Bitcoin
deserves better.
WBTC is at risk.
Together, we can save it.
WBTC was created when DeFi was in its infancy.
The founding team did everything they could to decentralize the new product. They put together multisigs to manage minting, and merchants to help users deposit and redeem BTC.
There was one role, however, that wasn't decentralized.
What are we decentralizing? Power.
BitGo is the sole custodian of WBTC.
All BTC backing WBTC is stored in a trust in the US, and managed by one of the most credible custodians in the
space.
That all changed late on a Friday, August 9th, when
BitGo posted about an update to WBTC's custody
model.
The BTC backing WBTC will be moved to BitGlobal, an
entity outside the US, partially owned by controversial
figure Justin Sun. The last 4 stablecoins taken over by
Sun suffered serious de-pegs and treasury concerns,
including HBTC, TUSD, and just last week, USDD.
This change of custody endangers the 153k BTC backing WBTC. Whether or not BitGlobal has good intentions,
we can't risk the collapse of a $9B asset at the center of
DeFi.
We must do better.
What can we do?
Bitcoin bridging has come a long way since 2019.
Modern Bitcoin bridges use threshold encryption, SPV
proofs, and decentralized signer sets to avoid a single
custodian.
These are tools that didn't exist when WBTC was
created.
It's high time for WBTC to get an upgrade.
Bitcoin values
Bitcoin in DeFi should follow the same values as the
Bitcoin network.
Decentralization — The Bitcoin network has no single points of failure. Neither should WBTC.
Censorship resistance — Bitcoin doesn't care about your gender, religion, or politics. Neither should WBTC.
Community ownership — The Bitcoin network is owned by BTC holders. So should WBTC.