The daily number of new Runes etched on Bitcoin has experienced a significant decline, dropping below 250 for the past six days. On Monday, only 157 Runes were etched, marking a 99% decrease from its peak in late April.
This decline follows a successful period that occurred a week after its launch, where an average of 14,700 new Runes were etched each day from April 26 to 30. April 26 specifically saw a record-breaking 23,061 Runes etched, according to a Dune Analytics dashboard created by RUNES.IS.
Runes is a new token standard that was introduced during the fourth Bitcoin halving block on April 20. This protocol allows memecoin and nonfungible token enthusiasts to inscribe and etch their favorite artwork, images, audio, and videos onto the Bitcoin network.
Initially, Runes provided a much-needed revenue boost for Bitcoin miners in response to the recent halving, which reduced the block subsidy to 3.125 BTC (worth $196,800 at current prices). However, the 157 Runes etched on May 13 only generated $3,835 in transaction fees, significantly lower than the hundreds of thousands of dollars received by miners in late April.
Since its launch on April 20, Bitcoin miners have received a total of $4.5 million in transaction fees from Runes, averaging about $189,000 each day. Currently, there have been over 91,200 Runes etched on Bitcoin.
Despite the decrease in the number of Runes etched, Runes transactions continue to dominate the majority of transactions in May. These transactions primarily take place on marketplaces such as Magic Eden, OKX, Ordinals Wallet, and UniSat.
Runes was created by Casey Rodarmor, the inventor of Ordinals, with the aim of utilizing blockspace more efficiently than its main competitor, BRC-20s, according to Binance Research. Unlike BRC-20s, Runes are compatible with Bitcoin’s unspent transaction output (UTXO) model, allowing UTXOs to hold balances of various fungible tokens like Runes.
However, Rodarmor emphasized in a recent interview that Runes are not the “future of finance,” but rather a platform for enthusiasts to have fun with Bitcoin.
In conclusion, the decline in new Runes etched on Bitcoin has impacted transaction fees for miners. Despite this decrease, Runes transactions continue to dominate the majority of transactions in May, and the protocol still provides a unique platform for enthusiasts to engage with Bitcoin.