The demand for generating returns on bitcoin holdings is increasing, with Mezo introducing a new solution to help institutions put their idle BTC to work. Mezo Prime's segregated vaults, known as Enclaves, enable institutions to earn yield on bitcoin held in custody with Anchorage Digital Bank.
This move reflects a change in how institutions perceive the largest cryptocurrency, from a passive store of value to a capital-generating asset. The emergence of bitcoin-native yield infrastructure has driven this shift, with projects like Rootstock and Babylon developing mechanisms for BTC to be used in lending and other financial strategies. Mezo's Enclaves are designed to meet institutional requirements for asset segregation, reporting, and risk controls.
The project has received 250 BTC in funding from Bullish and will be used by the company as one of its first users. Bitcoin deposited into the vaults can be locked to earn protocol fees or used as collateral to borrow a bitcoin-backed stablecoin. While institutional adoption of these products is still in its early stages, projects like Mezo demonstrate a growing trend of treating bitcoin as a productive financial asset rather than just a digital equivalent of gold.