TBTC is a fully Bitcoin-backed ERC-20 token pegged to the price of Bitcoin that can be used to act on and access the decentralized finance (DeFi) ecosystem. tBTC is an open-source project supported by groups including Keep, Summa and the Cross-Chain Group.
tBTC is trustless, using a random beacon to select “signers” who have responsibility for the deposited BTC. People can convert tBTC to BTC, and vice-versa, with no intermediary needed to sign off.
Launched in September 2020, tBTC uses a threshold ECDSA, which is audited and in use on existing wallets and exchanges. Via Nexus Mutual, there are protections of funds covering issues in Solidity on Ethereum. To date, tBTC has undergone three audits, by ConsenSys Diligence, Trail of Bits, and Sergei Delgado.
Bitcoin accounts for nearly 60% of the total crypto market cap. It is widely known and held across all audiences and customer segments, making it essential to the long-term growth of the decentralized economy.
For DeFi to succeed as a true alternative to the existing financial system, bitcoin holders need a safe, decentralized, permissionless way to access Ethereum.
That is the reason tBTC was built.