Ethereum (ETH) is currently the leader when information technology comes to smart contract capabilities and the sheer number of projects operating on its network, simply the button to build products on Bitcoin (BTC) is gaining traction with advocates similar Square CEO Jack Dorsey spearheading the try to bring decentralized finance (DeFi) to the Bitcoin network.

One project aiming to combine the features of DeFi with the security of the Bitcoin network is Stacks (STX), a layer-one blockchain protocol designed to bring smart contracts and decentralized applications (dApps) to the Bitcoin network.

Data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView shows that since dropping to a low of $0.50 on June 22, STX price rallied 195% to $i.47 on July eleven and now that Bitcoin has shown some bullish momentum, STX price is moving college once more with a 10% gain on  July 22.

STX/USDT iv-hour nautical chart. Source: TradingView

Three reasons for the contempo strength in STX include the release of the Clarity programming linguistic communication which brought smart contracts to Stacks 2.0 and Bitcoin, the ability for STX holders to pale tokens for BTC rewards and the inflow of DeFi and nonfungible tokens (NFTs) to the Bitcoin network.

Smart contracts come up to Bitcoin

The introduction of the Clarity programming language on Stacks has been the main catalyst of growth for the Stacks ecosystem because it enabled the creation of smart contracts on the Bitcoin network.

Clarity claims to be  a "decidable language" which means that "y'all can know, with certainty, from the code itself what the program will practise."

The chief difference betwixt Clarity and other smart contract languages is its decidable language, which is not Turning complete, and the fact that the language is interpreted and broadcast on the blockchain as is, rather than being compiled, which "ensures that the executed code is human-readable and auditable."

The collaboration between the ii networks means popular sectors like DeFi and NFTs now accept a way to operate and be recorded on the Bitcoin network without needing to worry about slow transaction times and increased costs.

STX holders can earn BTC by staking

Stacks recently rolled out STX staking for holders and this enables them to earn BTC as a reward.

The Stacks network uses a novel mining protocol called proof-of-transfer (PoX), which runs in parallel to Bitcoin and uses the BTC network as a reliable broadcast medium for its block headers.

While most proof-of-stake networks offer staking rewards paid out in the native token, members of the Stacks community can pale their STX tokens to earn BTC at an boilerplate rate of ten%.

This represents one of the few opportunities across the crypto infinite where a token holder can pale their tokens and earn BTC equally a reward.

Related : Crypto staking rewards and their unfair tax in the US

DeFi and NFTs come to Bitcoin

On July 10 STX created and sold the first-ever Bitcoin NFT from the Stacks blockchain.

 The event was meant to mark the offset of a new era of smart contracts on Bitcoin and additional bullish news revealed that USD Money (USDC) will aggrandize to the Stacks network. This prompted some pundits to cite the Bitcoin Law which states that "successful experiments in crypto will somewhen come up to Bitcoin."

The inflow of NFT and DeFi capabilities take also introduced new ways to leverage these popular sectors to earn a yield in BTC and this has the potential to attract new participants.

As a result of these developments, momentum for STX has been on the ascension in July as evidenced past an increment in toll and 24-hr trading book.

VORTECS™ data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro began to detect a bullish outlook for STX on July xix, prior to the recent price ascent.

The VORTECS™ Score, exclusive to Cointelegraph, is an algorithmic comparison of historic and current market conditions derived from a combination of information points including market sentiment, trading volume, recent price movements and Twitter activity.

VORTECS™ Score (green) vs. STX toll. Source: Cointelegraph Markets Pro

Equally seen on the chart above, the VORTECS™ Score for STX climbed into the green on July nineteen and reached a high of 70 roughly 34 hours before the price rallied 42% over the next ii days.

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