90 builders. 48 hours. Multiple ideas brought to life. 🚀 The @btcplusplus open source edition hackathon showcased what happens when builders are given the opportunity to collaborate, experiment, and ship. From cross-border payments and open-source tooling to Bitcoin infrastructure, Nostr applications, and financial inclusion solutions, the quality of projects was exceptional. As sponsors of the Best Contribution to Open Source and Solve Open Source Contribution Spam challenge tracks, we were happy to recognize: 🏆 UTXOracle BTC Calculator by Parrish for best contribution to open source challenge. 🏆 Filter by John Osezele, and Core-Gate by Aisha Omar & Mary Gathoni, joint winners for the open source contribution spam challenge. Congratulations as well to the overall winners: 🥇 WestToEast by Mouhamadou Kouta, which enables cross-border mobile money payments powered by Bitcoin and Lightning⚡ 🥈 Robin by Chris Oketch and Fidel Otieno, helping prospective Bitcoin open-source contributors find the right path before opening a PR 🥉 nairobi2, a permissionless ride-sharing platform with Bitcoin-based Sybil resistance And special recognition to the category winners and honorable mentions, including Hodlr, LNpesa, Pontswap, Dishi Fresh, PoWR System, Zaptip, SiriScore, MindfulSats, and Tando's Ark for pushing the boundaries of what's possible with open-source technology. Read our full recap for a breakdown of the winning projects, the builders behind them, and why we're excited about what's being built across Africa and beyond:

Btrust Blog

Celebrating the Builders of the Bitcoin++ Open Source Edition Hackathon

The bitcoin++ Open Source Edition Hackathon brought together 90 builders from across Africa and beyond for two intense days of hacking, collaborati...

Day 2 of @btcplusplus Nairobi 🇰🇪 kept the momentum going with a mix of technical deep dives, design conversations, and discussions about the future of bitcoin adoption. The day explored how bitcoin can become more accessible and usable across different contexts, from Lightning⚡ as bitcoin's translation layer and cross-platform wallet development, to open bitcoin mining and building better on and off-ramp experiences. There were also conversations around product design, the role of African designers in shaping bitcoin's future, and how more women across the continent are contributing to and reimagining Bitcoin innovation. We're especially proud of our grantees who took the stage, including John Osezele, who shared insights on building cross-platform bitcoin wallets with Flutter and BDK-Dart, and Tobechi Chukwuleta, who spoke about extending BTCPay Server through plugins while maintaining the integrity of the core project. Meanwhile, hackers continued building throughout the day, refining their projects, collaborating with mentors, and turning ideas into working solutions ahead of the Hackathon Expo.

Still buzzing from @btcplusplus Nairobi 🇰🇪, the first-ever conference in Africa, and the first open-source edition. Day one was packed with incredible sessions that explored what it really means to build, contribute to, and sustain open-source software. From practical advice on getting started in Bitcoin open source and becoming a better code reviewer, to discussions on making software more hackable and user-modifiable, there was something for everyone, regardless of where they are in their journey. We also dove into the technical side of Bitcoin and Lightning, exploring topics like improving Lightning infrastructure security, enhancing privacy in Taproot transactions, modern testing and fuzzing techniques in Bitcoin Core, and implementing features such as Replace-By-Fee in Lightning applications. AI was another major theme throughout the day, with speakers examining both the opportunities and trade-offs of using AI in open-source development. Conversations ranged from how AI can support contributors to the cognitive costs that come with relying too heavily on these tools, and what that means for the future of open source. There were also important discussions around building technology for African realities, closing the gap between contributor and founder, improving payment experiences across the continent, and exploring emerging technologies like Nostr and secure enclaves. Proud to see several Btrust grantees and team members take the stage, including Sulaiman Aminu Barkindo, Abiodun Awoyemi, Kelvin Isievwore, Abdullahi Yunus, Frankline Omondi, and 👩‍💻 Rita Anene, sharing their work and contributing to these important conversations. And that was just day one. Stay tuned for updates from the following days.

