Stacks (STX) has recently witnessed a notable price rally, as excitement builds around the growing adoption of sBTC, a Bitcoin-backed token on the Stacks layer-2 network. With a weekly gain of 47%, STX has captured the attention of the cryptocurrency market and likely confirmed the $0.50 level as a local bottom.Trade Crypto on KrakenWhile multiple factors are at play, analysts suggest that BitGo’s announcement of institutional support for sBTC may be a key catalyst behind the surge.On April 25, BitGo, a prominent digital asset custodian, announced its support for sBTC, underscoring its commitment to expanding Bitcoin’s role in decentralized finance (DeFi). BitGo framed the move as a milestone in its long-standing partnership with the Stacks ecosystem:“We’re excited to announce institutional support for sBTC, a fully programmable, 1:1 Bitcoin-backed asset built on the Stacks layer 2 network. This milestone furthers our mission to bring secure, scalable infrastructure to Bitcoin-based DeFi.”BitGo is one of the earliest Signers on the Stacks network, playing a significant role in the development of sBTC and the Nakamoto upgrade. Its new offering includes secure custody, conversion, and infrastructure integration for institutions seeking to operate across both Bitcoin’s base layer and Stacks’ smart contract-enabled second layer.sBTC provides a trust-minimized bridge to Bitcoin DeFi, governed by smart contracts and a decentralized network of validators. Unlike wrapped Bitcoin products reliant on centralized custodians, sBTC operates natively on Stacks, leveraging the Proof of Transfer consensus mechanism, which yields Bitcoin-backed rewards for participants.Anticipation is also building for the launch of sBTC withdrawals on April 30, which will allow seamless movement between BTC and sBTC, unlocking a wide range of new use cases.In tandem with the growing excitement around sBTC, the broader Stacks DeFi ecosystem has seen a surge in liquidity. According to an update from the official Stacks X account, key indicators are trending sharply upward:liquidity in the stacks defi ecosystem is accelerating:
– 3k sbtc already on stacks – on track to become the #1 bitcoin l2 by btc supply
– stablecoin market cap surged 400% in q1, crossing $12M+
– new tvl record for stx being liquid stacked unlocking more stx capital pic.twitter.com/0mj3CWL9I4Backing up these claims, DefiLlama data shows that the total stablecoin supply in the ecosystem has surged from roughly $1 million in January to nearly $7 million by April—a remarkable increase that places Stacks behind only Morph and Cronos in Q1 stablecoin growth rankings.This rise in liquidity highlights growing confidence and utility within the Stacks DeFi landscape, a trend that could continue as more institutional and retail participants adopt sBTC and other Stacks-based applications.Despite the bullish momentum and growing ecosystem strength, CoinCodex’s algorithmic Stacks price prediction advises caution for the months ahead.This forecast suggests that while the recent rally is underpinned by genuine ecosystem developments, investors should remain vigilant of potential volatility in the near-to-mid term.Get Started on Kraken