Komunita Stacks schválila upgrade SIP-045, Bitcoin Staking, s více než 99 % hlasů, což otevírá cestu k hard forku kolem 29. července. Součástí je i obnovení emisí STX na 1 000 STX za blok.
Most exchanges and partners have signaled readiness for the hard fork, though a few are still reviewing details and the upgrade has not yet activated.
The Stacks community approved SIP-045, the Bitcoin Staking upgrade, with more than 99% of votes cast in favor, Stacks co-creator Muneeb Ali said, setting up a hard fork targeted for around July 29 at roughly Bitcoin block 907,740.
The upgrade, formally "PoX-5: Bitcoin Staking and Emission Schedule Alignment," lets participants lock BTC in a timelocked contract on Bitcoin's base layer — under their own keys — and pair it with locked STX to earn yield paid in bitcoin. A companion proposal, SIP-044, which brings Clarity 6 and new staking post-conditions, passed alongside it. Voting opened July 6; hard-fork votes require at least 80% approval from stacked STX.
"Bitcoin is the world's most trusted asset precisely because of its design and safety principles on the L1," Ali said when the Bitcoin Staking whitepaper was published in May. "Holders can now earn yield denominated in BTC, trustlessly, while their Bitcoin stays exactly where it belongs."
How the Mechanism WorksStakers fund a timelocked UTXO on Bitcoin using OP_CHECKLOCKTIMEVERIFY, pair it with an STX lock equal to at least 5% of the bond, and commit for roughly six months. The Stacks contract verifies the Bitcoin-side lock with an SPV proof — no custodian or trusted bridge. Yield comes from the BTC that miners already bid through Proof of Transfer: paired bonds get a target of about 3% APY in BTC, STX-only stackers take 85% of the excess, and 15% builds a reserve that buffers shortfalls. There is no slashing; principal returns in full when the timelock expires.
The bootstrap phase caps capacity at 3,000 BTC, managed by the Stacks Endowment with whitelisted partners and about 10% open to pools. A public testnet went live this week, and a "Genesis Bond" is targeted for late August.
SIP-045 also reverses April's emissions cut, restoring the STX coinbase to 1,000 STX per Bitcoin block from 500 — a meaningful supply increase bundled with the staking mechanism.
Yield Without Leaving BitcoinStacks has distributed more than 4,200 BTC — roughly $500 million — in stacking rewards since Proof of Transfer went live in 2021, and its sBTC bridged asset holds about $186 million, per DefiLlama, down from a Q1 peak of $545 million as BTC's price fell.
The vote result did nothing for the token. STX trades at $0.144, down 13% in 24 hours, per CoinGecko, sharply underperforming Bitcoin's 1.9% decline.
Stacks oznámil, že počet jeho uživatelů přesáhl 1,6 milionu a Bitcoin Staking postoupil do veřejného testnetu před spuštěním mainnetu ve 3. čtvrtletí. PoX-5 je nyní v auditu.
New York, NY, United States, July 23rd, 2026, Chainwire
Q2 Ecosystem Report highlights institutional partnerships, ecosystem growth, and infrastructure milestones ahead of Bitcoin Staking’s Q3 launch.
Stacks (STX) today published its Q2 2026 Ecosystem Report, outlining progress toward launching Bitcoin Staking and expanding the infrastructure needed to make Bitcoin a productive capital asset. Cumulative Stacks users surpassed 1.6 million during the quarter, an 8.0% increase quarter over quarter, while new wallet creation rose nearly 53%, from 72,000 in Q1 to 110,000 in Q2.
The report highlights a quarter of steady execution. Stacks built and deployed PoX-5, the on-chain mechanism powering Bitcoin Staking, first to a private testnet for institutional partners and later to public testnet, where it is now undergoing audit ahead of mainnet launch. The quarter also marked two major institutional partnerships. Fireblocks, which facilitates the transfer and storage of more than $10 trillion in digital assets globally, joined as the institutional custody infrastructure partner, while UTXO Management – the Bitcoin-native asset management subsidiary of Nakamoto Inc. (NASDAQ: NAKA) – became the inaugural Bitcoin Staking launch partner. Alongside this, the Bitcoin-native finance ecosystem continued to grow, and the Endowment expanded its grant and Foundry programs to support new builders.
“Bitcoin has spent years establishing itself as an asset. The next chapter is making that asset productive, and Stacks made strong progress on that front in Q2 2026,” said Alex Miller, CEO of Stacks Labs. “Our thesis is clear: Stacks is the place where Bitcoin becomes productive capital. The quarter ahead is an important one for the broader Stacks ecosystem, and we are determined to capture a larger share of the Bitcoin sitting idle today.”
Among the report’s highlights:
Bitcoin Staking advanced toward launch, with PoX-5 built, deployed to private and public testnet, and now in audit ahead of mainnet in Q3. Fireblocks and UTXO Management joined as institutional partners, expanding the custody and asset-management infrastructure required for institutional participation. Zest Protocol had its biggest quarter to date: the ZEST token launched via Binance Alpha on May 19, reaching a $200 million fully diluted valuation (FDV) within hours while ranking No. 1 trending on CoinGecko and CoinMarketCap. Zest remains the top DeFi protocol on Stacks, with $70M in TVL and over 800 sBTC deposited. Stacking DAO reached an all-time high of 110M STX in TVL and announced stBTC, the first Bitcoin liquid staking token on Stacks, now in audit and targeting an August launch. BitFlow surpassed $5 billion in cumulative transaction volume and $575M in swap volume, grew to 29,677 cumulative users, and delivered an estimated average 17.9% Bitcoin APY across its two primary sBTC pools over the past 30 days. Hermetica saw continued allocator demand for BTC yield, with hBTC reaching 75 BTC in TVL and its latest capped allocation filling within 24 hours, while USDh averaged 8% APY over the quarter as Hermetica advanced its STRC integration. Network and protocol development continued, with three stable mainnet node releases and ongoing security hardening through the Immunefi bug bounty program. The Stacks Endowment expanded strategic ecosystem investment through grants and the Foundry program, completing its first Validate cohort (60 participating teams, 25 advancing toward grant applications) and preparing the next program, Onboard. The report also outlines Stacks’ priorities for Q3, including the launch of Bitcoin Staking, expansion of the liquid staking ecosystem through stBTC, onboarding additional institutional participants, and continued investment in founders building Bitcoin-native financial applications.