The countdown is on.⏳ In less than two days, @btcplusplus Nairobi 🇰🇪 kicks off, marking the first-ever conference in Africa and the first open source edition of the series. As the title sponsor, we're excited to be part of this milestone moment for the Bitcoin ecosystem. We'll be in Nairobi alongside developers, researchers, and open-source contributors from around the world, sharing ideas, learning from one another, and building the future of Bitcoin. If you're attending, come find us, say hello, and join the conversation. See you in Nairobi. 🚀

We had such an incredible time at the Freedom Tech Summit ahead of @BTC Prague 🇨🇿. A huge thank you to Lea Petrasova and the entire team for creating a space where builders, developers, and freedom technology enthusiasts can come together to learn, collaborate, and exchange ideas. We're leaving with new insights, meaningful connections, and plenty of inspiration for the work ahead. 🚀

We're heading to Nairobi 🇰🇪 for @btcplusplus open source edition, happening June 17–19. We're excited to join developers, contributors, and builders from across the global Bitcoin ecosystem for three days of talks, workshops, hackathons, and networking. If you'll be in Nairobi and would like to attend the conference, we're giving away a number of tickets. Here's how to participate: • Join the BitDevs Nairobi or the Btrust Builders Discord • Check the general channel for the giveaway details We'll be selecting a few community members to receive conference tickets. See you in Nairobi! 🚀

Earlier today Abubakar Sadiq Ismail walked us through a demo of the Bitcoin Core fee rate estimator Ul and the new mempool fee rate diagram (v31) was presented, showing ongoing work on making Bitcoin Core fee estimator design and proposal to reduce its over estimation and increases accuracy. If you're interested in the details or want to contribute, you can check out the work ongoing work on GitHub:

GitHub

fees: Introduce Mempool Based Fee Estimation to reduce overestimation by ismaelsadeeq · Pull Request #34075 · bitcoin/bitcoin

This PR is another attempt to fix #27995 using a better approach. For background and motivation, see #27995 and the discussion in the Delving Bitco...

Explore the live fee estimation stats here:

Bitcoin Core Fee Rate Estimator

Real-time Bitcoin fee estimation and mempool health analysis powered by Bitcoin Core.

On June 10th, Abubakar Sadiq Ismail will be speaking at the Freedom Tech Summit in Prague 🇨🇿. The Freedom Tech Summit is a gathering of developers, builders, hackers, and freedom technology enthusiasts exploring the future of open-source and decentralized systems. Abubakar will be presenting Bitcoin Core Fee Rate Estimator U.I demo. The session will feature: • A demonstration of the Bitcoin Core Fee Rate Estimator and fee estimation benchmarks • A demo of the Cluster Mempool Fee Rate Diagram UI Location📍: Hotel Duo, Prague West Room Time ⏰: 12:10pm If you'll be at the conference, be sure to stop by and catch the session. Learn more about the conference here:

Freedom Tech Summit 2026 | Prague

Freedom Tech Summit (formerly dev/hack/day) - Year 4 of the one-day conference for developers, hackers, and tech enthusiasts diving deep into Bitco...

Last week, the Btrust team had the privilege of attending the Oslo Freedom Forum, joining builders, activists, technologists, and advocates from around the world in conversations about freedom, human rights, and open technologies. Our CEO, @Abubakar Nur Khalil, took the stage during the closing panel of the Freedom Tech Track alongside Anaïse Kanimba, @npub1kp7j...487l, and @npub1ykgz...xf8j to discuss one of the most important questions in the Bitcoin ecosystem today: How do we make bitcoin practical for everyday people? A key theme throughout the discussion was Africa's growing role in Bitcoin adoption. Across the continent, people are already using Bitcoin for payments, savings, financial inclusion, and economic empowerment, demonstrating real-world use cases at scale. The conversation explored how builders, entrepreneurs, and advocates can continue creating tools that reduce barriers to access, expand freedom, and make bitcoin more useful in people's daily lives. Watch the full discussion here: https://www.youtube.com/live/Q-7xMYnMXfc?t=12208 A huge thank you to the @npub17xvf...c9as team for curating such an impactful space for dialogue, learning, and collaboration.

