What is OHM Fork?

Let’s begin by establishing what a fork means in blockchain terms. A fork is what happens when a blockchain is split into two versions due to major upgrades. These different blockchain versions run parallel to each other.

Since blockchain technology is built on open-source protocols, anyone can look through the blockchain’s code, learn how it was created, and brainstorm on different ways to improve it. If said brainstorming is successful and you end up with a solid idea and plan, you can provide relevant solutions or create a new “cryptocurrency”.

Essentially, that’s what the term OHM Fork describes. The process of adding new code to the OlympusDAO database results in various variants of the blockchain. 

In short, by adding unique code to a blockchain that already exists such as Bitcoin or Ethereum, the users can create new “cryptocurrencies”. This way they don’t need to write the code from the very beginning like most successful companies.

OlympusDAO’s system based on a new method of sharing liquidity rewards with an ever-growing community has influenced many crypto enthusiasts to follow its example. Numerous developers utilized the OlymousDAO codebase to try their luck at creating their own forks.

As mentioned above, they did this by taking an already existing blockchain and implementing new code. This way the developers don’t have to start from scratch. This approach ended up developing into a variety of new coins/tokens that you can now trade on popular exchanges like Binance or Bybit.

Additionally, OHM’s protocol-owned liquidity method acted as an incentive for the DeFi 2.0 movement. This resulted in one of the more successful OlympusDAO forks - Wonderland’s TIME token.

Other examples include Klima, RomeDAO, and TempleDAO, among many others. It’s important to note that the former, KLIMA, was the first official OHM fork that received approval from the OlympusDAO developers. Moreover, KLIMA aims to fight climate change by offering a cryptocurrency that is backed by carbon assets. 

Unfortunately, not all OHM forks had favorable outcomes. For instance, OlympusDAO fork AnubisDAO has been enveloped in chaos after an alleged rug pull in late 2021 where investors suffered losses of around $60 million in ETH. AnubisDAO offered its ANKH token intending to take advantage of the dog-coin trend and pull a rug pull scam.

Rug pull is a type of scam in the crypto sector that happens when rogue developers abandon the project and get away with all of the investor’s funds. Thus leaving the investors with a digital asset that is worth nothing.

OHM’s success has enabled many new cryptocurrencies to come about. However, most of the developers of these coins/tokens remain anonymous. This is concerning since there will be no one to be held accountable in case the protocol just disappears.