Read the full Q2 2026 Stacks Ecosystem Report.
About Stacks
Stacks is growing Bitcoin by turning idle Bitcoin into productive capital. The network enables self-custodial Bitcoin yield and a growing ecosystem of Bitcoin-native financial applications that settle on Bitcoin. Learn more at stacks.co.
Stacks dosáhl 1,6 milionu peněženek, které kdy obdržely převod, což ukazuje rostoucí adopci sítě. Zároveň rozšiřuje ambice v oblasti Bitcoin DeFi prostřednictvím stBTC, návrhu PoX-5 a integrace s Fireblocks.
Bitcoin has long been the asset everyone wants exposure to and the network nobody could build on. Stacks was designed to change that, and a new on-chain milestone suggests it is making progress.
The Stacks protocol has recorded 1.6 million total wallets that have ever received a transfer, according to on-chain analytics tracking cumulative user adoption.
What the wallet count actually tells you What the 1.6 million figure tells you is the cumulative reach of the network, the total number of unique addresses that have had at least some interaction with the Stacks ecosystem at any point in its history. Not everyone is logging in daily, but the number sets a ceiling for potential reactivation and signals that the protocol has moved well beyond niche hobbyist territory.
A busy summer of product launches On July 8, 2026, the protocol announced stBTC, a liquid staking token built to generate Bitcoin yield within the Stacks DeFi ecosystem. Instead of simply holding Bitcoin and earning nothing, users can stake it through Stacks and receive a liquid token that can be deployed elsewhere in DeFi while the underlying Bitcoin continues earning yield.
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Five days later, on July 13, a proposal for the PoX-5 upgrade was put forward. PoX, which stands for Proof of Transfer, is the consensus mechanism that connects Stacks to Bitcoin by having miners transfer Bitcoin to participate in block production. The PoX-5 proposal introduces a new staking model and a 15% reserve fund, creating a buffer within the staking system designed to add stability and reduce the risk of yield disruption for participants.
Earlier in the summer, on June 17, Stacks announced an integration with Fireblocks, the institutional-grade digital asset custody and transfer platform. Fireblocks is the infrastructure layer that hedge funds, banks, and crypto-native institutions use to move and secure assets at scale, and the integration opens the door to a class of capital that previously had no clean on-ramp into the Stacks ecosystem.
The Nakamoto foundation The Nakamoto release, completed in 2024, was the most significant technical upgrade in the protocol’s history. Before Nakamoto, Stacks blocks were tied to Bitcoin block production, meaning the network inherited Bitcoin’s roughly ten-minute confirmation window. Post-Nakamoto, the protocol produces blocks at a faster cadence. The two-way peg mechanism, sBTC, allows Bitcoin to move between the Bitcoin base layer and the Stacks layer without relying on a centralized custodian.
stBTC, announced this July, builds directly on top of sBTC.
What investors should watch stBTC is the most direct catalyst to watch. Liquid staking tokens tend to generate flywheel effects: yield attracts deposits, deposits increase total value locked, higher TVL attracts more DeFi protocols, and more protocols attract more users.
The PoX-5 upgrade directly affects the incentive structure for STX holders who participate in stacking. The 15% reserve fund introduces a new variable into that calculus, and the market will need to price in both the stability benefits and any changes to effective yield rates once the upgrade is finalized.
The Fireblocks integration removes one of the primary friction points for funds that want Bitcoin DeFi exposure without building custom infrastructure.
Disclosure: This article was edited by Editorial Team. For more information on how we create and review content, see our Editorial Policy.
Stacks navrhuje PoX-5, který by držitelům bitcoinu umožnil výnos bez přesunu BTC z hlavní sítě. 15 % přebytečných příjmů má jít do rezervního fondu protokolu.
Stacks, the Bitcoin Layer 2 network, is proposing a significant upgrade to its consensus mechanism that would let Bitcoin holders earn yield on their BTC without ever moving it off the main chain. The kicker: 15% of all excess revenue gets funneled into a reserve fund designed to keep the whole system solvent even during lean times.
The upgrade, dubbed PoX-5 (Proof-of-Transfer version 5), introduces a waterfall distribution model. Protocol bond holders sit at the top of the payment queue, with an initial target yield of roughly 3% APY. These bonds require a six-month lockup period. Only after those obligations are met does the remaining revenue flow downhill.
Whatever is left after paying bond holders, the excess miner revenue, gets split two ways. STX-only stakers receive 85% of the surplus. The protocol reserve fund absorbs the remaining 15%.
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To participate, Bitcoin holders lock their BTC on the Bitcoin Layer 1 network using a timelock mechanism and pair it with STX, the native token of the Stacks network. No bridging required. No custodial transfers.
Building a 1.2-year safety buffer The 15% reserve allocation isn’t arbitrary. Simulations run across 210 two-week cycles, roughly eight years of modeled data, project that the reserve fund would accumulate enough to cover 1.2 years of yield commitments.
The system also includes capacity constraints and real-time coverage ratio monitoring. There’s no slashing mechanism for participants, meaning stakers don’t risk losing their principal if something goes sideways with the network.
The whitepaper laying all of this out was published on May 13, 2026. Since then, the Stacks community has been reviewing the associated SIP (Stacks Improvement Proposal) documents related to the bootstrap phase. No formal votes or launches have been finalized yet.
Stacks’ track record with Proof-of-Transfer The original PoX mechanism has been operational since January 2021, and over that period, the protocol has distributed more than 4,200 BTC to participants under prior consensus versions. PoX-5 is an evolution of that infrastructure, adding structured yield products and reserve mechanics on top of existing plumbing.