On June 2nd, @npub17xvf...c9as will be hosting the Freedom Tech Track at the 2026 Oslo Freedom Forum, bringing together builders, founders, and advocates exploring the role of technology in advancing freedom around the world. Our CEO, @Abubakar Nur Khalil, is one of the featured speakers and will be joining the panel on bitcoin adoption in practice. He’ll be speaking alongside: • Anaïse Kanimba, director & founder, Africa Bitcoin Institute • @npub1kp7j...487l, founder & CEO, @Fedi • @npub1ykgz...xf8j, co-founder, @Tando.me 📍 Oslo Konserthus, Deep Dive Stage ⏰ June 2nd, 5:45pm This is one session you won’t want to miss. Check out the Freedom Tech Track speaker lineup and schedule here: https://oslofreedomforum.com/event/oslo-freedom-forum-2026/freedom-tech-at-the-oslo-freedom-forum

We recently had the pleasure of sponsoring and being part of the just concluded @Adopting Bitcoin Cape Town 🇿🇦 conference. Things kicked off on Thursday with the Bitcoin Circular Economy Summit, followed by the pre-conference hangout. It was a great chance to meet people, network, and enjoy some fun activities like sim golf ⛳ before the main event began. On day 1, @npub1zm2d...f260, a Btrust developer grantee working on Stratum V2, presented a session on mining decentralization. He broke things down from the basics all the way to the technical details, showing why mining pool centralization can become a censorship risk. He also shared how Stratum V2 helps miners choose their own transactions, making Bitcoin more secure and decentralized. On day 2, @npub12qj0...w8vy, our communications lead spoke about what it takes to support and sustain open-source development in Africa and the Global South. She reminded everyone that behind Bitcoin is a strong human layer, consisting of developers, reviewers, maintainers, and community builders whose work keeps the network running and growing. She also shared how developers help turn Bitcoin from just a protocol into tools people actually use every day, like wallets, self-custody solutions, and payment infrastructure. That’s why decentralization shouldn’t stop at the code. We need builders from more places, especially those who understand local challenges, helping shape the tools that will bring Bitcoin to the next billion users. We’re proud to support this work by creating more sustainable paths for contributors and helping strengthen the ecosystem. One of the coolest parts of the conference was seeing bitcoin used in real life. We were able to buy coffee using bitcoin, powered by @BTCPay Server, one of the open-source projects helping make bitcoin payments possible. There was also a dedicated workshop space where builders got to share what they’re working on. It was exciting to see solutions being built from real local problems, and we loved connecting with the community and exploring new partnerships. A big thank you to the organizers and everyone involved for putting together such an amazing experience.

Highlights from the 2025 #BtrustGalaDinner ✨ We called, and you answered. The theme for the night was elegant, and attendees showed up and showed out. It was a night filled with joy, and incredible energy! The evening kicked off with aperitifs and light bites at the backstage lounge, setting the tone for relaxed networking and easy conversations. As guests made their way into the hall, the host, Paul Eke, got things started with ice-breakers, followed by a welcome address from @Abubakar Nur Khalil. @npub1kp7j...487l then shared a moving farewell, representing the outgoing inaugural Btrust Board. Since 2021, this board has been responsible for overseeing the delivery of Btrust’s mission, guiding the organization through its formative yea rs and setting the foundation for future success. We celebrate and thank them for their vision and leadership. The night also saw us celebrate the 2025 cohort of the Btrust Builders pathways, recognizing top students for their dedication, growth, and excellence throughout the program. A special moment was dedicated to celebrating Abubakar Nur Khalil and formally welcoming him into the office of the CEO. Under his leadership, Btrust has experienced a period of significant growth and transformation, moving from early groundwork to executing at scale. This includes expanding our programs, launching new partnerships, growing our developer reach, strengthening our grants review and delivery processes, and refining our internal systems and team structure. We wrapped up the evening with great food, drinks, dancing, and conversations, the perfect close to an unforgettable year. Thank you to everyone who joined us and made the night truly special. We hope to see you soon 🧡