Circle Launches cirBTC, a Wrapped Bitcoin Alternative for Ethereum

Circle has announced the launch of cirBTC, a wrapped Bitcoin alternative designed to facilitate the use of Bitcoin in decentralized finance (DeFi) applications on Ethereum mainnet and Arc blockchain. The move aims to provide institutions and investors with a reliable and trustworthy way to utilize their Bitcoin holdings.

The new token will be backed 1:1 by native on-chain Bitcoin reserves, ensuring that users can trust the value of their assets. This approach is in contrast to existing wrapped Bitcoin products like WBTC and cbBTC, which have faced controversy over their partnerships and regulatory issues.