Kraken, one of the most established cryptocurrency exchanges in the industry, has officially launched trading support for Augur Reputation Tokens (REP) on October 4, 2016. The listing marks a significant milestone for the Augur project — a decentralized prediction market platform built entirely on the Ethereum blockchain — as it takes its first major step into the broader crypto trading ecosystem.
TL;DR
- Kraken launches trading for Augur Reputation Tokens (REP) with six currency pairs
- Augur is a decentralized prediction market platform built on Ethereum
- REP token holders earn rewards by accurately reporting event outcomes
- Trading pairs include REP/XBT, REP/ETH, REP/EUR, REP/USD, REP/CAD, and REP/JPY
- Augur previously raised approximately $5 million in its initial coin offering
What Is Augur and Why Is REP Important?
Augur is a decentralized global prediction market platform built on top of Ethereum. It allows anyone to create, trade, or monitor prediction markets on virtually any topic — from election outcomes to sports results to financial events. Prediction markets have long been studied by economists as powerful tools for aggregating dispersed information, and Augur aims to bring this concept to the blockchain without relying on any central authority.
The REP token plays a critical role in this ecosystem. REP holders are responsible for reporting the final outcome of events that the prediction markets were forecasting. In exchange for accurately and reliably reporting on these outcomes, REP holders receive a share of 50% of all trading fees generated across Augur markets. This creates a powerful economic incentive for honest reporting, which is essential for a decentralized system that cannot rely on a trusted third party to adjudicate results.
Trading Details and Available Pairs
Kraken has rolled out an impressive six trading pairs for REP at launch, signaling strong confidence in the token’s liquidity potential:
- REP/XBT (Bitcoin)
- REP/ETH (Ethereum)
- REP/EUR (Euro)
- REP/USD (US Dollar)
- REP/CAD (Canadian Dollar)
- REP/JPY (Japanese Yen)
The Augur team expressed genuine enthusiasm about the Kraken listing. “We all know that Kraken is one of the top exchanges in the space,” the team stated. “This is more important: we are personal fans of the overall Kraken trading experience. We use Kraken, we trust Kraken and — this is true — even Joey Krug’s mom uses Kraken!”
Margin trading for REP was announced as coming soon, though it was not available at the initial launch.
The Dormant State Mechanism
One interesting technical detail about REP trading on Kraken involves the token’s dormant state. When REP is deposited to Kraken, the tokens are automatically converted to a dormant state, meaning they are freed from the reporting requirements that active REP holders must fulfill. When users withdraw REP from Kraken, the tokens are sent in dormant state and must be manually activated to participate in reporting.
Kraken confirmed with the Augur team that there is no penalty or fine for REP held in dormant state on the exchange, clarifying that some older Augur documentation suggesting otherwise was out of date. However, to earn a share of Augur trading fees, REP must first be withdrawn and activated from dormant state — creating a natural equilibrium between exchange-traded tokens and those participating in the network’s consensus mechanism.
Market Context and ICO Background
Augur raised approximately $5 million in its initial coin offering, making it one of the more successful token sales of the 2015-2016 era. The project was co-founded by Joey Krug, who would go on to become a notable figure in the decentralized finance space. With Ethereum trading at around $13.28 and Bitcoin at approximately $610 on the day of the listing, the broader crypto market was still finding its footing — making Augur’s ambitious prediction market concept all the more forward-looking.
The actual prediction market functionality was not yet enabled at the time of the Kraken listing, with the Augur team indicating it would go live in “a few weeks.” For the time being, REP could only be transferred and traded on Kraken.
Why This Matters
The Kraken listing of REP represented one of the earliest examples of a functional token economy on Ethereum making its way to a major exchange. Augur’s model — where token holders provide a decentralized oracle service and earn fees for honest reporting — would go on to inspire an entire generation of decentralized applications. The project demonstrated that blockchain technology could support more than just digital currencies; it could enable entirely new types of markets and information aggregation systems. While the broader prediction market concept would take years to mature and face significant regulatory hurdles, the October 2016 Kraken listing was an important early validation of the “appcoin” model and the potential for Ethereum-based tokens to create real economic ecosystems.
Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice. Cryptocurrency markets are highly volatile, and past events do not guarantee future results. Always conduct your own research before making investment decisions.