Zest Lets Bitcoin Back Ethereum USDC Loans Without Wrapping BTC

Trusted Editorial content, reviewed by leading industry experts and seasoned editors. Ad Disclosure TL;DR Zest Protocol has launched a mainnet demo allowing native BTC on Bitcoin to back USDC borrowing on Ethereum. Bitcoin remains inside a self-custodial Taproot vault rather than being wrapped or bridged to another chain. The current demo caps collateral at 0.001 BTC per wallet and is not yet the unrestricted production launch. Bitcoin holders can now test a lending structure that keeps their BTC on Bitcoin while allowing them to borrow USDC on Ethereum. Zest Protocol has launched the mainnet demo of its Bitcoin Collateral Vaults, giving users a live version of the system ahead of a wider production release. The BTC Never Moves To Ethereum The design is built around self-custodial Taproot vaults on Bitcoin. A user deposits native BTC into an individual vault, while a corresponding collateral record is represented on Ethereum. Ethereum smart contracts then handle the USDC borrowing side of the position. The Bitcoin itself is never wrapped into another token and never bridged onto Ethereum. Zest says every permitted destination for the BTC is signed by the depositor when the vault is...