Updates

April Update

April was a month of precision and acceleration. As Bitcoin’s role in DeFi continues to evolve, Yala is at the forefront, transforming idle BTC into a powerful engine for real-world yield generation.

Yala 🏔️

• 5 min read
April Update

The liquidity era is no longer a vision - it's reality.

April was a month of precision and acceleration. As Bitcoin’s role in DeFi continues to evolve, Yala is at the forefront, transforming idle BTC into a powerful engine for real-world yield generation. By bridging Bitcoin liquidity into the realm of Real-World Assets (RWAs), we’re unlocking new opportunities for Bitcoiners to earn.

With mainnet now just days away, the rails are set. Institutional infrastructure is solidified. Cross-chain bridges are live on testnet. RWA partnerships are forming. The future of Bitcoin liquidity is arriving on-chain—and it’s starting with Yala.

In this update, we’ll cover:

  1. Yala Testnet V3 Success
  2. Protocol Developments
  3. Ecosystem & RWA Expansion: Enter Yala RealYield
  4. Community Momentum
  5. What’s Next

April in Numbers: The Final Countdown

April marked Bitcoin’s shift from passive store of value to an active yield engine. With 3.31M Yetis fueling Yala’s final testnet sprint toward mainnet, the foundation is stronger than ever.

  • Total BTC Staked: 1.55M 
  • Total YU Minted: $58.67B
  • Total Users: 3.31M

These numbers aren’t just milestones, instead, they signal the global demand for Bitcoin liquidity and Yala is ready to deliver.

Yala Protocol Developments

In moments of transition, vision must meet precision. As Yala prepares to unlock Bitcoin’s next frontier, our engineering teams have been quietly but powerfully building the rails for institutional-grade security, capital efficiency, and deep cross-chain liquidity.

Institutional Infrastructure & Security

  1. Institutional Mode & Custody Integrations: Continued our deep focus on Institution Mode, integrated with large clients to use cold wallets to realize self custody with our multi-sig and PSWSH solutions. These efforts are foundational for our custodial flexibility, preparing Yala for real-world institutional flows.
  2. Backend Operations Center: Finalized the first phase of our real-time Backend Operations Center — monitoring smart contracts, bridge, token price volatility, liquidity health, and risk parameters management. Post-mainnet, this center will expand to proactively safeguard user funds and protocol integrity.
  3. CEX Hedging: BTC hedging strategies are already in place and ready to be activated post-launch, ensuring stable APY and a robust risk management framework.

Mainnet Launch Preparation

  • Cross-Chain Bridge: April marked a major milestone with the launch of our ETH → Solana cross-chain bridge for $YU on Testnet V3. Development is also underway to bridge YBTC to Solana, opening up a new frontier for BTC-native DeFi on high-performance chains, which fully aligns with our mission to unlock Bitcoin liquidity across ecosystems.
  • Ice Berries Finalized: Our new off-chain rewards system, Ice Berries, is now locked in - streamlining incentive mechanisms as we enter the mainnet era.
  • Liquidity Reserves: We’ve established key partnerships and secured liquidity pools to ensure a smooth and capital-efficient mainnet launch.
  • Pre-launch Security Preparation: Multi-sig flows, private key protection, and cross-bridge safety checks have been finalized and tested, ensuring that both Pro and Institution Mode users benefit from an institutional-grade security.

Product Pipeline

  • Product Design Pipeline: Our token economics design is near final. Additional collateral support is in development, enabling $YU minting with wrapped BTC and BTC-based liquid staking tokens. The YU Savings Pool has entered early design stages, expanding yield options within the Yala ecosystem.
  • DeFi Marketplace: The UI for our DeFi Marketplace is underway - where $YU will fuel yield farming and various DeFi protocols utilities with decent incentives on Berries.

Enter Yala RealYield

Bitcoin is a $1.6 trillion asset - valuable, yet largely idle. In April, we announced that we will be focusing on Yala RealYield - a structured, institutional-grade marketplace designed to connect idle BTC liquidity to real-world, yield-generating opportunities.

Yala RealYield Meets Centrifuge

https://x.com/yalaorg/status/1912507665600704690 

Centrifuge enables asset managers like Anemoy to issue regulated, yield-bearing financial products on-chain.

Through this partnership, Bitcoin holders using Yala can seamlessly access yield generated by these products by converting BTC into USDC via Yala RealYield - our curated marketplace for RWA strategies with transparent, risk-adjusted profiles.

The future of Bitcoin isn’t just holding - It’s earning.

Community Growth & Initiatives

April brought powerful momentum from builders, researchers, and thought leaders.

X Spaces: Bitcoin Liquidity Series

This April, we welcomed and featured Solayer and Centrifuge this April.

We explored Solayer’s core mission, the power of InfiniSVM, and their vision for integrating Bitcoin liquidity with Solana.

And dived into Centrifuge V3's scalability and chain abstraction capabilities, activating BTC for RWA yield, and the future of multichain RWA expansion.

Four Pillars Research Report

Meanwhile, Four Pillars, a leading Korean research agency, published a detailed public report on Yala, marking a major step forward in educating the global community on our vision.

“Unlike Ethereum and Solana, only ~1% of Bitcoin’s total supply is actively used — largely due to scalability and programmability limitations.Yala addresses this gap by serving as a Bitcoin liquidity layer — turning BTC into an active, yield-generating asset.”

📖 Read the full research report here:

Finally, the Yala team is on the ground in Dubai during Token 2049, sharing our mission, connecting face-to-face with builders and institutions shaping the next era of DeFi.

What’s Next

As we move into May, Yala is entering the most pivotal chapter. Here’s what to expect:

  1. Mainnet Launch: We’re launching our mainnet in early May, bringing Yala’s vision fully on-chain.
  2. YU Bridge to SOL Chain: We will launch this feature in mid May, bringing Bitcoin liquidity to Solana. 
  3. DeFi Marketplace Goes Live: Alongside mainnet, we’ll launch the DeFi Marketplace - a new portal where users can deploy $YU in partner DeFi protocols, earn points from Yala, and expand $YU adoption across diverse use cases on multiple chains.
  4. Institutional GrowthWe continue onboarding institutional clients in Institution Mode while preparing for our upcoming Phase 2 rollout.
  5. Meet the Team IRL in US 

From idle store of value to active yield layer, Bitcoin’s next chapter is being written. Yala is not only ready, we’re leading the way.

Stay close. Mainnet is next.

Join the Yala Community

Yala is building a liquidity layer to unlock Bitcoin’s untapped yield across DeFi and RWAs. Users can deposit BTC and access seamless liquidity, enabling efficient capital movement and yield opportunities across ecosystems, chains, and protocols.

Website | X | Telegram | Discord | LinkedIn