token whose value varies based on the token’s reference index. RENBTC is independent of any liquidation mechanism. The token is a direct supply peg and there are always enough BTC available in order to cover the circulating supply of RENBTC tokens. Users can easily redeem their RENBTC tokens by sending them to RenVM. By doing so, native Bitcoin tokens are transferred to the users’ wallet address.

History of renBTC (RENBTC)

The Ren project was founded in 2017. The litepaper version v1.2 of Ren was released in Q1 2019. Loong Wang and Taiyang Zhang are the founders of the project.