The upgrade also serves a dual purpose beyond yield generation. By requiring participants to pair BTC with STX, it creates organic demand for the Stacks native token. More staking activity means more STX gets locked up, which theoretically supports the token’s value while simultaneously enhancing network security through increased participation.
Disclosure: This article was edited by Editorial Team. For more information on how we create and review content, see our Editorial Policy.
Stacking DAO oznámila stBTC, likvidní stakovanou verzi Bitcoinu pro nadcházející Bitcoin Staking na Stacks. Token má přinést očekávaný výnos kolem 3 % a zároveň zachovat likviditu BTC.
New York, NY, United States, July 8th, 2026, Chainwire
Stacking DAO today announced stBTC, a liquid staked version of Bitcoin built for Stacks’ upcoming Bitcoin Staking release. stBTC will let Bitcoin holders earn yield through staking while keeping their capital liquid and ready to move across the rest of the Stacks ecosystem.
Bitcoin is the largest pool of capital in the digital economy, and most of it sits idle. Only a small fraction of Bitcoin’s supply is deployed in on-chain finance today, while the rest stays parked in custody, exchange-traded funds, and treasuries. Stacking DAO built stBTC to close that gap and give Bitcoin holders a native path to put their capital to work.
stBTC is the missing bridge between earning Bitcoin yield and putting Bitcoin capital to work. A holder will be able to stake Bitcoin and participate in Bitcoin-native finance at the same time, rather than choosing between the two.
“Bitcoin has never had a true staking economy of its own, and stBTC for Bitcoin staking on Stacks is our answer to that gap,” said Tycho Onnasch, Core Contributor, Stacking DAO. “Holders can earn Bitcoin yield while keeping their capital liquid, and they get an asset they can keep using across Stacks for additional returns.”
stBTC represents BTC bonded to Stacks’ Bitcoin Staking system, where it earns a base yield expected to launch around 3% under the protocol’s initial parameters. The underlying Bitcoin remains locked in the bond, secured entirely by Bitcoin, while stBTC itself stays liquid and transferable.
That liquidity is the point. A holder can stake and stop there, earning the base yield on Bitcoin they still hold. From that floor, stBTC can flow into the financial applications already live on Stacks, including lending platforms like Zest Protocol and trading pools like BitFlow, with the base yield continuing to accrue underneath. Capital already actively deployed across Stacks protocols sits at $121 million, led by Zest Protocol, Granite, and Stacking DAO, according to DeFiLlama. stBTC gives that stack a new entry point for fresh Bitcoin capital.
stBTC is also Bitcoin-native by design. The Stacks network settles activity on Bitcoin through Proof of Transfer, backed by 100% of Bitcoin’s hashpower, and reads Bitcoin’s state directly with no oracle or trusted relay. This stands apart from past attempts to bring Bitcoin into DeFi by wrapping it onto other chains and routing it through centralized custodians. stBTC keeps the decentralization, settlement, and the security of Bitcoin itself.
The yield model is designed to outlast its own bootstrap phase. Economic activity across Stacks, powered by STX, generates fees that fund miner rewards. Miners spend Bitcoin to win those fees and secure the network, and that Bitcoin flows back into the staker pool, where the base yield originates. As more capital moves through the ecosystem, the yield shifts from relying on emissions to running on real economic activity.
Stacking DAO is well positioned to bring stBTC to market. The team has run STX Stacking infrastructure for over 2 years, managing over $150m of peak staked capital for 40,000+ stakers without a security incident. That track record is what makes Stacking DAO the team building the liquid staking layer for Bitcoin on Stacks now.
stBTC is expected to launch just before Stacks’ Bitcoin Staking release. Bitcoin holders will be able to stake BTC, receive stBTC, and begin earning yield directly through Stacking DAO at stackingdao.com.
About Stacking DAO
Stacking DAO is the STX Stacking infrastructure powerhouse for the most prominent Bitcoin L2. Users can learn more at stackingdao.com
About Stacks
Stacks is the leading Bitcoin layer by BTC deployed, providing infrastructure for a growing range of Bitcoin-native applications. The network enables Bitcoin-native financial applications, from lending and borrowing to autonomous AI agents, all settled with Bitcoin finality. Users can learn more at stacks.co
Stacks představil USDCx, první stablecoin krytý USDC podle specifikace Circle pro Machine Payments Protocol. Má podpořit standardizované strojové platby na Bitcoinu prostřednictvím Stacks.
Circle just published the official USDC method specification for the Machine Payments Protocol, and Stacks’ USDCx is the first stablecoin built under that framework. The move positions Bitcoin’s leading layer 2 as a hub for standardized machine-to-machine payments, the kind of infrastructure that makes AI agents capable of settling transactions on their own.
What USDCx actually is and how it works USDCx is a stablecoin pegged 1:1 to USDC, fully backed by reserves held in Circle’s xReserve infrastructure. It launched on Stacks mainnet on December 17-18, 2025, with a specific contract ID (SP120SBRBQJ00MCWS7TM5R8WJNTTKD5K0HFRC2CNE.usdcx) that anyone can verify on-chain.
USDCx doesn’t rely on third-party bridges to function. It connects directly with Circle Gateway and CCTP (Cross-Chain Transfer Protocol), which means moving value between chains doesn’t require trusting some random bridge operator with your funds.
The stablecoin maintains its peg near $1 and is actively traded on platforms tracked by CoinGecko. Ethereum bridging was already supported at launch, with plans to expand CCTP network support that kicked off in Q1 2026.
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The machine payments angle The MPP spec is where things get genuinely interesting. The Machine Payments Protocol establishes a standardized way for machines, think AI agents, automated services, and IoT devices, to send and receive payments without human intervention. The MPP spec was published by Circle on June 23, 2026.
