Bitcoin Staking Protocol Babylon Announces New Testnet Chapter

Babylon, a Bitcoin staking protocol, has announced a new chapter of its testnet, including a feature that automatically adjusts fees.

Per the report, community feedback played a major role in the design of certain tenets of the initiative.  

Babylon to Launch New Chapter of Testnet

Pioneering Bitcoin startup Babylon has announced the launch of Cap 3 for its BTC Staking Testnet-4 on June 19. Per the report, the cap will be time-bound with a 120-hour stake submissions window.

It follows a commitment to bridge Bitcoin’s secure, decentralized nature with the flexible smart contracts of Proof-of-Stake (PoS) networks. Babylon raised $70 million in funding earlier this month, highlighting growing investor confidence in the startup’s potential to transform the staking economy.

“This testnet aims to focus on the security of staked Signet Bitcoin by testing user interactions with the Signet BTC test network. No PoS chain will be involved. Key participants, including Bitcoin holders, validator teams, wallet providers, custodians, and liquid (re)staking protocols, will have the opportunity to explore and evaluate Bitcoin staking,” read an excerpt in the official blog.

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Ahead of tomorrow’s launch, Babylon has revealed a fee adjustment feature integrated into its staking web decentralized application (dApp), which was brought in due to community feedback. With this function, stakers can adjust the transaction fee to suit their needs, increasing their chances of featuring their staking transactions in the Signal block.

The 5-day countdown will commence when Signet BTC goes live at block height 200,665. The timer will stop on June 24 at 9 a.m. UTC, effectively after 720 blocks at block height 201,385.

Participants reserve the right to unstake and withdraw their stake at will within this period. Alternatively, they may wait out the fixed maximum staking period, which can last as long as 15 months. Beyond this timeline, any active stake is still available to withdraw.

Babylon Brings Bitcoin’s Security and Decentralization to PoS Networks

Babylon’s Wednesday launch will see it bring Bitcoin’s security and decentralization to PoS networks such as Ethereum and Solana. With this, the startup is on course to unlock new opportunities for cryptocurrency users and investors. More closely, it could set a precedent for cross-chain integrations, further solidifying Bitcoin’s position.

The Merlin Chain, a Layer-2 network, also leverages Babylon’s staking protocol to merge Bitcoin’s security into its chain.

“Merlin users can stake native BTC, extending Bitcoin’s PoW consensus to bolster security of networks/chains in their ecosystem,” the firm noted in a Monday post.

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Other interesting incorporations include:

• Game Plus, a Bitcoin-based gaming app chain, is leveraging the Babylon Bitcoin staking protocol to build gaming infrastructure on the Bitcoin blockchain. Their Layer 2 solution uses Optimistic rollups and ZK proofs secured by the Babylon-enabled Bitcoin staking protocol.
• Custody provider Cobo Global launched the first dedicated APIs to integrate Bitcoin staking through the Babylon protocol in 30 minutes.

Babylon’s strategy could bridge the gap between Bitcoin’s decentralized nature and the flexible smart contract capabilities of PoS networks. With each of these alliances, Babylon’s vision to unlock Bitcoin security and create a secure DeFi world continues to make significant strides.

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