we’re pivoting - time to meet crypto users where they are

why our seed round will exclusively help us onboard more crypto-natives to bitcoin

Bitcoin L2s are the wild west. The ecosystem is complete anarchy – users and investors alike are unfamiliar with the tradeoffs for most systems, and most are left to wonder how things are actually connected to bitcoin.

While forthcoming technologies promise greater security and trust-distribution, a mind-numbing question remains, “how the hell are we going to get users on this thing?”

We’re known for yapping. But now, we’re throwing our hat into the ring.

We’re gonna build shit.

Our latest seed round led by Epoch VC is helping us do one thing – bring more crypto users back to bitcoin.

Mid-curving the infra no more

Bitcoin season 2 launched on the premise of driving users to more bitcoin native environments. But it largely has accelerated the adoption of custodial solutions. Numbers don’t lie - the rise of cbBTC and other derivative assets show that users value BTC price exposure over security. They value user experience, access to liquid markets, and incentive schemes over trust-minimized infrastructure.

Until a few weeks ago, nearly everything was managed by centralized custodians and private operator sets. Some transparency is starting to enter the market which is positive.

I’m still somewhat convinced that upcoming technologies and potential upgrades to bitcoin will drive more user demand. I think teams will deliver some cool apps and I think there will be some decent amount of usage.

But, the more I actually talk to users, the less convinced I become. Most people have little interest in leaving their current chains and exchanging cbBTC for some newer, perhaps more secure BTC-backed token. They think upcoming technologies are only a marginal improvement over current state. Or, they’re unaware of them altogether.

So again, “how the hell are we going to get users on this thing?”

We have to build things that make them switch.

When I use Payy Network, I don’t care that it’s on Polygon. The same goes with users of Polymarket. These applications solve a real problem or present a legitimate opportunity to users.

Therefore, to get users on the most trust-distributed chains, we have to build things that incentivize them or solve legitimate problems of theirs.

What’s next

Follow Red for upcoming product updates. Demo is coming out next week. Alpha users will get access shortly after.

In short, the product is BTC. We’re laser focused on two things - how can we get people on other chains easier price exposure to BTC. Then, how can we seamlessly get them over to more trust-distributed systems where “improved security” isn’t the sole product?

We’re meeting people where they are and will remain opinionated about where we think they should go.

To accelerate product development, we raised a new financing round. The round is led by Epoch VC with participation from Sats Ventures, RootstockLabs, Core Ventures, Charlie Spears, Average Joe’s Crypto, and more. BatuX has also invested in the company prior to the seed round. These investors join UTXO Management on our cap table.

I’m also stoked to share that Eric Yakes will be joining our Board of Directors. Eric is a principled bitcoiner whose writing has educated thousands during their onboarding journey. I’m excited to work with him on onboarding a new cycle of crypto users to bitcoin in the most trust-minimized way possible.

More coming soon. But in the meantime, please understand:

Everyone should have a stack of sats.

– janusz