USDCx being the first USDC-backed stablecoin under this spec means Stacks is effectively positioning itself as the settlement layer for AI commerce on Bitcoin. Cross-chain machine-to-machine payments on Bitcoin through Stacks are now technically possible.
Ecosystem adoption and DeFi implications Major wallets including Asigna, Fordefi, Leather, and Xverse all adopted USDCx shortly after launch. On the DeFi side, protocols like Zest and Granite integrated the stablecoin, enabling lending, borrowing, and trading with dollar liquidity on Stacks.
For Bitcoin holders specifically, USDCx creates an option that didn’t cleanly exist before: accessing stablecoin functionality without leaving the Bitcoin economy entirely. You can collateralize Bitcoin-backed assets, borrow against them in a dollar-denominated stablecoin, and do it all within an ecosystem that settles on Bitcoin through Stacks’ Proof of Transfer consensus mechanism.
Stacks uses PoX to anchor its security to Bitcoin’s blockchain, and runs Clarity smart contracts, a language designed to be decidable, meaning you can mathematically verify what a contract will do before executing it.
What this means for investors Institutional players care about two things above all else: compliance and security in cross-chain interactions. Circle’s direct involvement through xReserve and CCTP addresses both concerns in ways that third-party wrapped tokens simply cannot. The 1:1 USDC backing, verified through Circle’s own infrastructure rather than an independent bridge, reduces counterparty risk substantially.
Trading volumes and user growth across Stacks DeFi protocols will be the metrics to watch. If USDCx drives meaningful increases in total value locked and daily active users on platforms like Zest and Granite, it validates the thesis that Bitcoin users want native stablecoin liquidity.
The risk worth monitoring is concentration. USDCx’s entire value proposition depends on Circle’s continued support and the stability of the xReserve infrastructure. Any disruption to Circle’s operations, whether regulatory or technical, would cascade directly into USDCx’s functionality.
Disclosure: This article was edited by Editorial Team. For more information on how we create and review content, see our Editorial Policy.
Stacks se zařadil do indexu Coinbase COIN50 a obsadil zhruba 40. místo s váhou 0,04 % a tržní kapitalizací kolem 319,6 milionu USD. Zařazení potvrzuje splnění likviditních a tržních kritérií Coinbase.
Stacks has secured a place in Coinbase’s COIN50 Index, the exchange’s flagship benchmark that tracks the 50 largest and most liquid digital assets. STX sits at roughly the 40th position with an index market cap of around $319.6 million and a weight of 0.04%.
What the COIN50 Index actually is Coinbase launched the COIN50 Index on November 12, 2024, as a transparent benchmark for institutional investors looking to gauge the broader crypto market without manually sorting through thousands of tokens.
The index is weighted heavily toward the obvious giants. Bitcoin commands roughly 50% of the total weight, with Ethereum, XRP, Solana, and even Dogecoin rounding out the top positions. The remaining assets, including STX, occupy the long tail with individually small weightings.
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Coinbase also built a perpetual futures contract tied to the COIN50, giving traders a single instrument to express a view on the entire top-50 basket.
A 0.04% weight means Stacks isn’t moving the needle on any portfolio allocation by itself. But inclusion in the index signals that STX meets Coinbase’s liquidity and market cap thresholds, which are the same filters institutional compliance teams use when deciding what’s investable and what isn’t.
Why Stacks matters in the Bitcoin Layer 2 conversation Stacks occupies an unusual niche. It’s a smart contract platform that settles transactions on Bitcoin, effectively giving Bitcoin programmability without modifying Bitcoin’s base layer. The protocol enables mining rewards, staking, and decentralized applications, all anchored to Bitcoin’s security model. Its flagship product in this regard is sBTC, a Bitcoin-backed asset designed to let holders earn yield while keeping their BTC exposure intact.
The protocol also completed an integration with Fireblocks on June 17, 2026, the institutional custody and settlement platform. That integration matters because Fireblocks is the plumbing behind many of the largest crypto funds and trading desks. If an institution can’t custody an asset through its existing infrastructure, it typically won’t touch it. Fireblocks support removes that friction.
What this means for investors STX’s $319.6 million index market cap makes it one of the smaller constituents in the COIN50. Smaller assets in weighted indexes can get dropped during quarterly rebalances if their market cap or liquidity deteriorates. Staying in the index requires Stacks to maintain its current market position, which is far from guaranteed in a sector where rankings shift quickly.
For traders, the COIN50 inclusion creates a subtle but real liquidity benefit. Index-linked products generate baseline trading volume, and market makers who arbitrage the index against its components will naturally add depth to STX order books.
Disclosure: This article was edited by Editorial Team. For more information on how we create and review content, see our Editorial Policy.
Stacks zveřejnil whitepaper k Bitcoin Stakingu, který má umožnit držitelům BTC získávat výnos v BTC bez bridge, wrapování nebo ztráty úschovy. Mechanismus navazuje na PoX, který od roku 2021 vyplatil přes 4 200 BTC.
Proposed protocol upgrade extends Stacks' live Proof-of-Transfer mechanism to let BTC holders earn native Bitcoin yield without bridging, wrapping, or surrendering custody.
Stacks Labs today published a whitepaper outlining the first self-custodial Bitcoin Staking mechanism generating Bitcoin-native yield. The whitepaper details a proposed upgrade to Stacks’ existing Proof-of-Transfer (PoX) consensus mechanism that enables BTC holders to earn Bitcoin-denominated yield while their Bitcoin remains locked on the L1 under their own keys.
The whitepaper addresses a fundamental gap in the market: Bitcoin represents over $1.3 trillion in idle capital, yet BTC holders have had no path to earn Bitcoin yield on that capital without bridging to another chain, wrapping their BTC, or handing custody to a centralized lender. Existing approaches, including restaking protocols that require moving BTC off L1 or rely on intermediary trust assumptions, leave holders exposed to risks Bitcoin was designed to eliminate. Stacks’ Bitcoin Staking mechanism is the first mechanism where BTC stays on Bitcoin, under the holder's own keys, while generating native Bitcoin yield. The publication follows last week’s launch of the Stacks 2026 roadmap (stacks.co/roadmap), which laid out a three-phase plan for building Bitcoin-native finance. Bitcoin Staking is Phase 1 of that plan: the mechanism that anchors long-term BTC capital on-chain and establishes the economic foundation for the phases that follow, including a 100x throughput increase and a full suite of Bitcoin-native lending, borrowing, and programmable capital products.
