What Is Rootstock (RSK)?

Rootstock does not change Bitcoin itself; it operates as a separate blockchain connected to Bitcoin through a two-way peg. When a user sends their BTC to the bridge mechanism, they receive an equivalent amount of RBTC on Rootstock; on the way back, RBTC is locked and BTC is released. This bridge is run by a federation called PowPeg, which keeps its signing keys in hardware security modules.

The network's security is provided by merge mining: Bitcoin miners can also produce Rootstock blocks with the same computing power, without extra hardware spending, and earn additional rewards. Thanks to EVM compatibility, Solidity contracts written for Ethereum can run here with small changes; this makes it possible to build DeFi applications such as lending with BTC, stablecoins, and decentralized exchanges. The ecosystem also includes the RIF token, aimed at infrastructure services.

On Rootstock, transactions take place not on the Bitcoin main chain but on the Rootstock chain; the link to Bitcoin is established through the bridge and merge mining. Users have to trust the federation that runs the bridge to a certain extent, which means the structure is not entirely trustless. The share of hash power taking part in merge mining is also a factor watched for network security.