On September 12, the cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase launched Coinbase Wrapped BTC (cbBTC), a wrapped version of Bitcoin (1:1) in the form of an ERC20 token. This was announced in the platform’s blog.
“With cbBTC, we continue to expand economic freedom by providing users with more ways to use their Bitcoin,” the company clarified.
According to the statement, the first cryptocurrency “plays an important role in attracting users” to digital assets. At launch, cbBTC operates on the Base and Ethereum networks, with further plans to expand their number.
Coinbase first hinted at the potential launch of the product in mid-August. However, users expressed concerns about cbBTC regarding centralization. BitGo CEO Mike Belshe played on the abbreviation of the wrapped version as “Central Bank BTC.”
Central Bank BTC https://t.co/tZXWcNDck6
— Mike Belshe (@mikebelshe) August 14, 2024
Back in August, the Base team announced the launch of a domain name system for the L2 solution Basenames, based on the Ethereum Name Service infrastructure.