Stacks is a layer‑2 protocol that anchors to Bitcoin using Proof‑of‑Transfer, enabling developers to write secure smart contracts in the Clarity language and deploy DeFi, NFT, and other Web3 applications that inherit Bitcoin’s immutability. The platform introduces sBTC, a fully collateralized Bitcoin‑backed token, and a suite of composable protocols such as Zest, BitFlow, Hermetica, and Gamma, providing liquidity, lending, trading, and synthetic assets on a Bitcoin‑secured base layer.
Funding
$93.8M raised to dateRaised to date based on public sources. This may differ from the amount the company actually raised and is based only on what is publicly available on the internet.
+8Founders
Product
Problem
Bitcoin’s base layer offers strong security but lacks native smart‑contract functionality, limiting developers from building decentralized finance, NFTs, and other Web3 applications directly on Bitcoin.
Solution
Stacks is a layer‑2 protocol that anchors to Bitcoin via Proof‑of‑Transfer, allowing developers to write smart contracts in the Clarity language and deploy decentralized applications that inherit Bitcoin’s security and finality. The platform introduces sBTC, a 1:1 Bitcoin‑backed asset, enabling trustless movement of BTC between Bitcoin L1 and Stacks L2 for liquidity, lending, and trading. Stacks provides a suite of developer tools, documentation, and community resources to streamline onboarding and production deployment. Integrated protocols such as Zest (lending), BitFlow (DEX), Hermetica (synthetic dollar), and Gamma (NFT marketplace) illustrate the ecosystem’s composability. By leveraging Bitcoin’s network effects, Stacks enables secure, permissionless financial products and services without altering Bitcoin’s core protocol.
Target Audience
Primary customers are blockchain developers and startups seeking to build DeFi, NFT, or other decentralized applications on Bitcoin, as well as crypto‑native businesses that require secure, Bitcoin‑backed assets and composable protocol components.
Features
- Proof‑of‑Transfer consensus that links Stacks blocks to Bitcoin, inheriting Bitcoin’s immutability and censorship resistance
- Clarity smart‑contract language with formal verification for predictable, secure on‑chain logic
- sBTC, a fully collateralized Bitcoin‑backed token that bridges BTC to the Stacks layer for DeFi use cases
- Built‑in protocol suite (Zest lending, BitFlow DEX, Hermetica synthetic assets, Gamma NFT marketplace) for rapid composability
- Open‑source SDKs, tutorials, and a developer portal that simplify contract development, testing, and deployment
- Compatibility with popular Bitcoin wallets (Xverse, Leather, Asigna) and Ledger hardware for secure user interaction
- Community governance via Stacks Improvement Proposals (SIPs) allowing token holders to shape protocol upgrades