SolvBTC Architecture Upgrade: Foundation for Institutional-Grade Bitcoin Liquidity

As Bitcoin adoption in DeFi accelerates, the need for a secure, scalable, and verifiable infrastructure to manage Bitcoin-backed assets has never been greater. At Solv, we’re committed to unlocking Bitcoin yield with institutional confidence and architectural confidence.

Today, we’re excited to share a major upgrade to the SolvBTC architecture, designed to reinforce transparency, enhance minting efficiency, and ensure the long-term scalability of SolvBTC as the standard for yield-bearing Bitcoin in DeFi.

Introducing a Dual-Layer Architecture for SolvBTC

To meet the demands of institutional-grade Bitcoin liquidity, we’re implementing a new dual-layer structure for SolvBTC:

1. Mainnet Reserve Layer (Custodial Vaults)

This layer is anchored to the Bitcoin mainnet. BTC is securely held by regulated custodians such as Ceffu, Cobo, Copper and other trusted partners. It forms the core reserve backing SolvBTC’s value.

2. EVM Liquidity Buffer Layer (Chain-Specific Pools)

When users deposit wrapped Bitcoin assets like BTCB or WBTC, these wrappers are partially burned, with the majority converted into mainnet BTC and routed to custodians. A small portion is retained in the EVM chain vault as a reserve fund to allow for faster minting and redemption.

This hybrid architecture offers the security of native Bitcoin custody combined with the efficiency of EVM automation, ensuring smooth and scalable operations across all supported chains.

Improved User Transparency & Verification

One of the major advantages of this architecture is that it will be significantly easier for users and third parties to verify the underlying Bitcoin reserves that back SolvBTC.

Thanks to clear on-chain attestations and transparent custody integrations, users will gain deeper confidence in SolvBTC’s 1:1 BTC backing — paving the way for broader institutional integration.

Raising the Bar with Stricter Asset Standards for Wrapped BTC

This new architecture also introduces higher technical and security requirements for any wrapped BTC assets used to mint SolvBTC.

Only assets that fully meet our internal standards for integration, reliability, and on-chain behavior will be eligible as core SolvBTC backing assets going forward.

This ensures long-term compatibility with:

• Our automated minting/redemption systems
• Secure off-chain custody
• Flexible on-chain liquidity provisioning

On-Chain Naming Optimization for Clarity

To reflect these architectural changes and provide clearer differentiation across networks, we’re updating SolvBTC’s naming convention.

Starting from 25th April 2025, the existing SolvBTC deployed on Merlin Chain will be renamed to SolvBTC.MERL.

This change:

• Clarifies SolvBTC’s specific environment on Merlin Chain
• Distinguishes chain-specific LST deployments from the new core SolvBTC architecture
• Prepares for future LST integrations on Merlin

SolvBTC.MERL will continue operating normally on the Merlin Chain and remains fully compatible with its current DeFi integrations.

Building Financial Services of Bitcoin in DeFi

With this architectural upgrade, SolvBTC is capable of supporting institutional-grade liquidity, yield, and cross-chain utility at scale.

We’re preparing it to serve as the institutional-grade Bitcoin layer across all of DeFi.