Merlin Chain is a Bitcoin Layer-2 that bridges native BTC and BRC-20 assets into an EVM-compatible ZK-rollup, anchored to Bitcoin via a custodial multi-sig vault called Merlin's Seal.
Lock BTC in Merlin's Seal, transact cheaply on the L2, batch a ZK proof back toward Bitcoin.
A Bitcoin Layer-2: one bridge deposit, thousands of cheap L2 txns, one proof anchored to Bitcoin — then a committee-gated exit.
You deposit native BTC into the Merlin's Seal vault on Bitcoin. The bridge mints an equal amount of M-BTC 1:1 into your wallet on the Merlin L2, so your Bitcoin can now move inside an EVM environment.
The one fixed Bitcoin-anchor cost is split across every txn in the batch — add more and the per-tx cost collapses.
The verified MERL token proxy on Ethereum is owned by one externally-owned account (0x3ac3…aa23) that holds pause() and blacklist() with no timelock. A single private key can halt transfers or upgrade the contract — the custodial bridge's largest trust assumption. Rated 0/30 for emergency powers.
Live signals detected by Sentinel monitors across all five risk classes.
See each alert's affected component, root-cause analysis, and recommended action. Pro members get the full risk breakdown for every protocol.
Bitcoin holds the deepest liquidity in crypto but has no native programmable environment; existing wrapped-BTC solutions on other chains carry custodial and bridge risk while offering no Bitcoin-native security guarantees.
Merlin Chain provides an EVM-compatible ZK-Rollup L2 that locks native BTC and BRC-20 assets in Merlin's Seal and mints equivalents on the L2, allowing them to be used in DeFi and Ordinals applications while attesting state back to Bitcoin.
First-wave Bitcoin L2 to ship a working ZK-Rollup mainnet with native support for BRC-20 and BRC-420 assets, paired with a large fair-launch token distribution that bootstrapped initial TVL.
Merlin Chain is a Bridge protocol operating on Bitcoin, Merlin, Ethereum, BSC. Merlin Chain is a Bitcoin Layer-2 that bridges native BTC and BRC-20 assets into an EVM-compatible ZK-rollup, anchored to Bitcoin via a custodial multi-sig vault called Merlin's Seal.
Merlin Chain provides an EVM-compatible ZK-Rollup L2 that locks native BTC and BRC-20 assets in Merlin's Seal and mints equivalents on the L2, allowing them to be used in DeFi and Ordinals applications while attesting state back to Bitcoin.
DeFi Sentinel rates Merlin Chain C with a safety score of 54/100, indicating rated risk. The score reflects five risk dimensions: smart contract & technical risk, economic design & market risk, governance & centralization, sustainability & competitive position, and reputation & social trust. Merlin Chain has 5 audits on record. DeFi Sentinel's analysis flagged 4 high, 6 medium, 7 low risk alerts across Smart Contract & Technical Risk, Governance & Centralization, Sustainability & Competitive Position, Economic Design & Market Risk and Reputation & Social Trust. As with all DeFi protocols, residual risk remains and users should review the full risk breakdown before depositing.
Merlin Chain has a DeFi Sentinel safety score of 54/100 (rating C), last updated July 8, 2026. The score is computed across smart contract & technical risk (30%), economic design & market risk (25%), governance & centralization (20%), sustainability & competitive position (15%), and reputation & social trust (10%).
Merlin Chain is deployed on Bitcoin, Merlin, Ethereum, BSC.
Yes. Merlin Chain has 5 audit reports on record from firms including SlowMist, BlockSec, Secure3. Audit reports and dates are linked under the Resources tab on this page.
