Bitcoin DeFi Protocol Seeks to “Save” WBTC from Justin Sun

Threshold, a Bitcoin DeFi protocol with a $212 million market capitalization, has proposed to merge its tBTC token with wrapped Bitcoin (WBTC) in an effort to “save” WBTC from falling into the wrong hands amid a looming change in WBTC’s custody model.

The proposal comes after a recent move by BitGo – the custodian behind WBTC – to join forces with BiT Global, a Hong Kong-based company with deep ties to controversial Tron founder Justin Sun.

Although intended to diversify WBTC’s U.S.-heavy presence and make the asset multi-jurisdictional, Sun’s involvement prompted many to decry the change of custodian, leading to Threshold’s proposal.

Written by MacLane Wilkison, the move aims to “ensure the…safety of the users and protocols that rely on [WBTC] by hot swapping the centralized custody and merchant-based mint and burn model with Threshold’s decentralized custody and permissionless mint/redeem mechanism.”

Threshold’s native token, T, has been relatively unchanged since the proposal was floated.

Wilkison told The Defiant that “there is an extreme degree of urgency to ensure a good outcome for WBTC's users and the DeFi ecosystem that relies on it.”

“We now have less than 40 days to save WBTC, and it doesn’t seem as if anyone else is stepping up with an alternative offer,” he said.

Justin Sun took to social media to address the concerns about his involvement with WBTC.

"My personal involvement in WBTC is entirely strategic," Sun tweeted. "I do not control the private keys to the WBTC reserves and cannot move any BTC reserves... There have been no changes to WBTC.

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This decision was executed without action from the Tron DAO. 

The Defiant