Economy
Top 3 Bitcoin DeFi Platforms You Should Check Out
Bitcoin DeFi is a relatively new concept that leverages Bitcoin layers and smart contracts to build decentralized financial applications. These DeFi platforms offer a variety of financial services, including lending, borrowing, trading, and more.
Unlike traditional finance, Bitcoin DeFi operates on a decentralized network, eliminating the need for banks, brokers, and other centralized institutions, while allowing anyone with an internet connection and a digital wallet to participate in the crypto markets.
3 Leading DeFi Platforms Built on Bitcoin
Bitcoin doesn’t natively support smart contracts, but layer 2 solutions like Rootstock (RSK), Build on Bitcoin (BoB), and Stacks bring smart contract capabilities to Bitcoin.
These platforms integrate Bitcoin’s robust security with the flexibility of decentralized applications (dApps), enabling DeFi functionality like those found on Ethereum. This enables consumers to access services like lending, borrowing, and trading. They can even buy runes tokens and other new tokens built on Bitcoin through these platforms.
While DeFi platforms built on Bitcoin perform different functions based on why the platform was built, they fill vital consumer needs or gaps in the ecosystem.
Let’s look at the three leading Bitcoin DeFi platforms to see what the market leaders in the ecosystem have to offer.
Sovryn
Sovryn is a decentralized finance platform built on Rootstock (RSK) and Build on Bitcoin (BoB). The platform provides a broad suite of DeFi services to Bitcoin users, empowering them to trade, earn interest, and access liquidity using BTC directly.
Sovryn offers users several core DeFi services, including:
- Decentralized trading: Sovryn supports decentralized spot and margin trading. Users can trade directly from their wallets with no need for intermediaries, maintaining full control of their assets.
- Lending and borrowing: Sovryn allows Bitcoin holders to earn interest by lending their BTC or borrowing funds using BTC as collateral. The lending protocol operates in a decentralized manner, meaning the platform acts as a facilitator but not a custodian.
- Liquidity provision: Users can provide liquidity to Sovryn’s decentralized exchange and earn rewards, typically in the form of trading fees or the platform’s native token, SOV.
- Staking: Sovyrn users can also earn staking rewards by depositing SOV.
Pros
- Offers a wide range of decentralized financial services
- Leverages Bitcoin’s security, making it less vulnerable to attacks
- Non-custodial, so users retain control of their private keys and assets
Cons
- Might be complex for new users
ALEX
ALEX is a DeFi platform built on the Stacks blockchain, a layer 2 protocol that connects to Bitcoin. ALEX seeks to build a comprehensive DeFi ecosystem where users can trade, lend, and borrow Bitcoin-based assets on Stacks.
The platform’s DeFi services include:
- Decentralized trading: ALEX offers a decentralized exchange (DEX) allowing permissionless trading of Bitcoin-backed assets, including stablecoins and other cryptocurrencies. The platform supports spot trading with a focus on maintaining liquidity for Bitcoin users.
- Lending and borrowing: Through ALEX, users can lend assets to earn interest or borrow against their Bitcoin holdings. These decentralized lending services are a key feature for users who want to access liquidity without selling their BTC.
- Yield farming and staking: ALEX provides opportunities for yield generation, where users can earn rewards by staking assets and providing liquidity to the platform’s pools.
Pros
- Supports a wider range of tokens than other Bitcoin DeFi platforms
- Benefits from an increasingly integrated ecosystem as Stacks keeps developing
Cons
- Relatively slower than other networks, impacting trading speeds and overall user experience
- Complex for new users
Velar
Velar is a newcomer to the Bitcoin DeFi scene, aiming to bring advanced decentralized finance functionality to Bitcoin users in a seamless and scalable way.
Built on Stacks, Velar offers decentralized trading, token launches and more.
Velar’s key features include:
- Decentralized lending and borrowing: Velar’s primary focus is providing efficient lending and borrowing services for bitcoin and other assets. Users can lock up their bitcoin to borrow other assets or lend out bitcoin to earn interest.
- Synthetic asset creation: Velar also enables the creation of synthetic assets, which are tokenized versions of real-world assets that track the value of their physical counterparts. This feature allows users to gain exposure to traditional markets while operating within a decentralized Bitcoin DeFi ecosystem.
- Liquidity pools: Like other DeFi platforms, Velar allows users to provide liquidity to decentralized pools and earn rewards.
Pros
- Synthetic assets on the platform offer more diverse ways to interact with the platform and manage their portfolios
- Benefits from Bitcoin’s security while maintaining faster transaction speeds than the Bitcoin base layer.
- User-friendly interface making DeFi services accessible even to new users
Cons
- Lower liquidity compared to more established DeFi platforms
- May be too complex for new users
Wrapping Up
Bitcoin DeFi is still in its early stages, but platforms like Sovryn, ALEX, and Velar are proving that decentralized financial services can thrive on Bitcoin.
Whether you’re looking for non-custodial trading, decentralized lending, or even exposure to synthetic assets, each of these platforms brings something unique to the table.
Whether you’re a long-time Bitcoin holder or new to DeFi, these platforms are worth exploring as you dive into the future of decentralized finance on Bitcoin.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange fell by 1.60 per cent on Tuesday, July 28, as investors booked profit from some of the best-performing stocks in the last trading sessions.
Investor sentiment was weak yesterday, after the bourse finished with three price losers and two price gainers.
FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria lost N14.80 during the session to sell for N135.00 per unit compared with the previous session’s N149.80 per unit, Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc slid by N3.72 to sell at N89.91 per share versus N93.63 per share, and MRS Oil Plc declined by 50 Kobo to N148.00 per unit from N148.50 per unit.
