Bitcoin accelerates transition to 'on-chain assets'… Lombard "Will lead BTCFi innovation" [Coin Interview]

Jacob Phillips (Jacob Phillips) Lombard Co-founder Interview

Bitcoin accelerates transition to 'on-chain financial asset'

Lombard secures trust with on-chain performance and security infrastructure

Will build a Bitcoin-based global capital market

"We believe Bitcoin (BTC) will establish itself as a core asset of on-chain finance beyond being a mere store of value"

Lombard, a Bitcoin-based on-chain financial platform, has recently been cited as one of the most notable projects in the global crypto market. Lombard's yield-bearing Bitcoin LBTC recently surpassed 3 billion dollars in cumulative onboarding assets, and the native token BARD drew investor attention by being simultaneously listed on major global exchanges including Upbit and Bithumb on day 1 of its launch.

Jacob Phillips (Jacob Phillips, photo), Lombard co-founder, told Bloomingbit on the 26th that "on-chain finance is the future of global finance, and Bitcoin should be its foundation." We discussed in detail the future strategy of the Bitcoin-based decentralized finance (BTCFi) ecosystem and Lombard.

Securing trust through on-chain performance and security infrastructure

Phillips summarized his and Lombard's starting point as "right timing, fast execution, and results." He said that in spring 2024, as on-chain platform services made Bitcoin staking support possible, a substantive turning point for Bitcoin-based DeFi occurred.

Phillips stated, "Lombard quickly set out to 'activate the Bitcoin on-chain ecosystem' through yield-bearing Bitcoin LBTC and achieved onboarding assets worth 1 billion dollars in 92 days," adding, "We demonstrated faster execution than anyone and spoke with results rather than promises."

From the start, Lombard adopted a strategy of broadening touchpoints with the developer ecosystem. Phillips said, "The essence of on-chain finance is the builder ecosystem," and noted, "It was decisive that top DeFi teams like Pendle and Morpho made Bitcoin a strategic priority." As good DeFi protocols and chains brought in Bitcoin, hundreds of millions of dollars of liquidity followed immediately.

He also said, "We designed security together with Cubist, composed of faculty from Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) and researchers from Stanford University," citing solid 'security infrastructure' as a key differentiator from other platforms.

He added, "Lombard adopted a consortium-based trust structure and a multilayer security model as the standard, and underwent more than 1 year of 'battle testing' in production conditions with over 1 billion dollars in deposited assets (TVL)," and said, "We believe we have built a security infrastructure more robust than some centralized exchanges."

Liquidity and institutional channels expand via listings on major global exchanges

Lombard's native token 'BARD' entered major global exchanges including Upbit, Bithumb, Coinbase, and Binance simultaneously from day 1 of the token generation event (TGE), alongside domestic exchanges.

Phillips said, "It is hard to find a precedent for a Bitcoin DeFi project being listed to this extent on day 1," adding, "This demonstrates market trust. It is the result of execution, not exaggeration." From day 1, Lombard implemented redemption and proof of reserves and expanded the ecosystem with rapid moves such as early entry into major protocols like AAVE.

Based on these achievements, trading channels for Lombard's yield-bearing Bitcoin 'LBTC' are also expanding. He explained, "LBTC recently secured a foundation for expansion as a spot asset and future collateral through listing on Bybit."

He emphasized that centralized exchanges and on-chain are complementary. For growth, they must recognize each other's strengths and cooperate. Phillips said, "It is possible to maintain the yields generated by on-chain staking while using it like native Bitcoin on centralized exchanges," and added, "All major exchanges are accelerating on-chain strategies and are looking to Lombard as a partner to promote Bitcoin on-chainization."

Lombard is also intensifying its push into the Korean market. Phillips said, "The recently announced partnership with Korea Digital Asset Custody (KODA) is an important milestone to strengthen local institutional connections in Korea."

He continued, "Korea is one of the most active markets in the world. The fact that Upbit and Bithumb supported trading of BARD within a day of the token release proves clear demand from users and institutions," and added, "Within the scope allowed by regulation, we will collaborate with multinational institutions to gradually build Bitcoin capital markets."

Proving market trust… accelerating BTCFi innovation

Phillips said Lombard has proven market value through its on-chain achievements. He stated, "Lombard has emerged as a leader in the BTCFi sector since the BARD token launch," and emphasized, "Based on the rising fully diluted valuation (FDV), we have demonstrated the usefulness of Bitcoin DeFi to the market."

He noted, "There was a clear perception that Bitcoin is an asset that stays in 'cold wallets,' but actual data is confirming that narrative is changing," and predicted, "As more developers and institutions enter the market, the scale will expand rapidly."

Phillips also explained Lombard's 3-stage expansion strategy. "The first expansion strategy is to move Bitcoin via LBTC. Then we plan to maximize liquidity and utility by building an on-chain Bitcoin capital market, and finally provide full-stack infrastructure that enables innovation," he said, adding, "If 1 trillion dollars of value was created on Ethereum chains, Bitcoin could generate values several times larger."

Regarding challenges ahead, Phillips said, "To maintain leadership, regulatory and technical challenges must be resolved, and standards for institutional-grade infrastructure are needed," and added, "If regulatory clarity, scalability, and user entry barriers are addressed, investors will be able to actively leverage the transparency and stability of on-chain finance."

Youngmin Lee, Bloomingbit reporter 20min@bloomingbit.io