Robin Linus, the individual behind the BitVM whitepaper, has criticized Citrea, claiming that the project’s marketing is rife with exaggerated claims and misleading statements.
Citrea, a zero-knowledge rollup project that recently raised $2.7 million in seed funding from Galaxy Ventures, is facing backlash for potentially deceiving the public through its promotional efforts.
Linus, the mind behind the BitVM whitepaper, has expressed his reservations about Citrea’s marketing tactics in a recent X post on May 30, accusing the project of making overstated claims and spreading misinformation.
Although specific details are scarce, Linus has alleged that Citrea’s marketing strategy suggests a closer association with the BitVM project than is actually the case, in an attempt to attract investors and attention.
In response to Linus’s criticisms, Orkun Kılıç, a co-founder of Chainway Labs, the team responsible for Citrea, defended the project by stating that Linus’s comments have cast a shadow over their hard work. Kılıç maintained that Citrea’s marketing accurately reflects their technological advancements and expertise in zero-knowledge technology and innovation.
The goal of Citrea is to establish a layer of execution on top of the Bitcoin blockchain using zero-knowledge proofs to enhance the scalability of the Bitcoin ecosystem.
Zero-knowledge proofs are cryptographic techniques that allow one party to prove possession of certain information without revealing the information itself. These methods have been crucial in enhancing privacy and scalability in the cryptocurrency space, with examples like zk-SNARKs in Zcash and zk-rollups in Ethereum.
According to the technical documentation of the project, Citrea’s proofs are integrated into the Bitcoin blockchain and are verified through BitVM.
In February, Citrea secured close to $3 million in funding from various investors, including Galaxy Ventures, Delphi Ventures, Eric Wall, and Anurag Arjun.
Following the funding announcement, Pantera Capital, a crypto venture capital firm, projected a significant opportunity for the Bitcoin network in decentralized finance (DeFi). Pantera suggested that Bitcoin could potentially attract up to $500 billion in value through DeFi applications, positioning Bitcoin-based DeFi as a major player in the crypto market.
Currently, Ethereum dominates the DeFi sector, hosting a majority of related activities. Pantera Capital highlighted that decentralized applications on Ethereum historically represented a significant portion of Ethereum’s market capitalization, with the current estimate around 25%. By applying similar proportions to Bitcoin, analysts at Pantera anticipate that the network could draw approximately $225 billion in value through Bitcoin-based DeFi applications.
For more insights, check out Eric Wall’s perspective on BitVM, described as “mindblowing” yet challenging to implement.