Alp Gasimov

Fri, Jun 6, 2025, 6:09 PM2 min read

Do more with Bitcoin: Mint stablecoins, generate yield, manage assets originally appeared on TheStreet.

In an interview with TheStreet Roundtable, Sasha Mitchell, head of operations for Elastos, outlined why institutional investors should consider Elastos’ ecosystem anchored to Bitcoin’s security.

“Elastos fundamentally is building a digital economy on top of Bitcoin security,” Sasha said, noting that Elastos has earned up to 50% of Bitcoin’s hash rate through merge-mining with major pools such as Antpool, ViaBTC, F2Pool and Binance Pool.

Elastos’ mainchain is merge‐mined with Bitcoin, meaning miners use the same proof‐of‐work to secure both chains simultaneously — providing Elastos with Bitcoin’s security at no additional cost

Elastos is a blockchain network that has been working with Bitcoin since 2018 through merge-mining. This means Bitcoin miners help secure Elastos while earning rewards.

For institutions holding Bitcoin as a strategic reserve, Elastos offers a way to generate liquidity without selling core holdings. “You can collateralize your Bitcoin on the Bitcoin network and then talk through BeL2 to a smart contract,” Sasha explained. BeL2 lets users lock Bitcoin directly on the Bitcoin chain and access smart-contract functionality elsewhere.

Beginning next month, institutions will be able to mint a US dollar-pegged stablecoin backed by their Bitcoin collateral. This stablecoin can be used for treasury management, hedging, or operational funding, while the underlying Bitcoin remains secure and decentralized.

Elastos also gives institutions a path to yield generation. Major mining pools such as Antpool, ViaBTC, F2Pool and Binance Pool already merge-mine Elastos at no extra cost — earning ELA tokens alongside Bitcoin rewards.

“As an ELA node, you can also stake ELA and you can actually earn small Bitcoin fees in return,” Sasha said, describing how staking can supplement a firm’s return on assets without relying on custodial third parties.

Looking ahead, Elastos plans to expand into tokenized asset markets — audio, video, software and AI services — enabling institutions to invest in quality digital assets while financing those purchases with Bitcoin-backed stablecoins.

Sasha envisions a scenario in which an institution issues stablecoins against Bitcoin holdings, acquires royalty-bearing tokens for digital content and then earns revenue from those tokens. When it is time to liquidate, the institution can redeem stablecoins and unlock Bitcoin on the Bitcoin network.