A blockchain developer is set to fork the BRC-20 token standard to introduce decentralized finance capabilities to the Bitcoin network.
A blockchain developer under the alias Mikael.btc, best known as the creator of the BRC-100 token standard, wants to fork BRC-20 in an effort to deploy a new protocol designed to bring decentralized finance to the Bitcoin (BTC) network.
In an August 9 post on X, the developer outlined his plans for the fork, noting that the upgrade would address key limitations of the BRC-20 standard, including its “lack of programmability,” scalability challenges, and lack of defi infrastructure.
According to Mikael.btc, the new protocol will leverage technologies such as registrations – used to add metadata to Bitcoin sats – and OP_RETURN – a script that allows data to be stored in transactions – to enhance Bitcoin’s functionality, allowing users to access decentralized finance.
“Each BRC-20 token will be paired with a BRC-100 token with the same ticker and supply. 100% of the new BRC-100 token will be distributed to holders of the original BRC-20 token, with exactly the same amount as the holdings on BRC-20.”
Mikael.btc
After the fork, BRC-20 token holders will automatically receive equivalent assets on the BRC-100 protocol, the developer added. However, those holding BRC-20 tokens on centralized exchanges will have to wait for the exchanges to distribute the newly forked assets.
The push for defi on the Bitcoin network gained momentum recently after a research report from Pantera Capital, a cryptocurrency venture capital firm, projected that the Bitcoin-based defi ecosystem could attract hundreds of billions of dollars in liquidity via web3 protocols, implying that Bitcoin’s defi sector could reach a market share comparable to Ethereum’s.
