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a16z Crypto Invests $15 Million in Babylon to Build Trustless Bitcoin Collateral Vaults

The funding accelerates cryptographic vaults enabling verifiable, non-custodial bitcoin collateral.

Overview

  • Babylon said a16z crypto purchased BABY tokens as part of the $15 million deal and will provide strategic guidance.
  • Trustless BTCVaults anchor collateral on Bitcoin’s base layer and use witness encryption and garbled circuits so external smart contracts can verify and enforce rules without custodians or wrapped BTC.
  • The project is targeting integrations with DeFi and traditional finance venues, including a planned Aave V4 rollout that the companies have said is expected around April 2026.
  • Babylon frames the effort as a way to activate a large pool of idle Bitcoin for lending and credit, with less than 1% of supply currently wrapped for on-chain use.
  • BABY rose after the announcement, with reports noting a brief price jump and higher trading volumes.