The mechanism builds directly on PoX, which has operated in production since January 2021 and distributed more than 4,200 BTC in stacking rewards to date. Bitcoin Staking extends this existing infrastructure.
How It Works
Under Bitcoin Staking, participants form “protocol bonds” where participants pair a BTC timelock on Bitcoin with a corresponding STX lock on Stacks for a 6-month bonding period, targeting a fixed yield subject to the risks inherent to the protocol. The BTC remains on the Bitcoin blockchain, secured by Bitcoin consensus, under participant-controlled keys for the full bonding period.
BTC yield is generated the same way it is today under PoX: Stacks miners bid BTC to compete for STX block rewards and transaction fees. That miner-paid BTC is distributed to eligible participants. Bitcoin Staking changes who is eligible and how rewards are prioritized, not how they are generated.
Bitcoin Staking distributes PoX rewards according to a waterfall structure. Paired BTC-plus-STX positions form the primary tranche and receive the target yield rate for their respective bonds. After protocol bond obligations are met, excess miner revenue is split between STX-only stakers and a reserve fund that buffers payouts when miner revenue falls short.
Phased Rollout
The whitepaper proposes Bitcoin Staking launches in two phases. The first, PoX-5, is a managed bootstrap period expected to run approximately 12 months. During this phase, Stacks Endowment sets capacity and yield parameters and intends to work with a set of institutional partners who have been onboarded ahead of launch. Initial program conditions target 3,000 BTC in capacity at a 3% BTC APY with a 5% minimum STX pairing ratio. Partner onboarding for the bootstrap phase is underway; interested institutions can contact Stacks Endowment directly.
During the bootstrap phase, Bitcoin Staking will progressively decentralize, eventually transitioning to PoX-6, a permissionless consensus-encoded operation. In this phase, a permissionless sealed-bid clearing auction determines capacity allocation while yield rates, and ratio requirements are determined on-chain from miner economics, reserve fund status, and prior-period participation data. This phase is the fully decentralized end state described in the whitepaper.
Both phases require community governance approval through the Stacks Improvement Proposal (SIP) process.
Participation Paths
BTC holders can pair native Bitcoin, timelocked on L1, with STX for full protocol bond participation. sBTC holders, the Bitcoin-backed asset on Stacks, can pair sBTC with STX through L2 smart contracts, enabling pooled participation and DeFi integrations. STX holders can stake without any Bitcoin commitment and receive residual yield as the third tranche of the waterfall. Pooled participation options exist across all paths for smaller holders.
"Bitcoin is the world's most trusted asset precisely because of its design and safety principles on the L1. Bitcoin Staking changes the calculus; holders can now earn yield denominated in BTC, trustlessly, while their Bitcoin stays exactly where it belongs. This whitepaper is the culmination of years of protocol-level work to make Bitcoin programmable without compromising what makes it Bitcoin." — Muneeb Ali, Founder, Stacks.
“Bitcoin holders have been waiting for a way to put their capital to work without giving it up. What we’ve built on Stacks has already distributed over 4,200 BTC in real yield since 2021. Bitcoin Staking takes that proven infrastructure and makes BTC itself the yield-bearing asset, under the holder’s own keys, on Bitcoin. The whitepaper is the technical specification for Phase 1 of what we laid out in the roadmap last week — and the institutional partners we’ve been working with are ready to move.” — Alex Miller, CEO, Stacks Labs.
Availability
The full Bitcoin Staking whitepaper is available today here. The Stacks 2026 roadmap, which provides the broader context for Bitcoin Staking as Phase 1 of the network’s development plan, is available at stacks.co/roadmap. Community discussion and the SIP governance process will follow publication. Technical specifications, implementation documentation, and partner onboarding details will be published in subsequent releases. Institutions interested in participating in the PoX-5 bootstrap program should contact Stacks Endowment at [email protected].
About Stacks
Stacks is the leading Bitcoin layer by BTC deployed, providing infrastructure for a growing range of Bitcoin-native applications. The network enables Bitcoin-native financial applications, from lending and borrowing to autonomous AI agents, all settled with Bitcoin finality. Users can learn more at stacks.co.
Strive koupila dalších 382 BTC za zhruba 30,3 milionu USD a zvýšila své držení na 15 391 BTC. Firma tak patří mezi největší veřejné korporátní držitele Bitcoinu.
Strive, Inc. (Nasdaq: ASST) has acquired an additional 382 bitcoin for approximately $30.3 million, paying an average cost of roughly $79,348 per coin, according to an 8-K filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
The purchase, executed between May 13 and May 18, lifts the Dallas-based Bitcoin treasury and asset management firm’s total holdings to 15,391 BTC — cementing its status as one of the largest public corporate holders of the digital asset.
The latest accumulation adds to a relentless buying streak that has seen Strive grow its treasury by more than 2,200 BTC since January 2026, when the company held 12,798 BTC following its acquisition of Semler Scientific.
The pace has accelerated markedly: in late April, Strive purchased 789 BTC for roughly $61.4 million at an average price of $77,890 per coin, and just weeks later added 444 BTC for $33.9 million at $76,307 per coin, crossing the 15,000 BTC threshold for the first time.
Strive’s bitcoin strategy Alongside the latest purchase, Strive disclosed updated performance figures that underscore its unique approach to capital allocation. The company reported a quarter-to-date BTC Yield of 6.6% and a year-to-date BTC Yield of 18.4% — a proprietary metric that measures the percentage growth of Bitcoin exposure per common share over time, rather than simply the appreciation of BTC’s price.
