Wrapped Bitcoin (WBTC) has successfully launched on the TRON blockchain together with its Wrapped Ethereum (WETH) counterpart. The introduction of the wrapped assets, which will be represented as TRC20 tokens on TRON, is the culmination of a partnership with BITGO that was sealed last year.
BitGo is the leading crypto custodian in the space and the issuer of WBTC, using a multisig to lock BTC on the Bitcoin blockchain before issuing a corresponding equivalent on the smart contract chain in question. This can be done using a service such as wbtc.cafe or via a browser wallet such as Liqui, which automates the process on behalf of users. Once sufficient WBTC has been issued on TRON, users will be able to buy it directly using an AMM such as JustSwap.
Boosting BTC’s Defi Credentials
BTC was long constrained to its native blockchain, leaving ETH to become the de facto cryptocurrency of defi, with bitcoin serving only as a store of value. As defi has matured, however, and the amount of tokenized BTC on Ethereum has risen, the number of ways in which BTC can be utilized has also increased. Yield farming projects such as Badger and Snowswap have focused on boosting the amount of tokenized BTC, incentivizing bitcoiners to wrap their BTC and use it in smart contract platforms to earn yield.
That same capability will now be coming to TRON, where a burgeoning defi scene is already taking shape. In terms of decentralized finance, TRON is perhaps six months behind Ethereum when it comes to provisioning the tools and platforms for capturing the full potential of defi. By summer, it’s likely that large amounts of WBTC will be in circulation on TRON, with dedicated yield farms and staking platforms springing up to cater to this demand.
