Smart contracts might soon be available on the Bitcoin blockchain
A recent the integration could soon usher in smart contracts on the Bitcoin blockchain. In a three-phase process, Internet Computer (ICP) is working on direct integration with the Bitcoin blockchain.
The Internet Computer is a blockchain computer that scales smart contract computation and data and runs them at web speed. It was launched by DFINITY into the public domain on May 10, 2021.
ICP, the native Internet Computer token, ranks 27th among the largest cryptocurrencies according to data from CoinMarketCap and trades at $ 32.48. Taking cues from Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin, who believes “the future will be multi-chain, but it will NOT be cross-chain,” Dfinity says direct integration is next-level crypto.
The first phase of the integration, referred to as Threshold ECDSA, is a prerequisite for BTC-ICP direct integration for both networks to talk to one another as an ICP smart contract needs an ECDSA public key and to securely sign and submit transactions to BTC.
The next two phases are the launch of the test network and the BTC-ICP backbone, respectively.
Bitcoin taproot upgrade unlocks smart contracts potential
Bitcoin’s taproot upgrade was activated in November 2021. The Taproot update sought to enable greater transaction privacy and efficiency and, most importantly, to unlock the potential for smart contracts, which can be used to eliminate middlemen from transactions.
Much of Bitcoin’s metamorphosis has to do with digital signatures, which are like the fingerprints an individual leaves with every transaction. Schnorr signatures were added to the taproot upgrade, essentially making multi-signature transactions unreadable.