On the flip side, Okitipupa Plc appreciated by N9.57 to quote at N257.57 per share versus Monday’s price of N248.00 per share, and Afriland Properties Plc grew by 89 Kobo to N19.90 per unit from N19.01 per unit.
At the close of business, the market capitalisation of the trading platform went down by N41.69 billion to N2.564 trillion from N2.606 trillion, and the NASD Security Index (NSI) dipped by 69.45 points to 4,273.15 points from 4,342.60 points.
Yesterday, the volume of securities traded by investors surged by 1,000.7 per cent to 6.7 million units from 604,565 units, the value of securities soared by 337.3 per cent to N85.8 million from the preceding session’s N19.6 million, and the number of deals rose by 54.6 per cent to 51 deals from 33 deals.
On a year-to-date basis, Great Nigeria Insurance (GNI) Plc ended the day as the most traded stock by value, with a turnover of 3.4 billion units valued at N8.4 billion, followed by Infrastructure Credit Guarantee (Infracredit) Plc with 2.3 billion units sold for N6.5 billion, and CSCS Plc with 75.9 million units exchanged for N5.4 billion.
GNI Plc was also the traded stock by volume on a year-to-date basis, with 3.4 billion units worth N8.4 billion, followed by Infracredit Plc with 2.3 billion units transacted for N6.5 billion, and Resourcery Plc with 1.1 billion units traded for N415.7 million.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Naira slid against the US Dollar by N3.32 or 0.24 per cent in the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEX) on Tuesday, July 28, to exchange at N1,365.53/$1 compared with the previous day’s N1,362.21/$1.
Equally, the local currency went south against the Pound Sterling in the official market yesterday by N2.38 to close at N1,816.43/£1 versus Monday’s closing price of N1,814.05/£1, and against the Euro, it depleted by N2.69 to trade at N1,552.88/€1, in contrast to the preceding session’s N1,550.19/€1.
However, the Nigerian Naira appreciated against the United States Dollar at the GTbank FX desk by N2 during the session to sell for N1,370/$1 compared with the preceding day’s N1,372/$1, and at the parallel market, it remained unchanged at N1,400/$1.
The country’s external reserves declined after the FX injections by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) at the currency market last week.
Interbank FX turnover rose sharply on the day to $102.954 million on Tuesday, reflecting a 160 per cent surge from $39.587 million recorded during the previous trading session.
Driving the huge US Dollar volume turnover on Tuesday, the apex bank reported that the number of FX deals at the interbank market advanced to 121 from 55.
In the cryptocurrency market, coins were largely insulated despite recent tech stock routs, which suggests its tight correlation with AI-linked equities may be weakening, even as regulatory uncertainty and upcoming Federal Reserve and economic data loom over markets.
There is uncertainty about the US Federal Reserve rate decision due on Wednesday, as most observers expect the bank to keep rates unchanged, while some expect a hike in borrowing costs.
Cardano (ADA) appreciated by 4.5 per cent to $0.1639, Ripple (XRP) grew by 2.6 per cent to $1.08, Ethereum (ETH) rose by 1.7 per cent to $1,917.05, Bitcoin (BTC) got a 1.4 per cent lift to sell at $64,374.04, and Binance Coin (BNB) expanded by 0.9 per cent to $570.27.
Further, Solana (SOL) improved by 0.8 per cent to $73.93, Dogecoin (DOGE) climbed higher by 0.6 per cent to $0.0707, and TRON (TRX) advanced by 0.3 per cent to $0.3255, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) traded flat at $1.00 apiece.
By Dipo Olowookere
Renewed buying pressure revived the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited by 0.50 per cent on Tuesday, reversing the previous day’s loss.
Interest in Nigerian equities slightly rose during the trading day, with the volume of transactions up by 6.10 per cent to 676.9 million units from the preceding session’s 638.0 million units.
However, the value of trades slumped by 36.36 per cent to N36.4 billion from N57.2 billion, and the number of deals decreased by 22.22 per cent to 55,412 deals from Monday’s 71,240 deals.
Access Holdings led the activity chart yesterday, with a turnover of 87.5 million shares worth N2.4 billion. FCMB traded 68.7 million stocks valued at N810.6 million, Chams sold 31.0 million equities for N148.8 million, United Capital transacted 29.7 million shares valued at N537.5 million, and Zenith Bank traded 26.5 million stocks worth N3.4 billion.
On Tuesday, there were 36 price gainers and 23 price losers, indicating a positive market breadth index and strong investor sentiment.
Lasaco Assurance led the advancers’ chart after it chalked up 10.00 per cent to trade at N2.20, Linkage Assurance appreciated by 9.93 per cent to N1.66, Trans-Nationwide Express also gained 9.93 per cent to quote at N3.10, Sunu Assurances rose by 9.88 per cent to N3.56, and CMFC grew by 9.86 per cent to N3.79.
The laggards’ group was led by Meyer, which shrank by 9.97 per cent to N16.70. Mecure slipped by 9.94 per cent to N56.20, ABC Transport crumbled by 9.93 per cent to N6.35, C&I Leasing crashed by 8.66 per cent to N5.80, and Haldane McCall dipped by 8.21 per cent to N3.02.
Business Post reports that the All-Share Index (ASI) went up by 745.81 points to 247,984.55 points from 247,238.74 points, and the market capitalisation increased by N482 billion to N159.993 trillion from N159.511 trillion.
