How do I install the Bitcoin L2 Stacks skill?

Run npx skillmds@latest add claude-dev-suite/bitcoin-l2-stacks in your terminal (requires Node.js), paste this page's agent-chat prompt into Claude, Cursor, or any MCP-connected agent, or download the SKILL.md file and copy it into your agent's skills directory.

Is Bitcoin L2 Stacks safe to use?

SkillMD's automated safety review verdict for this skill is PASS. Independent scanners report: SkillSpector: CAUTION, Skill Scanner: PASS. Capability flags: reads secrets. SkillMD never runs a skill's scripts for you; review the SKILL.md before installing.

Which AI agents work with Bitcoin L2 Stacks?

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Is Bitcoin L2 Stacks free to use?

Yes. Installing skills from SkillMD is free, and the skill stays under its author's original license.

Who published Bitcoin L2 Stacks?

claude-dev-suite (@claude-dev-suite) published this skill. Their other Agent Skills are listed on their SkillMD profile.

Bitcoin L2 Stacks by claude-dev-suite

Name: Bitcoin L2 Stacks
Rating: 4.2 (5 reviews)
Author: claude-dev-suite

Bitcoin L2 Stacks

Stacks: Bitcoin smart contract layer with Clarity language, sBTC for native peg, Nakamoto upgrade for fast finality, PoX (Proof of Transfer) consensus. USE WHEN: building Bitcoin smart contracts, integrating sBTC, evaluating Stacks vs RSK / EVM alternatives.

claude-dev-suite Updated Aug 19, 2026 28 repo stars

File contents

Stacks

Stacks is a Bitcoin Layer 2 for smart contracts. Original 2017 ("Blockstack"), launched mainnet 2021. Major upgrade Nakamoto (2024) added near-instant finality and sBTC.

Architecture

Separate chain: Stacks blocks reference Bitcoin blocks.
Anchored: Stacks block hashes committed to Bitcoin via PoX.
Smart contracts: written in Clarity (Stacks-specific lang).
Native token: STX (used for fees, governance, staking).
Native BTC peg: sBTC — 1:1 BTC-pegged asset on Stacks.

PoX (Proof of Transfer)

Consensus mechanism:

Stacks miners burn STX (or send BTC, varies by epoch).
Miners earn STX block rewards + tx fees.
Stackers (STX holders who lock for ~2 weeks) earn BTC rewards from miner BTC contributions.
Bitcoin's security secures Stacks via the BTC commitment.

Nakamoto upgrade

Activated in 2024. Major changes:

Sub-second finality for Stacks-native transactions.
sBTC activation: 1:1 BTC-pegged asset on Stacks via threshold signature signers.
Bitcoin reorg robustness: Stacks chain remains stable through Bitcoin shallow reorgs.

Clarity language

Stacks's smart contract language:

Decidable — can analyze contracts statically (no halting problem).
No re-entrancy by design (contracts can't call themselves).
LISP-like syntax.
Source visible on-chain (no opaque bytecode).

(define-public (transfer (recipient principal) (amount uint))
  (ft-transfer? token amount tx-sender recipient))

sBTC

Bidirectional Bitcoin peg.
Threshold signers (n-of-m) sign peg-out releases.
Peg-in: send BTC to threshold signers' multisig → equivalent sBTC on Stacks.
Peg-out: send sBTC + Stacks tx → BTC released after threshold approval.

Use cases

DeFi on Bitcoin: lending, AMMs, derivatives using sBTC.
Stable coins / RWA tokenization: programmable assets.
DAO infrastructure: governance via Clarity contracts.
Bitcoin-native NFTs: pre-Ordinals NFT scene.

Major projects

ALEX — DEX/AMM on Stacks.
Arkadiko — stablecoin protocol.
STSWAP, Bitflow — DEX/AMM.
CityCoins (historic, mostly inactive).

Comparison

Aspect	Stacks	RSK	Liquid
Smart contracts	Clarity	EVM	Limited (Elements opcodes)
BTC peg	sBTC (threshold)	RBTC (federation + merge mining)	L-BTC (federation)
Consensus	PoX	Merge mining	Federation
Bitcoin security	Anchored	Inherited via merge mining	Federation only

Implementations

stacks-node (Rust) — full node.
Stacks.js — JS / TS SDK for app dev.
stacks-py — Python SDK.
Hiro Wallet — primary wallet.
Xverse Wallet — multi-chain Bitcoin wallet with Stacks support.

