Dear Bankless Nation,
Bitcoiners didn't wait too long after last week's SEC enforcement to signal that BTC's favorable regulatory positioning was a huge reason to be bullish.
Today, we dig into ten catalysts that Bitcoin undoubtedly has going for it right now.
- Bankless team
The Hot Narratives Fueling Bitcoin
Bankless Writer: William M. Peaster
The recent resurgence in Bitcoin's popularity is a testament to its resilience and its potential to underpin new waves of blockchain experiments. But this doesn't mean you should dive in without understanding the current landscape!
Here are 10 compelling catalysts that make buying BTC an interesting move right now. The first three catalysts are available for all to read, but you'll need to be a premium subscriber to access the full list. 🚀
1. For the culture 🤌
In early 2018, I remember selling all my BTC and doubling down on Ethereum because then it was already alarming how Bitcoin Maximalists were rising and getting increasingly toxic.
Fast forward over five years to today and new innovations around Bitcoin have brought in creative and non-dogmatic crowds anew. At the helm of this cultural renaissance are veteran Bitcoiners like Nic Carter, Eric Wall, and Udi Wertheimer, who recently have done much to contest and take back the conversation from Bitcoin maxi pundits.
In other words, Bitcoin is becoming fun again. So with maxis not totally dominating and new experiments abounding, the culture around Bitcoin is becoming one that more people no longer have to be embarrassed by, but can actually take pride in.
The narrative has shifted from a single-minded focus on Bitcoin’s supremacy to more open-minded dialogue about Bitcoin’s potential in the broader cryptoeconomy, and that’s a catalyst for growth in more ways than one.
See our interview “Leaving the Bitcoin Religion with Nic Carter”
2. Growing demand for Bitcoin security 🔏
More teams are starting to explore how they can “checkpoint” data onto Bitcoin from another blockchain so that blockchain can inherit Bitcoin’s considerable security guarantees. This checkpointing would be done via transactions to Bitcoin, so if adopted more widely this approach could help grow usage of Bitcoin over time.
For example, the minds behind Babylon protocol are one such team that has developed a mechanism for checkpointing proof-of-stake (POS) blockchain data and beyond to Bitcoin. Set to go live on mainnet later in 2023, Babylon will initially specialize in enhancing the security of Cosmos zones.
See our previous guide on How to Get Started on Cosmos
3. Bitcoin coming to Cosmos 🌌
Speaking of Cosmos, what if you could use your BTC directly in Cosmos projects, like trading on the popular decentralized exchange (DEX) appchain Osmosis?
There are efforts to make this interchain utility possible, for example Nomic, which is building around the Inter-Blockchain Communication (IBC) Protocol to create the Nomic Bitcoin Bridge. Currently active on testnet, the fully realized Nomic network will let users use nBTC (which represents BTC 1:1) in Cosmos-based apps.
BTC becoming increasingly useful in places beyond Bitcoin is definitely a catalyst for growth going forward.
4. Bitcoin rollups 🌀
Action Steps:
- ✅ Understand the big catalysts for Bitcoin right now!
- 🦄 Catch up on everything you need to know about Uniswap V4
- 📘 Read 8 Strategies to Balance Your Crypto Bets
The web3 ecosystem is an expansive world, full of endless opportunities for those curious enough to explore them! Head over to MetaMask Portfolio to get started, where you can view your assets in one place and discover other features such as Buy, Swap, Bridge, and Stake.