Trustless Bitcoin Staking Protocol Babylon Launches on Mainnet
The Babylon Bitcoin Staking Mainnet Phase-1 launch represents a major milestone in the integration of Bitcoin‘s security into the proof-of-stake (PoS) ecosystem.
TORTOLA, British Virgin Islands, Aug. 19, 2024 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ — Babylon, the self-custodial Bitcoin Staking Protocol that aims to build a Bitcoin-secured decentralized world, will launch Phase-1 mainnet on August 22, 2024. Following its $70M raise, led by Paradigm, the Babylon Bitcoin Staking Mainnet launch represents a major milestone in the integration of Bitcoin‘s security into the proof-of-stake (PoS) ecosystem. Babylon Bitcoin Staking Protocol allows Proof-of-Stake (“PoS”) systems such as PoS chains, L2s, Data Availability (DA) layers, oracles, etc. to gain staking from Bitcoin, the largest, decentralized crypto asset in the world.
“This launch leads to the third native use-case of bitcoin the asset beside value storage and simple payment: stake to secure networks and earn.”
Babylon Bitcoin Staking Mainnet will be launched in phases. The upcoming Phase-1 will address the supply side of the two-sided market by allowing Bitcoin holders to lock their bitcoins with the self-custodial Bitcoin staking script on the Bitcoin chain. Future phases of the Bitcoin protocol will let PoS networks launch with the crypto-economic security of staked bitcoins.
To maximize system security, the Bitcoin staking system will have an initial cap of 1,000 bitcoins. The Babylon Bitcoin Staking Mainnet is supported by over 200 finality providers, which are similar to PoS validators in that they receive voting power delegations from BTC stakers and can earn commission from the staking rewards. The mainnet integrates finality providers, including industry leaders, such as Allnodes, Figment, Galaxy Digital, Luganodes, P2P, Stakefish, and more.
Leading wallets, including Binance Web3 Wallet, Bitget Wallet, Imtoken, Keystone, OKX Web3 Wallet, OneKey Wallet, and TomoWallet, have integrated with the Babylon Bitcoin staking ecosystem, enhancing accessibility and user experience. Additionally, the mainnet integrates Liquid Staking Token protocols (LST’s), such as Acorn, Babypie, Bedrock, Chakra, Kinza, Lombard, Lorenzo, Nomic, pSTAKE, PumpBTC, Solv, demonstrating a commitment to fostering a diverse and resilient Bitcoin staking ecosystem.
David Tse, Co-founder of the Babylon project, said, “We are thrilled to announce the launch of the mainnet, a major step in our mission to make the largest crypto asset the security backbone of PoS systems. Our team is dedicated to advancing the utility of Bitcoin beyond its traditional roles.”
Fisher Yu, Co-founder of the Babylon project, said, “This launch leads to the third native use-case of Bitcoin the asset beside value storage and simple payment: stake to secure networks and earn. We expect this to enhance the crypto-economic security of PoS chains and other decentralized applications, offering them a more secure and reliable infrastructure, while at the same time unlocking the value from the idle, unencumbered $1 trillion Bitcoin ecosystem.“
Binance Web3 Wallet representative said, “Binance Web3 Wallet is thrilled to be among the first to support Babylon’s mainnet launch. Our goal has always been to provide users with seamless access to on-chain explorations while supporting top-tier projects in their early growth stages.”
Jason Lau, OKX Chief Innovation Officer, said, “For over 10 years, we’ve been at the forefront of supporting Bitcoin innovation and growth, focusing on expanding access to and increasing the usage of Bitcoin. With the launch of the Babylon Bitcoin Staking Protocol, OKX Wallet’s web extension users will now have seamless access to a new use-case for their self-custodied Bitcoin. We can’t wait to see how the community builds on this new primitive.”
Alex Esin, Chief Executive Officer, P2P said, “We are incredibly excited about the opportunity to support and actively participate in the development of Babylon. From the first testnet to the mainnet. It opens up incredible opportunities for BTC holders and contributes to a significant transformation of the BTC-based DeFi landscape. A historic moment!”
Jacob Phillips, Co-Founder, Lombard said, “By enhancing the supply side into Babylon, Lombard will enable Bitcoin holders and institutions to earn yield by staking their BTC with the Babylon protocol, as well as also providing them with a DeFi-compatible liquid asset they can deploy across protocols. This dual benefit unlocks new possibilities for Bitcoin in the decentralized economy, potentially allowing billions in bitcoin into the Web3 ecosystem.”
Babylon’s journey has been marked by significant milestones, including the launch of the world’s first trustless Bitcoin staking testnet in February 2024. The testnet, which saw over 100,000 stakers within 48 hours, demonstrated the platform’s potential to evolve Bitcoin into the security backbone of PoS systems. This achievement not only showcases the Babylon protocol’s technical prowess but also its commitment to creating a secure, decentralized economy.
To track the countdown to mainnet launch, follow @babylonlabs_io on X. For more information about Babylon, please visit the website.
For media inquiries, please contact Dayana Aleksandrova at (310) 260-7901 or dayana(at)melrosepr(dot)com.
About Babylon
Babylon is a project that designs Bitcoin security sharing protocols with a vision of building a Bitcoin-secured decentralized world. Its latest development is the world’s first trustless and self-custodial Bitcoin staking protocol, which enables Bitcoin holders to stake their BTC on Proof-of-Stake (PoS) systems such as PoS chains, L2s, Data Availability (DA) layers, etc, enabling them to earn yield without the need for third-party custody, bridge solutions, or wrapping services. Babylon’s approach combines the high security and wide adoption of Bitcoin with the efficiency and scalability of PoS systems, increasing Bitcoin‘s utility. Babylon was founded in 2022 by Stanford Professor David Tse and Dr. Fisher Yu. Professor Tse is a member of the U.S. Academy of Engineering and is renowned as the inventor of the legendary proportional-fair scheduling algorithm for wireless communications. Babylon is led by a team of consensus protocol researchers and experienced layer 1 engineers from around the world.
For more information about the Babylon project, please visit:
Website: http://www.babylonlabs.io Twitter: https://twitter.com/babylonlabs_io
Media Contact
Dayana Aleksandrova, Babylon Labs, (310) 260-7901, dayana@melrosepr.com, https://babylonlabs.io/
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SOURCE Babylon Labs
