Bitlayer describes itself as a "Bitcoin secure equivalent Layer-2 based on the BitVM paradigm," aiming to bring programmability and higher throughput to the Bitcoin ecosystem while preserving the security and finality of Bitcoin as much as possible.
The core points include the following:
1. Using Bitcoin security as a guarantee of finality: The key selling point is "Layer-2 equivalent to Bitcoin security," emphasizing that the security of BTC is not sacrificed.
2. Implementation of the BitVM paradigm: Transforming complex computation/verification mechanisms into processes that can be ultimately adjudicated on Bitcoin through challenge/response.
3. Actual use cases that have been deployed/demonstrated: Official and media reports indicate that BitVMBridge has completed its mainnet Beta/several demonstrations, which is a key milestone for BitVM-like solutions.
4. EVM compatibility and ecosystem access: There are statements about a GitHub repository, documentation, and deployed dApps, indicating its efforts to build an L2 ecosystem that can integrate with existing Ethereum/Web3 toolchains.
5. According to data from DeFiLlama, the TVL of the Bitlayer chain is approximately $448.65M USD.
In terms of financing:
Seed round completed in March 2024 for $5M; Series A round of $11M on July 23, 2024, and another $9M in an A extension round completed on October 8, 2024, with investors including Polychain, Framework, OKX Ventures, Franklin Templeton, and others.
