THORChain Proves Cross-Chain Trading Can Work Without Wrapped Tokens

Bitcoin has long been an outsider in the DeFi boom, while other chains like Ethereum and Solana have developed their own financial stacks. However, a workaround was found by wrapping Bitcoin in tokens that represent its value on other blockchains.

This allowed users to access DeFi markets using wrapped BTC, but it created a strange situation where users had to stop using the native asset itself. THORChain has been building around an alternative approach: connecting directly to Bitcoin and trading the native asset without needing to wrap it.

THORChain's decentralized exchange can swap assets between blockchains without wrapping them first. For example, someone holding BTC can send Bitcoin from their wallet and receive ETH at an Ethereum address, with the BTC staying native until it enters the swap. The ETH that comes out is native ETH, eliminating the need for wrapped tokens.

THORChain's protocol uses a native asset called RUNE to connect liquidity pools across different blockchains. This allows traders to send one asset and receive another without needing to buy or sell the intermediate token. THORChain reported $2.82 billion in swap volume during the first quarter of 2026, with BTC-to-ETH being its biggest route.