GlossaryWhat is wrapped bitcoin?

What is wrapped bitcoin?

Wrapped bitcoin is a token on another blockchain, such as Ethereum, Base or Solana, that stands for bitcoin a custodian holds 1:1 on the Bitcoin network. The two largest are WBTC, with 116,132 BTC in circulation today, and Coinbase's cbBTC, with 98,251 BTC.

By Onchain Wiki editors · checked November 9, 2026, 11:17 UTC

How Wrapped Bitcoin Works

Wrapped bitcoin works by locking real bitcoin with a custodian and issuing a matching token on another chain. Coinbase describes token wrapping as locking an asset and creating a new token that represents it, so the asset can be used on one chain while the original stays put on another.¹

Bitcoin's own chain does not run the Ethereum-style smart contracts that lending and trading apps use. A wrapped token can, because it follows that chain's token standard; on Ethereum that is ERC20. Redeeming runs the other way: the token is burned and the bitcoin is released.

The tradeoff is trust. A wrapped token is worth one bitcoin only while the custodian holds the coins and honors redemptions, so who holds the keys matters more than the token's code. A crypto bridge is the more general version of the same idea.

What WBTC Is and Who Holds Its Bitcoin

WBTC is the oldest large wrapped bitcoin, and its bitcoin is held by two custodians, BitGo and BiT Global, according to WBTC's custody docs. WBTC says every token is backed 1:1 by native BTC kept in air-gapped cold storage under multi-signature control, and that it has run since 2019.³²

Only identity-verified institutions approved through WBTC's DAO governance can mint or burn WBTC, and the site points to an onchain proof of reserves.⁴ WBTC lists native versions on Ethereum, Solana, Tron, BNB Chain, Base, Kava and Osmosis. Its Ethereum contract is 0x2260fac5e5542a773aa44fbcfedf7c193bc2c599, which Etherscan and CoinGecko show under the same name.⁵

WBTC Custody Change in 2024

WBTC custody changed in 2024, when BitGo moved the business into a joint venture with BiT Global. BitGo announced it on August 9, 2024, describing BiT Global as a Hong Kong custody platform registered as a Trust and Company Service Provider, with BitGo as a minority shareholder.⁷

Before the change, the bitcoin behind WBTC was held in the United States. BitGo said operations would spread to Hong Kong and Singapore after a 60-day transition, using the same multi-signature cold storage with keys in several places. It called the deal a partnership with Justin Sun and the Tron ecosystem.

What cbBTC Is

cbBTC is Coinbase Wrapped BTC, a wrapped bitcoin that Coinbase issues and backs 1:1 with bitcoin it holds in custody. Coinbase says the backing bitcoin will never be sold, transferred or used for anything else, and it publishes the reserve addresses so anyone can check them on its cbBTC page.

Coinbase lists cbBTC on Base, Ethereum, Solana and Arbitrum. An eligible Coinbase customer who sends BTC to an address on Base or Ethereum gets cbBTC automatically, and cbBTC sent back into a Coinbase account turns into BTC again. Coinbase limits wrapping to customers in the US (excluding New York State), the UK, EEA states, Singapore, Australia and Brazil. The Base chain page covers the network Coinbase names first for cbBTC.

WBTC vs cbBTC

WBTC and cbBTC both track one bitcoin per token, and the difference is who holds the coins and who can mint. The table sets the two side by side with today's supply.

WBTC and cbBTC, issuer docs read November 8, 2026, supply from CoinGecko today
	WBTC	cbBTC
Custodian	BitGo and BiT Global	Coinbase
Who can mint	Institutions approved by WBTC DAO governance	Eligible Coinbase customers, by sending BTC onchain
Running since	2019	September 2024
Ethereum contract	`0x2260fac5e5542a773aa44fbcfedf7c193bc2c599`	`0xcbB7C0000aB88B473b1f5aFd9ef808440eed33Bf`
Supply today	116,132 BTC	98,251 BTC
Market cap today	$8.6 billion	$7.3 billion

Questions People Ask About What is wrapped bitcoin

These are the questions people ask next about what is wrapped bitcoin.

Is wrapped bitcoin the same as bitcoin?

Wrapped bitcoin is not the same as bitcoin: it is a token on another chain that a custodian promises to redeem for one bitcoin. Its value depends on that custodian holding the coins. Bitcoin on the Bitcoin network depends on no one's promise, only on whoever holds its keys.

What is WBTC?

WBTC is Wrapped Bitcoin, a token backed 1:1 by bitcoin held by the custodians BitGo and BiT Global. It has run since 2019 and lists native versions on several chains, including Solana, Tron and Base. Only approved institutions mint and burn it.

Who issues cbBTC?

Coinbase issues cbBTC and holds the bitcoin behind it in its own custody, 1:1. Coinbase lists it on Base, Ethereum, Solana and Arbitrum, and the contract on Base, Ethereum and Arbitrum is 0xcbB7C0000aB88B473b1f5aFd9ef808440eed33Bf.

Who holds the bitcoin behind WBTC?

The bitcoin behind WBTC is held by BitGo and BiT Global, the two custodians WBTC names. BitGo moved WBTC into a joint venture with Hong Kong based BiT Global after an August 9, 2024 announcement, spreading custody to Hong Kong and Singapore from the United States.

Sources

Every number on this page comes from these sources, checked November 9, 2026.