Ren (REN) is an open protocol built to provide interoperability and liquidity between different blockchain platforms. RenVM serves as the engine that powers Ren's decentralized interoperability solution. RenVM is a distributed network that connects a growing number of blockchains, enabling users to move cryptocurrencies between them. When a new blockchain is added to RenVM, it instantly becomes connected to every other supported blockchain. RenVM provides one of the only practical interoperability solutions that can scale. It is also the only solution that allows for secret computation over multiple inputs and multiple parties. RenVM is not a product or an application in and of itself, it is a network (and an accompanying SDK) that allows developers to bring cross-chain functionality to their DeFi applications. The protocol’s native token, REN, functions as a bond for those running nodes which power RenVM, known as Darknodes.
Ren as a plug-in, allows DeFi projects to bring foreign cryptocurrency assets such as Bitcoin (BTC) and Zcash (ZEC) to their offerings. More broadly, users can in essence swap any token between any two blockchains without middle steps such as using so-called “wrapped” versions of tokens, for example, Wrapped Bitcoin (WBTC) and Wrapped Ethereum (WETH). Ren charges various fees for internal operations, but most do not go towards direct profitability, instead of being paid to miners. As an ERC-20 token, REN also attracts varying gas fees to power transactions.