Taproot Wizards has raised $30 million with which it plans to build an ecosystem of applications using the OP_CAT Bitcoin improvement proposal (BIP).
OP_CAT is a feature that Bitcoin’s pseudonymous founder Satoshi Nakamoto included in the software’s original code but which he/she/they removed out of concerns that it exposed it to risks such as denial-of-service (DoS) attack.
Many developers have expressed a concern in bringing it back.
The proposal could bring Ethereum-like smart contract functionality to Bitcoin through introducing « covenants, » or rules that determine how a specific transaction will function.
Taproot Wizards, whose vision is to « make Bitcoin magical again, » sold a collection of 3,000 non-fungible token (NFT)-like pieces of digital art called « Quantum Cats » to drum up support for OP_CAT one year ago.
The Wizards have been attempting to « meme OP_CAT back into existence, » according to an emailed announcement on Tuesday.
Co-founder Udi Werthimer describes OP_CAT as « the missing piece » to attaining « permissionless programmability for bitcoin, allowing lending, trading and smart contracts without giving up self custody, » in Tuesday’s announcement.
The $30 million funding round was led by Standard Crypto.