Hemi

Comparing Hemi with Other BTC L2's

By Will McKinnon Updated March 11, 2025

Summary

Initially the idea of building on top of Bitcoin was met with outrage from the hardcore BTC maxi crowd, however the demand for these products is obvious with the rise of Runes & Ordinals, the Lightning Network, and Layer 2 solutions like Stacks
Hemi scales Bitcoin by integrating a full Bitcoin node within the EVM, creating the Hemi Virtual Machine (hVM).
By viewing them as two parts of one larger whole rather than independently, Hemi achieves a developer and user experience that feels like Ethereum while still accessing the security and liquidity offered by Bitcoin.

Introduction

With the eyes of the whole world on Bitcoin and its ecosystem given the incredible run it has had this year, the question now becomes, how can we make Bitcoin better and more usable? Initially the idea of building on top of Bitcoin was met with outrage from the hardcore BTC maxi crowd, however the demand for these products is obvious with the rise of Runes & Ordinals, the Lightning Network, and Layer 2 solutions like Stacks. Bitcoin gaining over a trillion dollars in market cap since January 1st 2024 has added even more fuel to the fire and there are now a number of efforts trying to address the issue of scaling BTC. Many of these focus on Bitcoin alone, adding rapid transactions or smart contract functionality to the network yet fail to allow for meaningful interoperability with other chains like Ethereum.

In this article, we’ll dive into some of the approaches scaling Bitcoin and more specifically, the Hemi Network’s approach to integrating the best of Bitcoin and Ethereum into one unified experience. Founded by Bitcoin core developer Jeff Garzik and having raised a $15M seed round, Hemi is definitely one to watch as we get closer to its mainnet launch.

Comparing Approaches to Scaling Bitcoin

Since the tech behind these networks can get quite complicated, we broke down the major differences between popular approaches to Bitcoin L2’s in the market in the table below. It’s important to note that while both Stacks and Hemi enable smart contract functionality on Bitcoin, Hemi has uniquely integrated the EVM in a way that allows seamless integration and transfers of assets between BTC and ETH.

Network Name	Scalability	Security Mechanisms	Interoperability
Hemi Network	Hemi scales Bitcoin by integrating a full Bitcoin node within the EVM, creating the Hemi Virtual Machine (hVM). This allows developers to create dApps that leverage both Bitcoin’s security and Ethereum’s programmability.	Hemi developed the novel Proof-of-Proof (PoP) consensus mechanism where state proofs are published on the Bitcoin blockchain, ensuring robust transaction finality.	Because of its novel scaling architecture, not only is the developer experience the same as building on EVM, but a feature dubbed ‘tunneling’ allows secure asset transfers between Bitcoin and Ethereum. In essence, both Bitcoin and Ethereum are treated as unified components of the network.
Lightning Network	The Lightning Network is an approach to scaling Bitcoin transactions to allow for cheap and rapid payment transactions. This is done through off-chain transactions via payment channels, making transactions near-instant. It is especially suitable for high-volume payments processing or microtransactions. This solution does not use the EVM.	The Lightning Network employs smart contracts to secure transactions within payment channels, ensuring valid transactions and mitigating fraud risk.	Lightning supports interoperability by enabling cross-chain atomic swaps, allowing users to exchange Bitcoin for other cryptocurrencies seamlessly.
Stacks Network	Stacks improves Bitcoin transaction throughput by allowing block production to increase by an estimated 120 times, and reducing confirmation times from 10 minutes to just a few seconds following their upcoming Nakamoto upgrade. This solution does not use the EVM.	Stacks uses Proof of Transfer (PoX), connecting its security to Bitcoin through miners that commit special Bitcoin deposits to secure the network. This ensures that transactions on Stacks inherit the security and finality of Bitcoin.	While Stacks does enable smart contracts and dApps on Bitcoin, its interoperability with other chains is defined by its reliance on Bitcoin as a base layer. There are specific conditions for user withdrawals through peg-out mechanisms.

What Sets Hemi Apart

Hemi differentiates itself from alternatives by its core ethos of integrating Bitcoin with Ethereum. By viewing them as two parts of one larger whole rather than independent networks, Hemi achieves a developer and user experience that feels like Ethereum while maintaining the security and liquidity offered by Bitcoin. While Stacks offers similar smart contract functionality, it is not seamlessly integrated with Ethereum, thus limiting the capabilities of dApps built on the chain.

Lightning plays a specific role in scaling Bitcoin, primarily supporting BTC as a payment method. With Bitcoin increasingly used as a store of value, its role as a payment unit has also grown, and Lightning remains the leading solution for Bitcoin payments due to its focus on that use case rather than programmability or interoperability. However, for broader applications beyond payments, Hemi offers an appealing platform for developers building within the Bitcoin ecosystem.

Wrapping Up

While numerous solutions aim to scale Bitcoin, none have yet achieved robust interoperability between Bitcoin and Ethereum. Given the significant size and influence of these two blockchains, integrating them effectively for both users and developers is essential and Hemi looks to be the protocol to beat for full ETH/BTC integration.