Wrapped Bitcoin (WBTC) is a tokenized version of Bitcoin (BTC) that operates on the Ethereum (ETH) blockchain. It adheres to the ERC-20 standard, which is the basic compatibility standard of the Ethereum blockchain. This compatibility allows WBTC to be fully integrated into Ethereum's ecosystem, including decentralized exchanges, crypto lending services, prediction markets, and other ERC-20-enabled decentralized finance (DeFi) applications. WBTC is backed by Bitcoin at a 1:1 ratio through a network of automatically monitored merchants and custodians. This aims to ensure that its price is pegged to Bitcoin and allows users to transfer liquidity between the BTC and ETH networks in a decentralized and autonomous manner.

The creation of Wrapped Bitcoin brings Bitcoin into the world of Ethereum's DeFi ecosystem. When users want to convert BTC into WBTC, the to-be-converted BTC is held by a custodian, who participates in the actual minting and burning of Ethereum-based tokens. When WBTCs are burned, the user can reclaim their BTC balance from the custodian. During minting, users send BTC to the custodian for storage and receive an equivalent in WBTC tokens. The user who wants to swap between WBTC and BTC performs a trade to move funds to the merchant. Once finalized, the user can use their BTC/WBTC as they see fit. If WBTC is converted to BTC, the associated Wrapped Bitcoin balance will be destroyed through a burn transaction.

As Wrapped Bitcoin tokens adhere to the ERC-20 token standard, they can be used across the broader Ethereum ecosystem. This includes trading them on decentralized exchanges and exploring decentralized finance opportunities through protocols and platforms supporting WBTC. DeFi opportunities for WBTC range from lending and borrowing to yield farming, token swapping, and liquidity pools. Various protocols and platforms support Wrapped Bitcoin. Using WBTC as collateral for a crypto-backed loan can be an option for businesses. Additionally, WBTC holders may receive compensation from supplying liquidity. Another potential use case for WBTC is in margin trading, where Wrapped Bitcoin may be used to trade Ethereum, stablecoins, and other ERC-20 tokens.

Wrapped Bitcoin was first announced on October 26, 2018, and officially launched on January 31, 2019. The Wrapped Tokens project, of which WBTC is a part, is a joint project of three organizations: BitGo, Kyber Network, and Ren. BitGo, co-founded in 2013 by American computer scientist and entrepreneur Mike Belshe, is an institutional digital asset custody, trading, and financial services firm. Kyber Network is an on-blockchain liquidity protocol that enables the integration of different cryptocurrency tokens and DeFi applications. It was founded in 2017 by Loi Luu, Victor Tran, and Yaron Velner. Ren is a company focused on cross-blockchain integration of cryptocurrency assets and DeFi applications via solutions such as RenBridge, RenVM, and others. It was founded in 2017 by Taiyang Zhang and Loong Wang.

We update our Wrapped Bitcoin to USD currency in real-time. Get the live price of Wrapped Bitcoin on Coinbase.

The current market cap of Wrapped Bitcoin is $235.324M. A high market cap implies that the asset is highly valued by the market.

Over the last 24 hours, the trading volume of Wrapped Bitcoin is $1.258M.

Assets that have a similar market cap to Wrapped Bitcoin include Lido wstETH, Wrapped Beacon ETH, USDS, and many others. To see a full list, see our comparable market cap assets.

The current circulating supply of Wrapped Bitcoin is 3.2 thousand.

Wrapped Bitcoin ranks 121 among tradable assets on Coinbase. Popularity is currently based on relative market cap.

Currently, 92% of Coinbase users are buying Wrapped Bitcoin. In other words, 92% of Coinbase customers have increased their net position in Wrapped Bitcoin over the past 24 hours through trading.