Ark Labs Launches Arkade on Bitcoin: First Mainnet Layer-2 for Public Testing with Virtual Transaction Outputs (VTXOs)

Arkade, a native Bitcoin Layer 2 initiative, has entered public testing after a two-year development cycle, per COINOTAG News and The Block. Supported by Draper Associates, Axiom, and Fulgur Ventures, the project targets enhanced layer-2 scaling while preserving on-chain security.

The platform hinges on the Ark Protocol framework introduced in 2023, marking the first mainnet implementation of the concept. Arkade virtualizes transaction processing through Virtual Transaction Outputs (VTXOs), off-chain representations of Bitcoin’s native UTXO set.

Importantly, Arkade operates within existing Bitcoin consensus rules, leveraging the established security model without altering core protocol behavior.