Near Targets Bitcoin Interoperability With Aurora Light Client

A growing number of smart contract networks are looking to tap into Bitcoin’s growing DeFi and asset ecosystem.

On Aug. 13, Aurora Labs launched a Bitcoin light client and relayer, paving the way for interoperability between Near Protocol, a Layer 1 network, and Bitcoin for the first time.

The light client comprises a smart contract on Near, allowing native decentralized applications to access the state of the Bitcoin network and verify Bitcoin transactions. The relayer service ensures that Aurora’s light client remains synchronized with the Bitcoin network, continually updating the contract with Bitcoin’s latest transactions.

“The integration paves the way for new DeFi use cases and expands web3 interoperability,” Aurora Labs said. “The launch of the Bitcoin Light Client is a crucial step towards achieving a unified web3 experience, allowing assets to move seamlessly between Bitcoin and Near.”

The deployments follow Proximity Labs launching a chain signature service for Near last week. Chain signatures enable developers to create native Bitcoin bridges that allow BTC to move to and from the Near network.

“The BTC light client is a critical part of the Bitcoin stack that NEAR now enables,” said Kendall Cole, Proximity Labs’ founder. “When combined with chain signatures, developers will be able to create an entirely new set of applications for Bitcoin users, including money markets, DEXs, launchpads, stablecoins, and more, all with seamless user experiences.”

Aurora said the light client comprises the foundation for a future bridge allowing Bitcoin assets to move onto the Near network.

“In addition to making BTC available on NEAR, the bridge will allow Rune and Ordinals to be integrated and open the door for the creation of new DeFi applications that combine the best of Bitcoin and Near,” Aurora said.

Aurora Labs handed control over the light client to Near One, a research and development team building infrastructure for Near.

The price of NEAR is trending sideways, last changing hands for $3.97 after gaining 0.2% in the past 24 hours.

Bitcoin’s DeFi ecosystem expands

The news follows a strong year for Bitcoin’s DeFi ecosystem, with total value locked (TVL) on the network sitting at $630.4 million after growing 92% since the year began, according to DeFi Llama. Bitcoin’s TVL peaked above $1.13 billion in early June.

Bitcoin’s sidechain and Layer 2 ecosystems have also performed well, currently boasting a $1.57 billion TVL. The rise has been buoyed by the growth of Bitlayer, BounceBit, Merlin Chain, Stacks, and Rootstock,

In response, smart contract networks are seeking to boast interoperability with Bitcoin and Bitcoin-based assets.

In April, Omnity, an Internet Computer Protocol (ICP)-based interoperability protocol, integrated support for Runes, the popular inscription standard for creating Bitcoin-based fungible tokens.

Omntiy allows Bitcoin-based assets to move between Internet Computer and Bitcoin without using trusted asset wrappers or centralized bridging services.