Enabling DeFi for Bitcoin: An interview with Mintlayer co-founder Enrico Rubboli

Mintlayer is a layer 2 protocol that permits customers to construct a decentralized finance ecosystem rooted within the established community of the Bitcoin blockchain. Mintlayer is the one DeFi platform that’s instantly interoperable with native Bitcoin.

In an interview with co-founder Enrico Rubboli, we talked concerning the imaginative and prescient behind Mintlayer, its use instances, its current token launch, and what’s forward.

1. What was the imaginative and prescient behind creating Mintlayer?

The imaginative and prescient behind Mintlayer was to repair the issues that current DeFi ecosystems have in regard to tapping the liquidity within the Bitcoin community. We simply didn’t suppose that anybody went about it the suitable method so as an alternative of complaining we determined to make it ourselves. 

2. How is Mintlayer enabling DeFi for Lightning Community and Bitcoin?

We’re constructing a layer 2 community that’s as interoperable with Bitcoin (and by extension the Lightning Community) as attainable. By adopting a UTXO accounting system, being turing incomplete, and designing Mintlayer to not solely be appropriate with the know-how however with the mission of the Bitcoin group. We made the node environment friendly sufficient that it may be run on a mean desktop pc within the background, and we don’t require customers to pay charges in ML tokens. These features had been vital to assist democratize the consumer base.

3. Speak to us concerning the use instances related to the Mintlayer platform?

Sooner or later, we see a whole lot of potential use instances concerned with initiatives which can be developed on the Mintlayer platform. We will energy mainly any DeFi utility. Mintlayer additionally has an NFT token commonplace already out there.

In a shorter timeframe, Mintlayer is about as much as provide safety tokens with our entry management lists, privateness tokens with our MLS-02 privateness token, and with Lightning Community integration we’re able to establishing a DEX that converts funds nearly immediately. With this tech, it is possible for you to to pay in your espresso with Bitcoin and the espresso store will get a US Greenback stablecoin. 

4. What makes the platform stand out from the remainder within the crypto area? 

The principle factor is that we’re constructing round the most well-liked on-line foreign money, which can also be the biggest pool of liquidity within the crypto sector. In contrast to different DeFi initiatives, you need to use native Bitcoin through atomic swap to commerce for any token on the Mintlayer blockchain. One other nice function is that we now have a free price system, which means blocksigners can select which tokens they’ll settle for. 

5. What’s the Atomic Swap? Please focus on with us its options and features.

An atomic swap is an change of cryptocurrencies between two separate blockchains. It permits you to take away third-party involvement and the necessity for pegged tokens. It really works by making a hashed timelock contract (HTLC) that reverts if all situations of the contract aren’t met inside a specified time interval, the identical sort of contract used to facilitate the Lightning Community. Atomic swaps permit customers to make use of their native Bitcoin in DeFi functions with out compromising custody.  This know-how is on the core of Mintlayer’s imaginative and prescient for a DeFi platform that may leverage Bitcoin with the least quantity of friction. 

6. How are you addressing privateness and safety considerations related to the platform?

First, we’re utilizing applied sciences which have already confirmed to be very safe. UTXO, Verifiable random features, atomic swaps. The idea of the Mintlayer blockchain makes regular transactions more durable to trace and establish than on different blockchains. When you actually need privateness, our MLS-02 token presents full privateness. Privateness is a giant promoting level for the blockchain because it stands. 

7. Inform us extra concerning the token launch? What’s ML?

Our token launch occasion is scheduled for March 21. Customers that chosen an ERC20 token will get their tokens then. It’s an enormous occasion as a result of it’ll usher in some change listings, and assist unfold the phrase about our undertaking. ML is our newly renamed native token. 

8. What are the functions of ML within the platform’s ecosystem?

There are 3 phases of utility for the ML token. Throughout the testnet ML tokens can be utilized to buy companies from RBB Lab. It will assist early builders get forward. Throughout the first iteration of the mainnet, ML will likely be required for all transaction charges. Builders will have the ability to use ML to execute sensible contracts. Customers can even stake their ML tokens to take part within the consensus mechanism, which can earn block rewards

9. Consumer engagement is essential for any platform. How are you ensuring you do that with regard to the token launch?

Now we have a number of the greatest advertising minds within the trade. We not too long ago had a TGE pre-sale initiative that bought out in 90 seconds. Our outreach and advertising technique has ramped up tremendously in preparation for the TGE. Our most important initiative nonetheless isn’t for the TGE – it’s for what comes subsequent.

The Mintlayer ecosystem fund will assist incubate and speed up the event of dapps and infrastructure. Builders focused on constructing on or porting a undertaking onto Mintlayer can already submit it for consideration. The fund will present capital but in addition join sources and fill within the gaps for any weak spot a growth staff has. 

10. What lies forward in your roadmap? Inform us extra about it. 

After TGE we launch our testnet in Q2 2023, and the mainnet the quarter after that. By the tip of the yr, we should always have a fundamental atomic swap system built-in into the platform, and that’s the starting of the intriguing a part of this undertaking. It received’t be lengthy after that when customers will have the ability to pay transaction charges within the tokens they’re transacting, entry management lists will assist facilitate safety tokens, our MLS-02 token commonplace for confidential transactions goes stay, programmable swimming pools for sensible contracts can be found, and the Lightning Community is built-in as a layer 3 protocol on Mintlayer.

Someday sooner or later, we are going to see an utility on Mintlayer the place a consumer will pay for a cup of espresso with a by-product token pegged to safety (let’s say Tesla inventory) and the espresso store receives a USD stablecoin with out ever understanding what the shopper paid with. It’s this sort of paradigm shift that we want to see propagated to the lots. We consider that attending to that time is simply attainable if you happen to begin with a foreign money that folks belief, and for us that’s Bitcoin. 

For extra info on Mintlayer, please try their official website.

Disclaimer: This can be a paid submit and shouldn’t be handled as information/recommendation.