Key Takeaways
- The Bitcoin staking protocol, Babylon, has raised $70 million in its latest funding round, led by Paradigm and supported by Bullish Capital, Polychain Capital, and other investors.
- Babylon aims to expand the utility of Bitcoin by enabling its use as a staking asset in Proof-of-Stake (PoS) systems.
The Bitcoin staking protocol, Babylon, has raised $70 million in its latest funding round, led by venture capital firm Paradigm. The funding round also witnessed participation from other prominent VCs 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 utilizing Bitcoin to secure decentralized systems, Babylon is making strides toward creating a “Bitcoin-secured decentralized world.”
This influx of capital aims to boost the development of its innovative Bitcoin Staking protocol which allows 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.
“The ability for holders to stake their bitcoin whilst retaining their keys is a significant breakthrough. It is a hard problem that has been solved by Babylon,” Bullish Capital CEO, Alasdair Foster, said in a statement.
The protocol’s modular design and unique slashing functionality are key features that differentiate Babylon in the cryptocurrency landscape. By integrating Bitcoin, traditionally seen as a passive store of value, into active staking mechanisms, Babylon aims to enhance the economic and security models of PoS systems globally.
“Introducing Bitcoin as a staking asset not only taps into its vast market cap of over $1 trillion but also aims to alleviate the inflationary pressures faced by native PoS tokens,” the company explained in a statement.
David Tse, Co-founder of Babylon emphasized that this strategic move is intended to “accelerate our mission to make Bitcoin the security backbone of PoS systems.”
Edward, Managing Partner at HTX Ventures, highlighted the trustless design of Babylon’s platform as a key innovation.
“Babylon’s trustless design unlocks new possibilities for Bitcoin, transforming its utility and paving the way for innovative Bitcoin-native applications. We believe Babylon will play a crucial role in advancing the blockchain ecosystem,” Edward said.
Babylon’s recent technological milestones include the launch of the world’s first trustless Bitcoin staking testnet in February 2024, which quickly attracted over 100,000 stakers within the first 48 hours.
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