Exploring the RIF Token: Bringing Utility to Bitcoin

The RIF token is one of the cornerstones of the Rootstock ecosystem, the first and biggest EVM-compatible Bitcoin sidechain.

Designed as a utility token, RIF empowers users, developers, and builders to unlock the full potential of the Bitcoin ecosystem including decentralized governance, stablecoins, and improved user experience.

What is the RIF Token?

RIF is a utility token designed to unlock more opportunities on Bitcoin through Rootstock, Bitcoin’s leading sidechain.

RIF is designed to address the value capture challenge faced by Bitcoin builders. While RIF itself is not a governance token, it enables governance functionalities in the Rootstock ecosystem. By staking RIF, users can mint stRIF; the governance token of the RootstockCollective DAO used for voting, proposal creation, reward mechanism, and participation in DAO governance.

The role of RIF token expands beyond governance enablement, as it is also used by multiple protocols on Rootstock to unlock use cases that increase user engagement and adoption.

How RIF Works: Technical Foundations

At its core, the RIF token is built on the ERC677 token standard, which enhances the widely used ERC20 standard. This allows RIF to streamline token transfers, simplifying and reducing the steps for developers and users to interact with smart contracts.

RIF is found in 3 different forms; RIF on mainnet, tRIF on testnet, and stRIF.

RIF Token Use Cases

RIF's value isn't merely theoretical - the value is real and extends deep into practical uses shaping Bitcoin, such as:

Governance and Staking

The staked version of RIF, stRIF, is the main governance token in the RootstockCollective DAO, giving stRIF holders voting power within this DAO.

The RootstockCollective DAO accelerates Bitcoin innovation by providing the mechanism for decentralized governance, ensuring builders are rewarded and championed for their work. Via stRIF, users can actively take part in the Rootstock economy and value creation by deciding which grant applications should receive funding, and supporting projects they believe will have a positive contribution to the Rootstock and Bitcoin ecosystem.

\Moreover, with the launch of Collective Rewards, stRIF holders who actively participate in the program, both builders and their backers, can earn rewards in the form of Bitcoin and RIF.

Stablecoins

The USDRIF stablecoin is a RIF-backed stablecoin pegged 1:1 to the USD. It offers a completely decentralized stablecoin solution to make cross-border payments faster and cheaper. For example, Andean Wide, a Chile-based payment platform, utilizes USDRIF to reduce the cost of international remittances.

Improved UX

The RIF token has a unique use case through enabling the minting of an RNS name.

RNS replaces long crypto addresses with human-readable names, making immediate transactions and better user experiences possible. The technology also supports digital identity solutions to help onboard new users more easily.

Through these, and other use cases, RIF addresses a significant challenge in the Bitcoin ecosystem; value capture. Bitcoin’s design, while robust, doesn’t include a native mechanism to incentivize builders. Rootstock addresses this by enabling BTC to function as gas within its sidechain, but again, the ecosystem needs something more to support developers and their backers long-term. That’s where RIF comes in to bridge the gap by:

• Incentivizing builders to create applications that enhance Bitcoin’s utility.
• Providing rewards and governance rights to participants, ensuring sustainability.

Now that you know what you can do with RIF, it’s also important to understand how you can get it and where you can keep it.

Getting and Storing RIF

RIF is available across a range of centralized and decentralized exchanges, along with meta-aggregators and cross-chain liquidity protocols, including:

• Centralized Exchanges: Binance, Gate.io, Mexc.com, and others.
• Decentralized Exchanges: SushiSwap, Changelly.
• On/Off Ramps: Lemon, Bit2Me, Mt Pelerin.
• Bridges: Symbiosis, Sovryn, Jumper.

To store RIF securely, users can use Rootstock-compatible wallets like MetaMask, Ledger, or Trezor, ensuring peace of mind for long-term holders.

In short, RIF helps drive innovation on Rootstock as it aims to combine the benefits of Bitcoin's world-class security with Ethereum's programmability.

The end goal is to encourage a greater number of projects to be built through this well-established sidechain — unlocking greater utility in the process.