The Sui Foundation has announced the launch of the Hashi testnet, an infrastructure layer built on Sui designed to bring native Bitcoin into decentralized finance. The testnet allows developers, custodians, and financial institutions to begin testing Bitcoin-backed applications ahead of the protocol's mainnet deployment.

Hashi aims to transform Bitcoin from a passive store of value into productive collateral while meeting the security and operational standards required by institutional participants. According to the Sui Foundation's official blog post, the testnet includes SDKs, integration guides, and technical documentation that enable ecosystem partners to validate their applications and workflows before going live.

Institutional Bitcoin DeFi Now Open for Testing

With the testnet operational, developers can gain early access to build lending, borrowing, yield, and credit products using native Bitcoin as collateral. Hashi is specifically designed to enable programmable finance while providing robust security for BTC backing.

For institutions, the testnet phase is significant because Bitcoin-backed financial products require more than application-level functionality. Custody controls, collateral movement, auditability, and risk-management workflows all need to be tested before real assets are introduced on mainnet.

Over 25 ecosystem partners have already joined the network, spanning custody service providers, wallets, DeFi protocols, liquidity providers, insurance companies, and security auditors. Notable participants include BitGo, Ledger, Bullish, Cumberland, FalconX, Scallop, Suilend, Navi, and SwissBorg.

Wave Digital Assets Expands Commitment

Wave Digital Assets, an institutional asset manager and reward platform, is supporting Hashi during its early development phase. The firm plans to expand its tokenized Bitcoin and yield-bearing bond products on Sui over the next three years, citing confidence in the institutional Bitcoin fixed-income market.

Guardian Layer Enhances Collateral Security

A key feature of Hashi is Guardian Layer, a security mechanism purpose-built for institutional Bitcoin collateral. The system introduces a second level of validation for collateral transfers, requiring both validator and guardian approval through a 2-of-2 multisignature architecture.

This layer integrates with Hashi's existing framework, which already includes automated collateral management, verifiable loan terms, and transparent on-chain monitoring of collateral health. The added approval layer reflects a broader institutional requirement in digital asset finance: collateral systems must be able to support operational checks and clear authorization processes, not only automated execution.

Building Infrastructure for Bitcoin Credit Markets

Institutional interest in Bitcoin has grown significantly, driven by the approval of spot ETFs, corporate treasury purchases, and increasing regulatory clarity. However, the vast majority of Bitcoin holdings remain underutilized due to a lack of financial infrastructure capable of securely programming financial services around the asset.

That infrastructure gap is especially relevant for Bitcoin because the asset is widely held but does not natively support the same kind of smart contract environment used by many DeFi protocols. As a result, Bitcoin credit and collateral markets depend on systems that can connect BTC custody, collateral verification, and programmable financial applications without compromising security assumptions.

Hashi seeks to address this gap by equipping developers and institutions with the resources needed to build Bitcoin lending, borrowing, settlement, and tokenized asset products. The testnet phase allows builders to integrate applications and institutions to review workflows before the full mainnet launch, advancing native Bitcoin finance toward broader adoption.