Starknet Integrates Bitcoin Staking
Starknet, an Ethereum layer 2 scaling network, has added Bitcoin staking to its ecosystem. Bitcoin (BTC) holders can now join Starknet’s decentralized finance (DeFi) space. The integration allows Bitcoin stakers to participate in Starknet consensus and earn STRK token rewards. The upgrade was completed on September 15, 2025. Reward distribution will start on September 30, 2025.
Starknet supports four major Bitcoin-wrapped tokens for staking:
- Wrapped BTC (WBTC)
- Lightning Bitcoin (LBTC)
- Threshold Network’s tBTC
- Solv Protocol’s SolvBTC
Additional Bitcoin wrappers will be added through governance decisions.
Consensus Power and Staking Benefits
Bitcoin stakers hold 25% of the consensus power on Starknet. STRK token holders maintain the remaining 75%. This update allows validators to create BTC liquidity pools. Other DeFi projects can now use Starknet’s Bitcoin staking infrastructure.
Starknet announced that the Bitcoin unstaking period will be seven days. This is shorter than the typical 15 to 21 days on other platforms.
Bitcoin’s Growing Role in DeFi
Bitcoin has been mostly separate from Ethereum-based DeFi due to technical limits. Token wrapping and Bitcoin-specific layer 2 networks have helped bridge this gap. Starknet’s total value locked (TVL) currently stands at $155.66 million. The new Bitcoin staking feature is expected to attract more funds to Starknet’s DeFi ecosystem.
