Bitcoin developer Super Testnet argues that building a decentralized exchange on Bitcoin would be a “step backward” and that the focus should be on scaling Bitcoin rather than implementing Ethereum-like decentralized finance applications. BitVM, a Bitcoin-based virtual machine, is intended to scale Bitcoin and process millions of transactions per second. Super Testnet also expresses concerns about bringing Ethereum’s ecosystem to Bitcoin, citing the prevalence of Ponzi schemes. The developer hopes that Bitcoin remains the only monetary unit on the network to maintain stability and avoid burdensome floating exchange rates. BitVM aims to improve payment reliability, which is a shortcoming of the Lightning Network. Super Testnet clarifies that BitVM is optional and users can transfer BTC or Bitcoin-assets out of the virtual machine back into cold storage. However, BitVM’s current state cannot compute “anything” as suggested in its whitepaper, and additional primitives such as SHA-256 and encryption need to be implemented.