The firm’s amplification ratio, a measure of how leveraged its Bitcoin exposure is relative to market value of holdings, stands at 44.3%.
That amplification ratio has grown steadily. When Strive held 13,132 BTC in January, its amplification ratio stood at 37.2%, predominantly driven by preferred equity rather than traditional debt. The expansion to 44.3% reflects continued SATA preferred stock issuances, which the company has used to fund Bitcoin purchases without diluting common shareholders in the conventional sense.
Strive also disclosed approximately $87.3 million in cash and cash equivalents, alongside a $49.8 million position in Strategy Inc.’s Variable Rate Series A Perpetual Stretch Preferred Stock (STRC). The company, led by Chairman and CEO Matt Cole, describes Bitcoin as its “hurdle rate” for all capital deployment decisions — framing every acquisition not merely as a treasury move but as a benchmark for long-term shareholder value.
At current market prices, Strive’s 15,391 BTC treasury carries a value approaching $1.2 billion, ranking the firm among the top corporate holders of Bitcoin globally.
Earlier this week, Strive Inc. announced that its SATA preferred stock will become the first U.S.-listed security to pay cash dividends every business day starting June 16, with daily compounding lifting its effective yield to about 13.88%.
The firm also reported a $265.9 million Q1 net loss driven largely by Bitcoin valuation declines, while expanding its holdings to 15,009 BTC and maintaining a debt-free balance sheet, as CEO Matthew Cole positioned the move as a “zero-to-one innovation.”
Micah Zimmerman
Micah first discovered Bitcoin in 2018 but remained a skeptic on the sidelines for too long. Since 2021, he has covered crypto and business and now works as a news reporter for Bitcoin Magazine, based in North Carolina.
UTXO Management patří mezi první institucionální účastníky bitcoinového stakingu na Stacks a chce získávat výnos v BTC bez ztráty self-custody. Cílový výnos protokolu je téměř 3 % ročně.
Bitcoin-native asset management company UTXO Management has become one of the first institutional participants in Bitcoin Staking on the Stacks network, marking a notable shift in how corporate Bitcoin holdings may be used.
The initiative introduces a structure that allows institutions to earn bitcoin-denominated yield without transferring custody or moving assets off the Bitcoin base layer.
For treasury managers holding large BTC reserves, the model presents a new option that preserves core Bitcoin properties while addressing rising pressure to generate returns.
Bitcoin Staking on Stacks requires participants to lock BTC in a Bitcoin timelock alongside a smaller allocation of STX, the Stacks network’s native token, in what the protocol defines as a “protocol bond.”
The BTC remains under the participant’s control throughout the process, while the STX component determines the scale of participation in the system. The initial bonding period is set at six months.
The yield target for the protocol is near 3% annual percentage yield, paid in bitcoin. Unlike lending-based models, the return does not rely on counterparty borrowing. Instead, it is derived from Stacks’ Proof-of-Transfer consensus mechanism.
Under this model, miners bid BTC to secure the right to produce blocks on the Stacks network, and that BTC is distributed to eligible participants, including those engaged in Bitcoin Staking.
Proof-of-Transfer has operated for several years and has distributed more than 4,200 BTC since 2021. Bitcoin Staking builds on this framework, extending its reward structure to a broader class of participants.
The protocol is expected to reach mainnet later this summer, opening with an initial bootstrapping phase managed by the Stacks Endowment.
Staking tradeoffs as bitcoin gains traction The model introduces trade-offs that institutions must evaluate. Participants must hold STX equal to about 5% of the BTC position, which creates exposure to a second asset. The bonded BTC remains illiquid during the lockup period, though an early exit option exists for the BTC portion. Yield levels depend on network dynamics, including miner demand and STX market conditions, which introduces variability.
Despite these factors, UTXO’s participation signals growing institutional interest in productive Bitcoin strategies that maintain self-custody.
The structure avoids lending desks and synthetic wrappers, both of which require relinquishing some control or altering the nature of the underlying asset.
Corporate Bitcoin treasuries have expanded in recent years. The top 100 companies now hold more than 1.2 million BTC, representing about 5% of total supply.
Executives see Bitcoin Staking as a response to that scrutiny. Tyler Evans, Chief Investment Officer of Nakamoto and UTXO, described the model as a way to generate yield while preserving Bitcoin’s settlement and custody features.
Stacks founder Muneeb Ali framed the development as a step toward transforming idle Bitcoin into productive capital within a secure framework.
Disclaimer: Bitcoin Magazine is published by BTC Inc, a subsidiary of Nakamoto Inc. UTXO Management is also a subsidiary of Nakamoto Inc. (NASDAQ: NAKA)
Micah Zimmerman
Micah first discovered Bitcoin in 2018 but remained a skeptic on the sidelines for too long. Since 2021, he has covered crypto and business and now works as a news reporter for Bitcoin Magazine, based in North Carolina.
Fireblocks integroval síť Stacks a otevřel Bitcoin DeFi více než 2 400 institucionálním klientům. Získají podporu úschovy STX i možnost mintovat a bridgeovat sBTC.
Fireblocks, the institutional crypto infrastructure platform that processes more than $5 trillion in digital asset transfers annually, has integrated the Stacks Bitcoin Layer 2 network. The move opens Bitcoin DeFi services to more than 2,400 institutional clients who previously had no streamlined way to access them.
The Fireblocks-Stacks integration covers several key capabilities. Institutional clients get custody support for STX tokens, plus the ability to mint and bridge sBTC, the synthetic Bitcoin asset that operates on the Stacks network.
From there, clients can access DeFi protocols built on Stacks, including Hermetica, Zest/Granite, and Bitflow. These protocols span lending, token swaps, and yield generation.
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One of Stacks’ selling points for institutional users is speed. The network processes transactions with roughly 5-second block times, compared to Bitcoin’s average of about 10 minutes. For institutions executing complex DeFi strategies, that difference matters.
The integration was announced in early February 2026, with full functionality expected by the end of Q1 2026.
