Coinspeaker
Bitcoin Developers Introduce Whitepaper for BitVM2
Bitcoin scaling developers have unveiled a new Whitepaper on the second version of Bitcoin Virtual Machine, BitVM2. It also comes with the updated BitVM Bridge, touted as the most secure BTC bridge design. According to co-author Alexei Zamyatin, co-founder of Bitcoin sidechain BOB, this latest version is an improvement from the previous BitVM versions.
Improving on Existing Bitcoin BitVM
Zamyatin believes that this latest whitepaper is the most comprehensive documentation of the BitVM2 design. It includes details of the updated efforts to enhance the efficiency of transactions within the Bitcoin network. The team facilitated improvements in transaction handling capabilities and updated cryptographic methods to achieve this.
Noteworthy, the lead of the ZeroSync project and creator of BitVM, Robin Linus, first introduced BitVM in October of last year. He published the paper titled “Compute anything on Bitcoin” precisely on October 09, 2023. From conception, the BitVM project attempts to introduce smart contracts on the Bitcoin network through a second layer.
According to the document, BitVM2’s main aim is increasing Bitcoin’s transaction capacity. It does this without modifying its core code or principles, such as decentralization. The document explains that BitVM2 leverages optimistic computation to scale Bitcoin with sidechains.
For context, BitVM2 acts on the assumption that the operators of such networks are honest. It does not believe otherwise until challengers demonstrate a different sentiment using fraud proofs. According to the whitepaper, another addition to the BitVM2 is a permissionless system. This provides users with the backing to challenge suspicious transactions.
This feature is a significant departure from the previous version, which limited challenge rights to designated parties. The other improvements to the BitVM Bridge are reduced capital requirements and shorter asset lock-up periods. These enhancements are critical to transferring Bitcoin to and from rollups, secondary networks that facilitate faster and less costly transactions on the Bitcoin network.
In summary, Zamyatin noted that the team will keep improving the design of the BitVM Bridge. They intend to enhance our formal security proofs, improve light clients, and further reduce on-chain costs. There is also a plan to expand light clients to sidechains and other consensus models.
Bitcoin Mining Sees Performance Relapse
In other related Bitcoin news, Bitcoin mining rigs and firms did not make as much profit for their operation in July as they did the previous month. Investment banking giant Jefferies discovered that this coincided with when the price of the world’s largest cryptocurrency fell over 6%, and the network hashrate remained stable.
As a result, Jefferies cut its price target for one of the most prominent players in this field, Marathon Digital Holdings Inc (NASDAQ: MARA), to $17 from $22. This recent cut came after cutting it to $22 from $24 in June. It already appears that August would not perform as well as July considering the current market outlook.
