The potential deployment on a Bitcoin layer 2 by the largest DeFi lending protocol highlights the appetite for harnessing the original blockchain for purposes that are commonplace elsewhere in the crypto ecosystem.

Updated Nov 15, 2024, 9:54 a.m. Published Nov 15, 2024, 9:51 a.m.

• Aave is gauging the interest of its community for deployment on Bitcoin layer-2 network Spiderchain.
• Spiderchain's builder, Botanix Labs, developed the blockchain to be compatible with other networks that use EVM, the software that powers Ethereum and enables smart contracts.

Aave, the largest decentralized-finance (DeFi) lending platform, is canvassing its community to gauge the level of interest in deploying on the Bitcoin layer-2 network Spiderchain.

The Aave-Chain Initiative (ACI), the driving force behind the protocol, published a call for comments on the proposal by Spiderchain developer Botanix Labs to expand the lender with more than $17 billion in total value locked into the emerging Bitcoin DeFi environment.

The idea of deploying on a Bitcoin layer 2 highlights the appetite for bringing functionality that is common elsewhere in the crypto ecosystem to the original blockchain. The bitcoin (BTC) price soared above $90,000 for the first time this week, reaching an all-time high of $93,445, as its dominance of the crypto industry reached 61.38%. Developers of projects native to other networks may be seeking to harness the deep reserves that are held in BTC.

Botanix Labs developed Spiderchain to be compatible with protocols that use Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM), the software that powers Ethereum and enables smart contracts. Botanix's goal is to allow any Ethereum-based application to be compatible with Bitcoin.

After feedback is gathered, the protocol will need to identify and mitigate potential security risks. ACI hasn't offered any expected timescale for this process.

Aave's native token (AAVE) has fallen just under 8% in the last 24 hours to just under $168, according to CoinDesk Indices. This drop is likely a reflection of the broad pullback across the crypto industry following BTC's surge above $90,000 on Wednesday.

Read More: Chainlink Expands to Bitcoin, Helping Original Blockchain With Its Layer-2 Shift