The move comes just three days after MegaETH unveiled its new MegaUSD stablecoin.<\/p>\n
MegaETH has selected Lombard Finance<\/a> \u2013 a protocol that lets users earn yield on their Bitcoin (BTC) with a total value locked of $1.6 billion \u2013 as its primary Bitcoin<\/a> partner ahead of its mainnet launch, the companies announced on Thursday, Sept. 11.<\/p>\n The partnership will allow users to mint and redeem Bitcoin directly on MegaETH\u2019s network without relying on custodial wrappers, according to a blog post<\/a> by Lombard. Bitcoin is currently the largest digital asset with a market capitalization of nearly $2.3 trillion. <\/p>\n Bitcoin on MegaETH will be native (fully backed and not an IOU) and permissionless. Meanwhile, the integration is designed to let developers embed BTC into applications through Lombard\u2019s software development kit.<\/p>\n The move highlights efforts to expand Bitcoin\u2019s role in decentralized finance (DeFi). The companies noted that while centralized exchanges (CEXs) handle trillions of dollars in Bitcoin trading each year, little of that liquidity flows into DeFi. BTC is currently changing hands at $114,500, up 99% over the past year, according to The Defiant\u2019s price page<\/a>. <\/p>\n The integration also comes amid a broader trend in traditional finance (TradFi), where institutions are increasingly acquiring Bitcoin for Digital Asset Treasuries (DATs) to leverage its liquidity and to hold as a store-of-value. <\/p>\n MegaETH and Lombard say this move could now provide similar tools for decentralized applications, to bring institutional-style treasury management to DeFi.<\/p>\n \u201cWith Lombard’s institutional-grade Bitcoin infrastructure and MegaETH’s real-time execution, we’re unlocking something entirely new: Bitcoin Capital Markets,\u201d MegaETH officials said in a post<\/a> on X, formerly Twitter. <\/p>\n\u2018Bitcoin Capital Markets\u2019<\/h2>\n