Botanix Launches Bitcoin Layer 2 Mainnet With Smart Contracts

For nearly a decade, Alisia Painter has observed the stagnation of the world’s largest cryptocurrency, bitcoin, which is primarily bought, sold, and held, with little utilization of its potential. This observation led Painter and her team to initiate the development of Botanix two and a half years ago, driven by the question of why bitcoin, despite its established status, lacks significant development.

The reason behind this stagnation is rooted in bitcoin’s original design, which prioritized security and decentralization over programmability. While other networks like Ethereum and Solana flourished with smart contracts, bitcoin remained largely a store of value. Painter highlighted during an interview that most bitcoin users engage in only three basic activities: buying, selling, and holding (hodling).

Botanix Labs, co-founded by Painter and Willem Schroé, aims to transform bitcoin from digital gold into programmable money. On July 1, Botanix Labs launched the Botanix mainnet, seeking to create a full financial ecosystem powered by bitcoin. Painter emphasized the importance of building this ecosystem on bitcoin itself, rather than on other cryptocurrencies, to provide bitcoiners with decentralized finance (DeFi) and financial services tailored to bitcoin.

The Botanix blockchain introduces smart contract functionality to the $2 trillion bitcoin network without compromising its core principles. It is the first fully-decentralized bitcoin Layer 2 that is also Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) compatible, allowing it to support smart contracts originally created for Ethereum. This innovation is made possible by the "Spiderchain," a novel cryptographic primitive that enables bitcoin scaling while maintaining full decentralization.

Security is a paramount concern for the bitcoin community, and Botanix addresses this by operating entirely within the bitcoin ecosystem, minimizing risks associated with bridge hacks and centralized custodians. To ensure full decentralization, governance of Botanix has been shifted to an independent federation of 16 node operators, with plans to expand this to 100 operators by 2026. This federation includes notable entities such as Fireblocks, Galaxy, Alchemy, Kiln, XBTO, and Antpool.

Schroé, co-founder of Botanix Labs, stated that the network was built to provide real utility to bitcoin without compromising self-custody. The launch of the Botanix mainnet brings over 40 new applications, enabling users to trade, borrow, lend, stake, and provide liquidity to earn bitcoin-native yield. These applications include major protocols like GMX and Dolomite, as well as bitcoin-native applications like Bitzy and Palladium, the world’s first bitcoin-backed stablecoin.

The emphasis on yield generation is crucial because hardcore bitcoiners prefer to use their coins as collateral rather than selling them. Users of these applications will experience significantly improved performance compared to the bitcoin mainnet, with five-second block times and average transaction fees of just $0.02. Painter argues that increased utility is essential for driving new adoption, as it encourages users to think about earning more on their bitcoin rather than just holding it.

For Painter, the launch of Botanix represents more than just a technological achievement; it is about fulfilling bitcoin’s original promise as peer-to-peer electronic cash and addressing financial inclusion challenges. Her journey into Bitcoin began in 2015 while living in Brazil, where she witnessed the financial pain points of limited banking access, volatile national currencies, and barriers to moving money globally. She saw how bitcoin could provide a high-quality asset to populations with limited access to such resources.

Painter emphasizes that the programmability and usability of bitcoin are critical to unlocking its full potential in underserved parts of the world. She envisions a future where bitcoin can be used interchangeably across different countries, enabling users to pay with bitcoin, earn interest, create bitcoin bonds, and have bitcoin-backed treasuries and stablecoins. This vision aligns with the original promise of bitcoin as a global, decentralized financial system.