Babylon (BABY) is the native gas, staking, and governance token of Babylon Genesis, a standalone Cosmos-SDK proof-of-stake layer-1 blockchain (chain-id "bbn-1") that launched its mainnet on March 15, 2025.
Babylon Genesis is built by Babylon Labs to run the Babylon protocol, which lets Bitcoin holders stake native BTC directly to secure proof-of-stake networks without bridging or wrapping their coins. BABY is a native Cosmos-SDK asset (denom "ubbn", 6 decimals), not a token issued on Ethereum, Solana, or any other host chain.
Babylon's core differentiation is letting Bitcoin holders stake native, non-custodial BTC to help secure other proof-of-stake networks without wrapping or bridging the asset.
This has made Babylon the largest Bitcoin-staking protocol of the 2024-2026 cycle, with staking-linked total value locked that peaked above $7.1 billion in 2026. BABY captures this activity directly: BTC is dual-staked alongside BABY to secure Babylon Genesis, and a governance-approved mechanism auctions Bitcoin Secured Network staking rewards for BABY and burns the winning bid, linking protocol usage to token demand.
BABY is both a utility and governance token on Babylon Genesis.
As the chain's native gas token, BABY pays transaction fees. Holders stake BABY as validators or delegators to help secure the network, working alongside natively staked Bitcoin in a dual-staking security model. Staked BABY also grants on-chain governance voting power, letting holders vote directly or through their validator on proposals covering network parameters and protocol upgrades.
BABY launched with an initial total supply of 10 billion tokens, of which approximately 4.58 billion (about 45.8%) are circulating as of 2026-09-03.
A governance-approved mechanism auctions certain staking rewards for BABY and burns the proceeds, partially offsetting inflation.
Babylon Labs was founded in 2021; the BABY token and Babylon Genesis mainnet launched later, on March 15, 2025, with an initial supply of 10 billion BABY.
Before launch, Babylon Labs raised more than $111 million in disclosed funding: an approximately $8 million seed round in January 2022 led by IDG Capital and Breyer Capital, an $18 million Series A in December 2023, and a $70 million round in May 2024 led by Paradigm. A further $15 million raise followed in January 2026 from a16z crypto, earmarked for Trustless Bitcoin Vaults development.
BABY runs on Babylon Genesis, a standalone Cosmos-SDK proof-of-stake layer-1 blockchain identified by chain-id "bbn-1," rather than a token issued on Ethereum, Solana, or another host chain.
The chain uses delegated proof-of-stake consensus secured by its own validator set, which Babylon targets at roughly the top 60 validators by delegation drawn from an initial pool of about 100. Security is further reinforced by the Babylon protocol, which lets natively staked Bitcoin be dual-staked alongside BABY to help secure Babylon Genesis and connected proof-of-stake networks.
Babylon Labs was founded in 2021 by David Tse, a Stanford professor who leads the project's research, and Mingchao Yu ("Fisher Yu"), Co-founder and Chief Technology Officer.
Babylon Labs reportedly has no CEO. Other named team members include Shalini Wood (Chief Marketing Officer), Adam Ettinger (Chief Legal Officer), and Spyros Kekos (Head of Community).
Babylon Labs is the organization that develops and maintains the Babylon protocol and the Babylon Genesis blockchain that issues BABY.
It built the Bitcoin-staking infrastructure that lets BTC holders secure proof-of-stake networks without bridging or wrapping their coins, and continues to operate as the primary developer behind ongoing upgrades such as Trustless Bitcoin Vaults.
Babylon Genesis is governed on-chain through the standard Cosmos-SDK governance module.
BABY holders submit and vote on proposals affecting network parameters and upgrades, either directly or through their validator, and delegators may override their validator's vote. Proposals require a 14-day deposit period and a 3-day voting period, passing with a 50% approval threshold. A notable action, governance proposal #13, established a deflationary mechanism that auctions Bitcoin Secured Network staking rewards for BABY and burns the winning bid.
Babylon's primary in-development feature is Trustless Bitcoin Vaults (BTCVaults), which aims to let native, non-custodial Bitcoin serve as programmable DeFi collateral.
A January 2026 $15 million raise from a16z crypto was earmarked for this work, and a near-term catalyst is a governance proposal to integrate BTCVaults with Aave V4. In April 2025, Axelar integrated BABY for cross-chain interoperability across more than 70 chains. Upbit suspended BABY deposits and withdrawals on August 6, 2026, for a network upgrade.
Babylon Genesis has undergone two security audits by Zellic, completed in June 2024 and February 2025.
The first covered Babylon protocol components; the more comprehensive second audit, conducted December 2024-February 2025, covered the Babylon Genesis Chain and identified 10 Critical, 4 High, 4 Medium, 7 Low, and 7 Informational-severity findings. Babylon Labs also runs an Immunefi bug bounty program with a maximum payout of $500,000. Roughly 2.01 billion BABY (about 19.45% of supply) is bonded across the validator set to secure the chain.