What is the Difference Between WBTC and BTC?

[Suba]

Wrapped Bitcoin (WBTC) and BTC often confuse newcomers to the crypto world, many of them even think these two coins are the same, because the value of WBTC will always be the same as Bitcoin and both can also be traded on either decentralized or centralized crypto exchanges, so that newcomers are not confused. Can you explain the difference between WBTC and BTC?

 

[Tobi]

Wrapped Bitcoin is a fairly recent innovation that effectively brings Bitcoin to the Ethereum blockchain. One of the main use cases for the WBTC is decentralized funding.

 

[Webster]

Wrapped Bitcoin is a fairly recent innovation that effectively brings Bitcoin to the Ethereum blockchain. One of the main use cases for the WBTC is decentralized funding.

Agreed; per Google AI,

Bitcoin (\(BTC\)) is the native cryptocurrency of the Bitcoin blockchain, while wrapped Bitcoin (\(wBTC\)) is an Ethereum-based token that is 1:1 backed by actual Bitcoin held in custodianship. The primary difference is utility: \(BTC\) operates on its own secure but less versatile blockchain, while \(wBTC\) allows Bitcoin's value to be used within Ethereum's smart contract-enabled ecosystem, specifically for decentralized finance (DeFi) applications.

 

[kit_hung]

BTC is the original coin created by Satoshi, it runs on its own blockchain and is known as digital gold. WBTC is a closed version of Ethereum that tracks the price of BTC directly but exists to allow Bitcoin liquidity to enter DeFi, so you can use BTC in the Ethereum ecosystem via WBTC.

It's like the story of Hermes who carried messages from one world to another. BTC is a king sitting on his golden throne. WBTC is a messenger who carries the king's power and delivers it to the Ethereum platform. So they both have the same value, but their uses and environments are different.

 

[King Belieal]

I think that WBTC is a tokenized version of Bitcoin that exists on the Ethereum blockchain. It is always pegged to the value of 1 bitcoin.

 

[Augusta]

Wrapped Bitcoin (WBTC) is a ERC-20 token that represents bitcoin on the Ethereum network. WBTC provides a way of using bitcoin in smart contracts and makes it more accessible on decentralized exchanges