INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Crypto exchange Kraken has launched a new Bitcoin staking product through a protocol integration with Babylon Labs.In a Thursday
announcement, Kraken said it has partnered with the Bitcoin (BTC) staking protocol Babylon
lending.Kraken customers can use the service starting today by staking their Bitcoin without interacting with off-exchange wallets
The Bitcoin is locked in a vault on the Bitcoin blockchain and delegated to secure proof-of-stake (PoS) networks through the Babylon
The BABY price has increased by nearly 5% since the announcement, according to CoinMarketCap.Related: Babylon total value locked drops 32%
as wallets unstake $1.2B in Bitcoin24-hour BABY price chart
token airdropBTCFi sees a renaissanceBTCFi describes financial projects built on top of Bitcoin
(USDT) stablecoin, before Ethereum was created.Still, BTCFi mostly refers to recent projects, such as Babylon
Babylon is a Bitcoin-secured network that enables Bitcoin holders to stake BTC natively, without wrapping or bridging, to secure PoS
blockchains while maintaining control over their assets.Staking occurs via time-locked scripts and without the need for intermediaries
Rewards are derived from an 8% annual inflation, with 4% allocated to BTC stakers and 4% to BABY stakers
BABY can be spent on transaction fees and enables holders to vote on protocol changes.Other examples of BTCFi include layer-2 blockchains
built on Bitcoin Stacks, Ethereum virtual machine-compatible Bitcoin sidechains Rootstock and the Liquid Network, as well as the scalability
solution Lightning Network paired with a tokenization layer, Taproot Assets.Early May reports indicate that smart contract platform
Rootstock saw a sharp increase in network security and mining engagement in the first quarter of 2025
Research released in April by leading crypto exchange Binance showed that the value locked in Bitcoin-based decentralized finance has surged
