Condividi questo articolo

Bitcoin Staking Platform Babylon to Start Phased Mainnet Launch This Week

Babylon's attempts to introduce BTC staking is one of many developments in recent months that are aiming to introduce greater utility to Bitcoin

19 ago 2024, 4:00 p.m. Tradotto da IA
Babylon co-founder David Tse. (Bradley Keoun/CoinDesk)
Babylon co-founder David Tse. (Bradley Keoun/CoinDesk)
  • The project is being supported by over 200 "finality providers," who will approve transactions to maintain the network's protocol's operation, similar to the role of validators in proof-of-stake ecosystems.
  • Allnodes, Figment and Galaxy Digital are among the finality providers.

Bitcoin staking platform Babylon, led by a Stanford University professor and tipped to be one of the more promising new scaling projects for the oldest and largest blockchain, is moving to the next stage of its development, with plans to launch the first phase of its main network on Aug. 22.

Babylon raised a $70 million funding round led by Paradigm earlier this year. The project is led by Stanford engineering professor David Tse, known for his prior research on information theory while working at University of California, Berkeley.

STORY CONTINUES BELOW
Non perderti un'altra storia.Iscriviti alla Newsletter The Protocol oggi. Vedi tutte le newsletter

During the first phase, BTC holders will be able to lock their tokens on the Bitcoin network, according to an emailed release on Monday. For security purposes, Babylon is imposing an cap of 1,000 BTC ($57.9 million) that users can stake in total.

Staking refers to process of crypto holders offering their tokens to a network in order to finance its ongoing operation with the expectation of getting rewards in return, similar to putting money in a savings account to acquire interest. This system is fundamental to most blockchains, but Bitcoin is not one of them, therefore staking is largely absent from the world's largest cryptocurrency network.

Babylon is attempting to address this difference in the coming months, which will add greater utility to Bitcoin.

The project is being supported by over 200 "finality providers," who will approve transactions to maintain the network's protocol's operation, similar to the role of validators in proof-of-stake ecosystems.

Allnodes, Figment and Galaxy Digital are among the finality providers, according to the release.

Read More: Bitcoin's Programmability Draws Closer to Reality as Robin Linus Delivers 'BitVM2'





Di più per voi

Pudgy Penguins: A New Blueprint for Tokenized Culture

Pudgy Title Image

Pudgy Penguins is building a multi-vertical consumer IP platform — combining phygital products, games, NFTs and PENGU to monetize culture at scale.

Cosa sapere:

Pudgy Penguins is emerging as one of the strongest NFT-native brands of this cycle, shifting from speculative “digital luxury goods” into a multi-vertical consumer IP platform. Its strategy is to acquire users through mainstream channels first; toys, retail partnerships and viral media, then onboard them into Web3 through games, NFTs and the PENGU token.

The ecosystem now spans phygital products (> $13M retail sales and >1M units sold), games and experiences (Pudgy Party surpassed 500k downloads in two weeks), and a widely distributed token (airdropped to 6M+ wallets). While the market is currently pricing Pudgy at a premium relative to traditional IP peers, sustained success depends on execution across retail expansion, gaming adoption and deeper token utility.

Di più per voi

Deus X CEO Tim Grant: We aren't replacing finance; we're integrating it

Deus X CEO Tim Grant (Deus X)

The Deus X CEO discussed his journey into digital assets, the company's infrastructure-led growth strategy, and why his Consensus Hong Kong panel promises "real talk only."

Cosa sapere:

  • Tim Grant entered crypto in 2015 after early exposure to Ripple and Coinbase, drawn by blockchain’s ability to improve traditional finance rather than replace it.
  • Deus X combines investing and operating to build regulated digital finance infrastructure across payments, prime services, and institutional DeFi.
  • Grant will be speaking at Consensus Hong Kong in February.