Cryptopedia - Ren

## What Is Ren (REN)? Ren (REN) is an open protocol built to provide interoperability and liquidity between different blockchain platforms. To learn more about this project, check out our deep dive of Ren. Formerly known as Republic Protocol, Ren launched RenVM, its virtual machine mainnet, in May 2020, having completed a $34 million initial coin offering (ICO) in 2018. The protocol’s native token, REN, functions as a bond for those running nodes which power RenVM, known as Darknodes. Ren aims to expand the interoperability, and hence accessibility, of decentralized finance (DeFi) by removing hurdles involved in liquidity between blockchains.