Why is THORChain considered a Uniswap killer?

I want to start by mentioning that no one initially believed in @THORChain. The owner of THORChain, @jpthor, personally reached out to the founder of @Uniswap and told him about his project. The response was that his project had no future and was labeled as a scam...

In this article, I have gathered all the essential information about the THORChain protocol. After reading it, you will understand why THORChain has surpassed Uniswap in many ways, as well as the reasons why the $RUNE token is expected to have a market cap >$10b in the coming years.

1. What is THORChain?

THORChain is a DEX and automated market maker designed to facilitate cross-chain swaps of native assets. Unlike traditional exchanges, THORChain allows users to trade assets across different blockchains without the need for wrapped tokens or intermediaries. The platform uses its native token, $RUNE, to secure the network and provide liquidity in its pools, which are always paired with $RUNE. This design ensures that the value of $RUNE is intrinsically linked to the overall liquidity and activity on the network. THORChain's unique approach enables non-custodial, permissionless trading, making it a pivotal infrastructure in the DeFi ecosystem.

2. THORChain stands out from other DEXs due to several unique features and design principles:

- Cross-Chain Swaps: Unlike most DEXs that operate within a single blockchain ecosystem, THORChain facilitates cross-chain swaps. This means users can trade assets across different blockchains directly, such as swapping Bitcoin for Ethereum without needing wrapped tokens or intermediaries. This capability is a significant differentiator, as it allows for more seamless and decentralized trading of native assets across various blockchains.

- Native Asset Liquidity Pools: THORChain uses native assets in its liquidity pools rather than wrapped or synthetic versions. Each liquidity pool on THORChain is paired with $RUNE, the native token of the network. This design ensures that all trades are routed through $RUNE, which helps in maintaining liquidity and price stability across the network.

- Economic Security Model: The security of THORChain is directly tied to the value of RUNE. Validators must bond RUNE to participate in the network, and the amount of RUNE bonded must be at least twice the value of the assets in the liquidity pools. This ensures that validators have a significant economic stake in the network's security and integrity.

- No Wrapped Tokens: THORChain does not rely on wrapped tokens, which are commonly used in other cross-chain solutions. Instead, it uses a unique mechanism to handle native assets directly, reducing the risks associated with wrapped tokens, such as custody risks and additional layers of complexity.

- Decentralized and Non-Custodial: THORChain is designed to be fully decentralized and non-custodial. Users retain control of their assets throughout the trading process, and the protocol itself does not hold or manage user funds. This is in contrast to some other DEXs that may have centralized components or require users to relinquish control of their assets temporarily.

- Streaming Swaps and Savers: THORChain has introduced innovative features like streaming swaps, which allow for more efficient and flexible trading, and savers, which provide users with a way to earn yield on their assets without impermanent loss. These features enhance the user experience and provide additional utility beyond simple asset swaps.

- Strong Ecosystem and Community Support: The THORChain ecosystem includes a variety of projects and collaborations, such as the partnership with Levana Perps (@Levana_protocol) to build a leading perpetual DEX on THORChain. This collaboration leverages THORChain's infrastructure and Levana's expertise in perpetual swaps, which is expected to drive more demand for RUNE and enhance the ecosystem's overall value.

- Innovative Features and Developments: THORChain continues to innovate with features like Trade Assets, which replicate the CEX experience on-chain. This feature allows users to mint trade assets with no slippage, trade with fewer fees, and redeem back to L1, providing a smooth and efficient trading experience.

- Economic Incentives and Tokenomics: The $RUNE tokenomics are designed to drive value into the protocol. For example, the burning mechanism associated with various transactions, such as liquidations involving $TOR, contributes to a steady stream of RUNE burning, enhancing the value proposition for THORChain's native token. Additionally, the introduction of RUNEPool aims to lock more RUNE in the network, potentially leading to better price stability and higher TVL.

- Security and Decentralization: THORChain's security model relies on a constantly changing validator set of around 100 nodes, which anyone can join. This model provides economic guarantees not to steal funds and offers real-time proof-of-solvency accessible on-chain 24/7. This robust security framework enhances trust and reliability in the network.

- Future Roadmap and Potential: The future roadmap for THORChain includes significant upgrades and new features, such as the integration of CosmWasm and the addition of order books and limit orders. These developments are expected to further enhance the platform's capabilities and attract more users and liquidity.

3. Advantages of THORChain Over Uniswap

- Cross-Chain Swaps: THORChain enables native cross-chain swaps, allowing users to trade assets across different blockchains without needing wrapped tokens or intermediaries. This is a significant advantage over Uniswap, which primarily operates within the Ethereum ecosystem and requires wrapped tokens for cross-chain interactions.

- Native Asset Support: THORChain supports native assets directly, including Bitcoin, Ethereum, and various stablecoins, enabling users to swap these assets without relying on wrapped versions. This feature enhances security and reduces the complexity associated with wrapped tokens.

- Economic Model: THORChain's economic model is heavily reliant on the RUNE token, which is used to secure the network, provide liquidity, and facilitate swaps. The value of RUNE is directly tied to the network's security and liquidity, with a hard cap of 500 million tokens.

- Decentralized Liquidity Protocol: THORChain operates as a decentralized liquidity protocol with a focus on non-custodial, cross-chain liquidity. This approach contrasts with Uniswap's focus on Ethereum-based liquidity pools, making THORChain more versatile for users looking to trade assets across multiple blockchains.

- Streaming Swaps: THORChain offers streaming swaps, which allow users to execute large trades over a period of time to minimize slippage and market impact. This feature is particularly beneficial for high-volume traders and is not available on Uniswap.

- Liquidity Incentives: THORChain provides liquidity incentives through its RUNE token, which is used to incentivize liquidity providers and ensure deep liquidity across its pools. This mechanism helps maintain high liquidity levels and attract more participants to the network.