Crypto exchange Bitget is launching a new on-chain ecosystem, mirroring the strategies of leading exchanges like Binance, OKX, and KuCoin, to foster its own blockchain-based services.
Bitget announced on May 15 that it will integrate a range of decentralized applications (DApps) within the Bitget Wallet through its new Bitget Onchain Layer, according to a statement provided to Cointelegraph. In conjunction with this integration, Bitget has established a $10 million Ecosystem Fund in its native token, BWB, aimed at accelerating the development of this new layer and supporting associated projects.
BWB, the native token for Bitget’s self-custody wallet, is similar to Trust Wallet’s TWT token. The exchange also has another native token, BGB, which users can utilize to reduce trading fees, akin to Binance’s BNB, KuCoin’s KCS, and OKX’s OKB tokens.
The Bitget OnChain Layer Ecosystem Fund will initially focus on nurturing various Web3 trading services, including three pre-market price aggregators, an on-chain derivatives market, and trading bots designed to enhance Bitget Wallet’s interchain swap capabilities.
Currently one of the more popular self-custody wallets in the Asia-Pacific region, Bitget Wallet boasts over 20 million users. The wallet’s BWB token is set to launch this quarter, with 5% of its 1 billion maximum supply earmarked for community members during its pre-generation event. Post-launch, BWB will facilitate governance voting, participation in Launchpad events, staking rewards, and payment of multichain gas fees within the Bitget Wallet and OnChain Layer ecosystem.
This strategic move is part of Bitget’s broader effort to diversify its offerings and enhance user engagement across all aspects of the cryptocurrency ecosystem.
Historically, Binance launched its own BNB blockchain and the Trust Wallet’s TWT token in September 2020, with Trust Wallet achieving a fully diluted market cap of over $1 billion. The decentralized exchange PancakeSwap also emerged as the first billion-dollar project on the BNB Chain in 2021.
Similarly, OKX has developed its own self-custody wallet and a Web3 Marketplace, which supports trading of novel assets like Bitcoin Runes, Ordinals, Atomicals, and BRC-20 tokens. As of May 13, the OKX Web3 Marketplace held a 51.08% market share in trading Bitcoin Runes.