Activity on the Runes protocol has experienced a notable decline after its initial trading week. Particularly, on May 10, there was a significant drop in activity, with few new mints and wallets engaging with the protocol.
According to data from a Dune Analytics dashboard, the protocol’s fee revenue has been on a steady downward trend. While Runes still generates hundreds of thousands of dollars daily in fees on the Bitcoin blockchain, the total fees have surpassed $1 million only twice in the past 12 days.
Runes is a novel Bitcoin token standard that enables users to create fungible tokens on the blockchain. The protocol was first launched on April 20, following the latest Bitcoin halving event. Its debut triggered intense investor interest, causing a surge in transaction fees and resulting in record earnings for Bitcoin miners, with over $135 million generated in fees during the first week alone.
Data from Dune Analytics reveals that until April 24, Runes-related transactions dominated the Bitcoin network. On April 23, Runes accounted for 81.3% of transactions, pushing Bitcoin’s share down to 18.15%, with Ordinals and BRC-20 transactions at 0.1% each.
However, Runes transactions steadily declined over the following nine days until May 2. From May 3 onwards, Runes began to recover, reclaiming its transaction share above 60% on May 4 and 5.
The mining community welcomed the increased fees brought by Runes, as their earnings had significantly dropped after the Bitcoin halving in May, with total daily revenue for Bitcoin miners falling below $30 million.
Runes, like Ordinals, introduced a new token standard on the Bitcoin blockchain. Bitcoin recently processed its one billionth transaction.
Runes has seen substantial success, with several Rune collections boasting market capitalizations in the hundreds of millions of dollars, as per data from Magic Eden.
Furthermore, Rodarmor hinted at an innovative audioreactive generative art project during an Ordinals event in Hong Kong, underscoring the platform’s potential for further development and innovation.