Why institutions care about Bitcoin DeFi now Bitcoin’s base layer wasn’t designed for smart contracts. Layer 2 solutions like Stacks exist specifically to bridge that gap, adding programmability on top of Bitcoin’s security model. But even with Layer 2 solutions available, institutions faced a second barrier: custody and compliance. A hedge fund or asset manager can’t just connect a MetaMask wallet to a DeFi protocol and start yield farming. They need enterprise-grade custody, audit trails, regulatory compliance frameworks, and counterparty risk management. That’s exactly what Fireblocks provides.
Broader context and competitive positioning Stacks has also established partnerships with BitGo and Circle, two other heavyweight names in institutional crypto infrastructure. BitGo provides custody and liquidity services to institutional investors. Circle is the issuer of USDC, the second-largest stablecoin by market cap. Together with Fireblocks, these partnerships form a triangle of institutional credibility that few Bitcoin Layer 2 competitors can match.
For investors watching this space, the key metric to track isn’t the integration announcement itself but what happens to total value locked on Stacks-based DeFi protocols over the coming quarters. If institutional capital actually flows through Fireblocks into protocols like Hermetica, Zest/Granite, and Bitflow, it would validate the thesis that Bitcoin DeFi can attract serious money, not just crypto-native capital.
Disclosure: This article was edited by Editorial Team. For more information on how we create and review content, see our Editorial Policy.
Stacks Endowment otevřel žádosti o Q2 2026 Builder Grants pro bitcoinové vývojáře, uzávěrka je 26. června a rozhodnutí padnou do 1. července. Program cílí na finance nativní pro Bitcoin.
Bitcoin builders have a three-week window to pitch their projects for funding. The Stacks Endowment opened applications for its Q2 2026 Builder Grants on June 5, with the deadline set for June 26 and funding decisions expected by July 1.
The grant program is specifically focused on what the Endowment calls “Bitcoin-native finance,” a category that spans decentralized finance protocols, perpetual contracts, real-world asset tokenization, agentic applications, and privacy-enhancing tools.
What’s on the table Previous 2026 grant cycles offered two distinct tracks. Builder Grants provided up to $50K for established teams with proven track records. Getting Started Grants offered up to $10K for early-stage projects still finding their footing.
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Applications close June 26, and funding decisions land by July 1. That’s a five-day review window.
The Stacks Endowment recently received a 25 million STX donation through SIP-031, which significantly bolsters its capacity to fund builders across the ecosystem.
Why Bitcoin Layer 2 development matters right now Stacks positions itself as a leading Bitcoin Layer 2 solution, enabling smart contracts and DeFi functionality that settle directly on Bitcoin.
What this means for investors The Stacks Endowment’s mission is to manage the ecosystem’s long-term treasury and allocate capital toward sustainable growth. The 25 million STX donation through SIP-031 signals that the broader Stacks community is willing to put real resources behind this strategy.
Builders interested in applying have until June 26 to submit their proposals. The rapid funding timeline, with decisions by July 1, means approved teams could be deploying capital before most traditional venture processes even schedule their first call.
Disclosure: This article was edited by Editorial Team. For more information on how we create and review content, see our Editorial Policy.
Peněženka spojená s Arthurem Hayesem podle Lookonchain vybrala z Gate $2,93 milionu v HYPE. Za dvě poslední obchody údajně vydělala dohromady $508 000.
Wallet Pulls $2.93M in HYPE from GateA wallet linked to BitMEX co-founder Arthur Hayes (@CryptoHayes) withdrew $2.93 million worth of $HYPE from Gate exchange on June 23, according to on-chain analytics platform Lookonchain. The move marks the second time in two weeks the address has accumulated Hyperliquid's native token, with the two trades together generating a combined $508,000 in profit.
The wallet, identified by the address prefix 0xf7A4, has drawn consistent attention from on-chain analysts throughout 2026. As with all on-chain wallet attributions, the link to Hayes is based on analyst clustering methodology and has not been independently confirmed by Hayes himself.
A Pattern of HYPE Swing TradesThe latest buy is the most recent chapter in a busy stretch of activity tied to this address. Earlier reporting from Bitcoin.com News documented that the same wallet had deposited 115,453 HYPE worth $6.33 million into Bybit, a move later confirmed as a sale at an average of $54.81 per token. The wallet then withdrew 85,714 HYPE from Bybit at $62.69 per token, roughly three hours before that analysis was published, locking in a gain on the round trip.
Separately, in early June, Lookonchain flagged a $2.09 million HYPE withdrawal from Bybit tied to the same address. Hayes publicly denied that transaction, writing on X that he had not made the purchase. The denial came days after he disclosed exiting his entire HYPE position at prices above $72, citing macro concerns including rising energy costs and expected pressure from large AI IPOs.
Hyperliquid itself remains one of the stronger-performing assets in crypto this year. The platform operates a fully on-chain perpetual futures exchange and has cleared around $40 billion in weekly perp volume, according to CoinDesk. $HYPE hit an all-time high of $76.85 on June 16, 2026, per CoinMarketCap data, before pulling back toward current levels.
Whether the 0xf7A4 wallet represents Hayes personally or another party operating within the same cluster remains unverified. Traders will likely keep watching the address closely given its track record of well-timed entries and exits in HYPE.
Sources:
CoinDesk: Hyperliquid pulls back as Arthur Hayes exits position
Bitcoin.com News: Arthur Hayes HYPE wallet activity breakdown
CoinMarketCap: Hyperliquid (HYPE) price and market data
Útočník ALEX Protocol už přesunul ukradené prostředky přes více než 9 700 on-chain transakcí a vytvořil přes 4 700 adres. Většina CEX údajně prostředky zmrazila.
Fast-growing Bitcoin (BTC)-based layer two (L2) protocol bridge ALEX Lab (ALEX), has issued a security update following its recent breach that resulted in a $4.3 million loss. According to the announcement on the X platform, the Alex protocol attacker has so far managed more than 9,700 on-chain transactions as of Monday.
