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ICP as a Bitcoin L2

Leveraging Chain Fusion Technology, ICP canister smart contracts can hold a Bitcoin public key, sign transactions with it, and directly read and write to the Bitcoin network. Build incredible dapps that natively interact with the Bitcoin network.

Become a part of the Bitcoin economy with the programming capabilities of ICP. Build DEXs offering BTC or BRC20 trading pairs, lending markets using Ordinals as collateral, or Web3 SocialFi services allowing satoshis to be sent via chat messages.

BTC <> ICP

BTC <> ICP

ICP has protocol-level integration with the Bitcoin network, enabling dapps to seamlessly interact with Bitcoin and granting users access to the Bitcoin economy like never before with ckBTC.

ICP is the best choice to build on Bitcoin

Network integration

By running Bitcoin adapters, ICP nodes provide canister smart contracts with real time access to the latest state of the Bitcoin blockchain. The availability of the Bitcoin UTXO set on ICP enables canister smart contracts to read the balance of any BTC address.

Chain-key signatures

ICP nodes collaborate to produce threshold-ECDSA signatures, enabling canister smart contracts to sign BTC transactions. Leveraging network integration, these BTC transactions are directly inscribed on the Bitcoin blockchain - no need for any cross-chain bridges. Chain-key signatures also derive BTC addresses, enabling ICP smart contracts to read, write and own BTC.

ICP advanced capabilities

Developers can harness the security of bitcoin as a native asset while also leveraging the unique core features of the ICP tech stack. These include the reverse gas model, unparalleled performance, and HTTPs outcalls, all within the framework of full-stack decentralization—a hallmark of the industry’s only third-generation blockchain.

Chain Fusion & interoperability

Beyond Bitcoin adapters, ICP smart contracts can read and write to other blockchains providing an unrivaled interconnected Web3 experience. A single smart contract can read, write, and own assets on multiple blockchains via features such as network integration, RPC integration and HTTPs outcalls.

Chain-key bitcoin

Native Bitcoin transactions entail paying high fees and enduring lengthy wait times for block confirmations. Enter ckBTC, a 1:1 bitcoin twin introduced to leverage the 1-2 second finality and negligible fees within the ICP ecosystem. ckBTC is one of the first Chain Fusion applications, and powers several dapps across different use-cases.

Live ckBTC dashboard

Chain-key bitcoin (ckBTC), a multi-chain bitcoin twin on the Internet Computer, is an ICRC-1-compliant token that is backed 1:1 by bitcoin (BTC) such that 1 ckBTC can always be redeemed for 1 BTC and vice versa.

 
ckBTC Total Supply
 
ckBTC Transactions
 
Daily Volume

BUILD on Bitcoin at the speed of ICP

Bitcoin on ICP is not just a future promise. Developers are already building incredible use cases with Bitcoin on ICP.

Ordinals

Bioniq: Bitcoin Marketplace

Sell, trade, and transfer Bitcoin Ordinals and inscriptions without gas fees and transaction speed of less than two seconds.

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Bitcoin Stablecoin

Taler DAO

Activate BTCFi functionality with Taler protocol, a decentralized and overcollateralized stablecoin platform. This algorithmic stablecoin offers a capital-efficient alternative to highly volatile digital currencies

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Runes

Omnity

Leveraging ICP’s Chain Fusion Technology, Omnity is an omnichain interoperability protocol offering cross-chain infrastructure for modular blockchains. It enables the transfer of Runes tokens and its roadmap lays cross-chain plans ahead for various L2s.

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DeFi

Helix Markets

Access zero-gas fees and lightning fast swaps between BTC, ETH, or any ERC20 assets. By harnessing the power of chain-key technology on ICP, Helix Markets allows cross-chain swaps in a non-custodial way.

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SocialFi

Open Chat

Send chat messages to others containing tokens like ICP and ckBTC using OpenChat - a decentralized real-time messaging service. Running entirely on-chain on ICP, it offers all the features of a chat app - from GIFs, to creating polls, to offering users rewards.

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Decentralized mining

Loka Mining

Loka Mining is a trust-minimized, non-custodial Bitcoin mining pool. By facilitating co-investment with Bitcoin miners, it enables retail investors to acquire BTC at superior rates, surpassing market prices without the need for custodial services.

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Sample Code Examples & Startup Requests 

Explore the integration of Bitcoin with the Internet Computer through concise code examples and startup collaboration opportunities. Access ready-to-use code snippets and connect with innovative startups to accelerate your projects. Unleash the potential of Bitcoin and Internet Computer synergy for your next venture.

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Internet Computer BUIDL Bitcoin Hackathon Powered by Encode

Demo Day

Internet Computer BUIDL Bitcoin Hackathon Powered by Encode

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Global

Bitcoin Canister

A sample canister smart contract that can send and receive Bitcoin on the IC.

Global

Inscription Canister

This example project explores the possibility of inscribing ordinal inscriptions onto the Bitcoin blockchain using the IC.

Global

ckBTC Canister

Canister smart contract for ckBTC, the trustless Bitcoin Digital Twin on the IC.

Global

Ordinal Canister

A canister that enables the retrieval of ordinals and their corresponding inscriptions, making them easily accessible on the IC.

News & Events

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Bitcoin 2024 Conference

Jul 25 - 27 |Nashville, Tennessee

Bitcoin Nashville

With the upcoming Halvening, 2024 is shaping up to be the biggest year for bitcoin yet. We are building out core neighborhoods & content tracks to accelerate hyperbitcoinizatioin across multiple vectors.

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