OP_NET is launching a protocol designed to bring decentralized finance natively to Bitcoin, enabling trading and token issuance through standard Bitcoin transactions. Co-founder Chad Master says existing solutions are largely extractive, routing liquidity away from Bitcoin through sidechains or synthetic assets like Wrapped BTC.
The protocol embeds smart contract data inside ordinary Bitcoin transactions confirmed by miners. A network of nodes scans Bitcoin blocks for contract-related data and executes associated logic through a virtual machine, comparing results across nodes to maintain consensus.
Co-founder and CEO Danny Plainview says the project builds on concepts that emerged during the rise of Bitcoin Ordinals in 2023. Unlike Ordinals-based systems, OP_NET introduces a consensus mechanism among indexers that requires no separate gas token — all fees are paid in Bitcoin.
Originally reported by Decrypt.