Limitations

Threshold signer trust for sBTC peg-out.
Smaller ecosystem vs Ethereum L2s.
Clarity learning curve (vs Solidity ubiquity).

---name: bitcoin-l2-stacksdescription: Stacks: Bitcoin smart contract layer with Clarity language, sBTC for native peg, Nakamoto upgrade for fast finality, PoX (Proof of Transfer) consensus. USE WHEN: building Bitcoin smart contracts, integrating sBTC, evaluating Stacks vs RSK / EVM alternatives.---# StacksStacks is a Bitcoin Layer 2 for smart contracts. Original 2017("Blockstack"), launched mainnet 2021. Major upgrade **Nakamoto**(2024) added near-instant finality and **sBTC**.## Architecture- **Separate chain**: Stacks blocks reference Bitcoin blocks.- **Anchored**: Stacks block hashes committed to Bitcoin via PoX.- **Smart contracts**: written in **Clarity** (Stacks-specific lang).- **Native token**: STX (used for fees, governance, staking).- **Native BTC peg**: **sBTC** — 1:1 BTC-pegged asset on Stacks.## PoX (Proof of Transfer)Consensus mechanism:- Stacks miners burn STX (or send BTC, varies by epoch).- Miners earn STX block rewards + tx fees.- Stackers (STX holders who lock for ~2 weeks) earn BTC rewards from miner BTC contributions.- Bitcoin's security secures Stacks via the BTC commitment.## Nakamoto upgradeActivated in 2024. Major changes:- **Sub-second finality** for Stacks-native transactions.- **sBTC** activation: 1:1 BTC-pegged asset on Stacks via threshold signature signers.- **Bitcoin reorg robustness**: Stacks chain remains stable through Bitcoin shallow reorgs.## Clarity languageStacks's smart contract language:- **Decidable** — can analyze contracts statically (no halting problem).- **No re-entrancy** by design (contracts can't call themselves).- **LISP-like syntax**.- **Source visible on-chain** (no opaque bytecode).```clarity(define-public (transfer (recipient principal) (amount uint)) (ft-transfer? token amount tx-sender recipient))```## sBTC- Bidirectional Bitcoin peg.- Threshold signers (n-of-m) sign peg-out releases.- Peg-in: send BTC to threshold signers' multisig → equivalent sBTC on Stacks.- Peg-out: send sBTC + Stacks tx → BTC released after threshold approval.## Use cases- **DeFi on Bitcoin**: lending, AMMs, derivatives using sBTC.- **Stable coins / RWA tokenization**: programmable assets.- **DAO infrastructure**: governance via Clarity contracts.- **Bitcoin-native NFTs**: pre-Ordinals NFT scene.## Major projects- **ALEX** — DEX/AMM on Stacks.- **Arkadiko** — stablecoin protocol.- **STSWAP, Bitflow** — DEX/AMM.- **CityCoins** (historic, mostly inactive).## Comparison| Aspect | Stacks | RSK | Liquid ||--------|--------|-----|--------|| Smart contracts | Clarity | EVM | Limited (Elements opcodes) || BTC peg | sBTC (threshold) | RBTC (federation + merge mining) | L-BTC (federation) || Consensus | PoX | Merge mining | Federation || Bitcoin security | Anchored | Inherited via merge mining | Federation only |## Implementations- **stacks-node** (Rust) — full node.- **Stacks.js** — JS / TS SDK for app dev.- **stacks-py** — Python SDK.- **Hiro Wallet** — primary wallet.- **Xverse Wallet** — multi-chain Bitcoin wallet with Stacks support.## Limitations- **Threshold signer trust** for sBTC peg-out.- **Smaller ecosystem** vs Ethereum L2s.- **Clarity learning curve** (vs Solidity ubiquity).## See also- [rootstock-rsk/SKILL.md](../rootstock-rsk/SKILL.md)- [liquid/SKILL.md](../liquid/SKILL.md)- [babylon/SKILL.md](../babylon/SKILL.md)- [bitvm/SKILL.md](../bitvm/SKILL.md)

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