Babylon has raised $70 million to integrate Bitcoin as a staking asset on its PoS system, unlocking over $1 trillion in the BTC ecosystem.
Key Takeaways
- Bitcoin staking protocol Babylon has raised $70 million in its latest funding round, led by Paradigm and backed by Bullish Capital, Polychain Capital and other investors.
- Babylon aims to expand the utility of Bitcoin by using it as a staking asset in a proof-of-stake (PoS) system.
Bitcoin staking protocol Babylon has raised $70 million in its latest funding round led by venture capital firm Paradigm. Other prominent VCs also participated in this funding round, including Bullish Capital, Polychain Capital, Hashkey Capital, Mantle, Galaxy, Hack VC, ViaBTC Capital, Amber, and HTX Ventures. The latest funding round comes after the company raised $18 million last year.
Founded with the mission of leveraging Bitcoin to secure a decentralized system, Babylon is moving forward to create “a decentralized world powered by Bitcoin.”
This influx of capital is fueling the development of innovative Bitcoin staking protocols that enable various proof-of-stake (PoS) systems, such as PoS chains, layer 2 solutions, data availability layers, and oracles, to use Bitcoin as a staking asset. aims to do so.
“The ability for holders to stake their Bitcoin while retaining their keys is a groundbreaking advancement. This is a difficult problem that Babylon has solved,” Alasdair Foster, CEO of Bullish Capital, said in a statement.
The protocol’s modular design and unique slashing capabilities are key features that set Babylon apart in the cryptocurrency landscape. Babylon aims to improve the economic and security model of PoS systems globally by integrating Bitcoin, traditionally seen as a passive store of value, into an active staking mechanism.
“Introducing Bitcoin as a staking asset not only aims to leverage its massive market capitalization of over $1 trillion, but also alleviate inflationary pressures faced by its native PoS token,” the company explained in a statement.
Babylon co-founder David Tse emphasized that this strategic move is intended to “accelerate our mission to make Bitcoin the secure backbone of PoS systems.”
Edward, Managing Partner at HTX Ventures, highlighted the trustless design of the Babylon platform as a key innovation.
“Babylon’s trustless design opens up new possibilities for Bitcoin, transforming its utility and paving the way for innovative Bitcoin-based applications. We believe Babylon will play an important role in advancing the blockchain ecosystem,” said Edward.
Babylon’s recent technical milestones include the launch of the world’s first trustless Bitcoin staking testnet in February 2024, which quickly attracted more than 100,000 stakers within the first 48 hours.
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