Project Innovation in the Prosperity of the Bitcoin Ecosystem and the Inscription Boom

In 2023, the mainstream narrative of the cryptocurrency world is shaped by the rise of Bitcoin and the flourishing development of the inscription ecosystem. The increase in Bitcoin's price is attributed to multiple factors, including the prosperity of the on-chain ecosystem, expectations for a spot ETF, the approaching halving cycle, and the potential for a Federal Reserve rate cut policy. At the same time, the large-scale entry of institutional investors has also provided significant growth momentum for Bitcoin.

The inscription ecosystem, especially represented by Ordinals, non-fungible tokens (NFTs) and fungible tokens (FTs), has not only injected new vitality into the Bitcoin ecosystem but has also influenced other public chains. Almost all mainstream public chains have developed their own inscription systems, and many existing projects have taken this opportunity to rejuvenate.

Bounce: Bitcoin Ecological Project Auction and Layer 2 Innovation

Bounce Finance, as a multi-chain Auction as a Service (AaaS) protocol, has recently been active in the auction of Bitcoin ecosystem projects. Several Bitcoin-related projects launched on the platform started with a low initial valuation, but subsequent auctions used tokens from early-stage projects as participation tools, promoting the good performance of these projects.

Taking the recent GoDID project auction as an example, the allocation plan for its token BDID fully utilizes the platform's ecosystem, including various methods such as purchasing lottery tickets with AUCTION, staking AUCTION, and staking the early project BitStable token DAII.

In addition, Bounce announced the BounceBit program, which is a Layer 2 solution designed specifically for the Bitcoin ecosystem, based on Binance Bitcoin BTCB and AUCTION, expected to launch in 2024.

Uniswap Expands to Rootstock

The well-known decentralized exchange Uniswap has recently deployed its V3 version to the Bitcoin sidechain Rootstock through Oku, marking its expansion into the Bitcoin ecosystem. This move has been supported by the Uniswap Foundation and aims to provide users with more functionalities, such as order books, price charts, transaction records, and limit orders.

Rootstock, as a Bitcoin sidechain compatible with the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM), ensures security through merged mining and introduces a joint guarantor model to manage cross-chain asset transfers. As of December 19, the liquidity on Oku reached $535,000.

Magic Eden Enters the Bitcoin NFT Market

Magic Eden, originally focused on the Solana ecosystem's NFT market, announced in March this year that it would expand into the Bitcoin ecosystem. This move is an important part of its multi-chain strategy, further solidifying its position in the multi-chain NFT market.

Currently, Bitcoin ecosystem NFT projects like bitmap and Bitcoin Frogs have shown outstanding trading performance on the Magic Eden platform, demonstrating the platform's successful expansion in the Bitcoin NFT field.

Nostr: The Combination of Decentralized Social Networking and Lightning Network Payments

Nostr, as a decentralized social protocol, underwent the NIP-57 upgrade in September this year, introducing a small payment feature called "Zaps." This feature allows users to make quick, low-cost small tips or payments through the Nostr client, primarily relying on the Lightning Network.

The workflow of Zaps includes steps such as initiating requests, confirming public keys, creating payment requests, and completing payments. Currently, over 50,000 payments have been completed, demonstrating its popularity among users.

ALEX: BRC20 Trading and Bitcoin Oracle

ALEX was originally a DeFi platform on Stacks, and developed the B20 decentralized exchange during the inscription craze, specifically for trading BRC20 tokens. The platform also offers new users STX tokens to pay for ecosystem gas fees and uses sUSDT as the base currency for trading.

In addition, ALEX plans to launch the first Bitcoin oracle for BRC20 tokens. This project aims to leverage the programmability of Stacks and the ability to read Bitcoin states, leading the decentralized consensus of BRC20 indexing, referred to as "the indexer of indexers".

The Development of Inscriptions Ecosystem on Various Public Chains

The inscription technology has expanded to over 30 public chains, including Ethereum's ETHS, Solana's SOLS, Avalanche's AVAV, and more. This expansion has sparked discussions about the significance of inscriptions on smart contract chains.

Taking Ethscriptions on Ethereum as an example, its transfer fees may be lower than traditional smart contract transfers, but it may also introduce new security risks, and its functionality may not be as flexible as traditional smart contracts.

Conclusion

In the development of the Bitcoin ecosystem, various projects have demonstrated unique innovations: Bounce's auction model and Layer 2 plan, Nostr combining social and payment functions, ALEX developing the BRC20 trading market and oracle, and Uniswap and Magic Eden expanding into the Bitcoin ecosystem. Although the widespread application of inscription technology has brought new possibilities for non-smart contract chains, its application on smart contract chains still requires weighing its advantages against potential risks.