The ALEX protocol attacker created more than 4,700 unique addresses in the past seven days to enable a stealthy transfer of the stolen funds.
“The number of traceable transactions started to grow exponentially from 300 to 9600+ and this has been accelerating without sign of pause,” the company noted.
According to on-chain data analysis, the ALEX protocol attacker has been transferring small amounts of Stacks (STX) tokens to thousands of new addresses, which are later transferred to centralized exchanges (CEX).
However, the Alex protocol’s team indicated that the majority of the CEXs have frozen the stolen funds, thus preventing the attacker from gaining access. Nevertheless, the attacker is likely to use different crypto mixers available in the market to evade being identified, despite the Alex protocol team highlighting that the hacker is already doxxed.
As of this report, the attacker’s CEX balance was about 8,373,587 STX tokens. Additionally, the ALEX Lab attacker’s on-chain balance was about 5,560,332 STX tokens, which is calculated based on wallet balances above 100 STX units.
ALEX Protocol Attack and Market Outlook In a bid to find an amicable resolution, the ALEX Lab team has offered the attacker a bounty reward of 10 percent, but the offer has since expired. Furthermore, the Alex exploiter is determined to liquidate as much stolen funds as possible through sophisticated manipulations.
The ALEX protocol on the other hand is fighting to reimburse all affected individuals that impacted certain liquidity pools.
Moreover, the protocol has notable financial backing from reputable Web3 investors such as Gemini, Tribe Capital, GSR Ventures, and White Star Capital. In early 2021, ALEX Protocol raised $5.8 million to expand its developers and user experience team.
Following the announcement, the ALEX token has dropped more than 44 percent in the past seven days to trade around $0.09922 at the time of this report. The small-cap altcoin has a fully diluted valuation of around $99 million and a daily average traded volume of about $3.2 million.
On the other hand, the Stacks (STX) price dropped over 5 percent in the last 24 hours to trade around $1.80 at the time of this reporting.
Unless the ALEX protocol attacker is held accountable soon, the underlying value of both tokens will continue in a market correction.
Disclaimer: Coinspeaker is committed to providing unbiased and transparent reporting. This article aims to deliver accurate and timely information but should not be taken as financial or investment advice. Since market conditions can change rapidly, we encourage you to verify information on your own and consult with a professional before making any decisions based on this content.
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Stacks aktivoval Nakamoto Upgrade, který přináší finalitu Bitcoinu do sítě a zkracuje vypořádání na zhruba pět sekund. STX při tom klesl o 8,5 % na 1,59 USD.
The Stacks (STX) protocol has initiated the Nakamoto Upgrade, which introduces Bitcoin (BTC) finality to its network. Over the next 21 days, the ecosystem is set to experience a range of activities linked to this significant upgrade.
Stacks is one of the largest Bitcoin Layer-2 (L2) networks by market capitalization. Earlier this year, the STX community approved the Nakamoto upgrade, aiming to make the network faster and enhance block times.
Bitcoin L2 Stacks Initiates Nakamoto UpgradeThe Nakamoto Upgrade marks a new era of scalability for decentralized finance (DeFi) within the Bitcoin ecosystem and is one of the most significant changes to the Stacks network. Activated on Wednesday, this upgrade enhances transaction speeds and reduces settlement times.
Bitcoin’s standard settlement times previously ranged from 10 to 30 minutes or more. The Nakamoto Upgrade has slashed this to around five seconds—a 10X improvement that significantly boosts the Stacks network’s usability.
The upgrade received strong community support earlier this year and sets the stage for several key developments in the Stacks ecosystem. One of the major upcoming events is the introduction of sBTC, a decentralized asset backed 1:1 by Bitcoin.
Stacks is specifically designed to enable smart contracts and dApps to use Bitcoin as a secure base layer. By extending Bitcoin’s capabilities without altering it, Stacks unlocks billions in latent capital, allowing for a more dynamic and functional ecosystem.
Read more: A Beginner’s Guide to Layer-2 Scaling Solutions
The Nakamoto Upgrade comes as projects built atop the Stacks blockchain endured less-than-desirable speeds. These slow transaction times negatively impacted the user experience, making it challenging to support high-volume use cases and limiting developers from delivering complex DeFi products.
Despite the positive changes brought by the upgrade, which began on Wednesday, the total value locked (TVL) on the Stacks network has decreased by over $7 million, dropping from $98.10 million to $90.62 million. This decline in TVL suggests that the upgrade’s immediate impact on market confidence was mixed, even as the network undergoes notable improvements.
Stacks TVL. Source: DefiLlamaBeInCrypto data shows STX, the native token of the Stacks network, is trading for $1.59 at press time, down 8.5% since Thursday session openned.
Bitcoin L2s Could Initiate New WaveBitcoin L2 solutions are progressively gaining popularity, and have attracted significant investment. As BeInCrypto previously reported, VC funding towards Bitcoin L2s continues to grow, collectively raising an impressive $94.6 million in the second quarter of 2024.
This represents a substantial 174% increase quarter-over-quarter. Experts also revealed that at least 65 projects identified themselves as Bitcoin Layer-2.
“The crypto industry is catching on to the fact that much of what is done on alternative blockchains can be built on top of Bitcoin. Fortune 500 companies like MicroStrategy are tailoring their entire business towards Bitcoin’s Layer-2. Layer-2 faces no more regulations than other crypto platforms. The only challenges are technical, and the brightest minds are being pulled towards Bitcoin along with nation-states, etc,” Manuel Ferrari, Money On Chain Co-Founder, told BeInCrypto.
Read more: Beginner’s Tutorial to Start Using the Lightning Network
There is also speculation that L2s could spark a new bullish wave for Bitcoin, especially as the focus on scaling increases. This rising demand might lead to capital rotation, with overflow potentially moving into Layer-2 tokens like STX, Elastos (ELA), SatoshiVM (SVM), and BVM (BVM).
