Counterparty

What Counterparty does

Counterparty is a decentralized, open-source metaprotocol built on the Bitcoin blockchain, operational since 2014 and positioned as the original DeFi and NFT protocol on Bitcoin. It extends Bitcoin's functionality by embedding Counterparty-specific data in regular Bitcoin transactions using OP_RETURN encoding, allowing every Counterparty transaction to remain a standard Bitcoin transaction while supporting token issuance, a decentralized exchange, smart contracts, native oracles, prediction markets, and trustless gaming. The reference client, Counterparty Core, connects to Bitcoin Core and decodes embedded data to construct the protocol's own ledger of transactions and network state. Counterparty 2.0 (v10.4.0, released September 2024) added UTXO support, enabling atomic swaps with Ordinals and Runes assets, alongside a Fair Minting Protocol, a dynamic Gas System, Free Subassets, and a rebuilt RESTful API v2.

The ecosystem spans five third-party wallets (Casa Tookan, Horizon, RarepepeWallet, Freewallet, CounterWallet V2), six block explorers, and six NFT/asset marketplaces (Firemints, OpenStamp, ORBital, Pepe.wtf, Scarce City, Horizon Market), all operated by independent parties. The project is maintained by a small core development team led by Adam (adamkrellenstein), with contributions from the broader open-source community. Counterparty is structured as a non-profit protocol project rather than a traditional company; no venture or equity ownership is indicated in the source data.

Counterparty has no direct revenue model. The protocol is free to use, with users paying standard Bitcoin miner fees and optional XCP fees that serve as an anti-squatting mechanism (redistributed to issuers, burned, or used as protocol gas). GTM is community-led: developer engagement via GitHub, announcements via Twitter and Telegram, and user acquisition through third-party wallet and marketplace integrations rather than a sales or marketing function. Customer segments are horizontal — developers building Bitcoin-native DApps, NFT collectors (Rare Pepes, Stamps, Fairmints, SOG), and crypto power users — with no enterprise sales motion or pricing tiers.

Name

Counterparty

Website

https://counterparty.io

Company type

Private

Founded year

2014

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Counterparty is an open-source decentralized metaprotocol on Bitcoin, operational since 2014, enabling token issuance, smart contracts, decentralized exchange, and NFT trading. It serves developers, NFT collectors, and crypto power users through third-party wallets, explorers, and marketplaces.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Blockchain Protocol

NAICS

Securities and Commodity Exchanges (52321), Financial Transactions Processing, Reserve, and Clearinghouse Activities (522320)

SIC

Security & Commodity Brokers, Dealers, Exchanges & Services (6200), Services-Computer Programming, Data Processing, Etc. (7370)

akta.pro primary industry

Stablecoins & On-Chain Money (fiat-backed, crypto-backed, algorithmic; issuance/redemption) (FSAPAEAB)

akta.pro secondary industry

NFT Authentication, Provenance & Anti-Fraud (verification, provenance graphs, wash-trade detection) (FSAPAFAH)

Keywords

• Bitcoin metaprotocol
• Decentralized exchange
• Token issuance
• Bitcoin smart contracts
• NFT marketplace infrastructure

Headquarters

HQ city

New York

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Technology or R&D, Personnel, Operations, Others

Revenue model

1. Protocol Operations (No Direct Revenue): Counterparty is an open-source decentralized protocol. There is no explicit revenue generation mechanism for the core project. The protocol uses XCP (Counterparty's native token) for transaction fees, which serves as an anti-squatting mechanism. The project relies on community development and volunteer contributions.
2. Bug Bounty Program: Counterparty operates a bug bounty program that pays out in XCP and BTC to researchers who discover and report security vulnerabilities. Bounty amounts range from $20 to $1,500 depending on severity.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Counterparty is a Bitcoin metaprotocol that extends Bitcoin's functionality by embedding data in regular Bitcoin transactions using OP_RETURN encoding. It enables users to create and trade custom digital assets (tokens and NFTs), access a trustless decentralized exchange, execute smart contracts, and build decentralized applications on the Bitcoin blockchain. The project operates as open-source software (Counterparty Core) distributed via GitHub and provides a RESTful API for developers and exchange integrations.

Product overview

Counterparty is a decentralized protocol and platform built on the Bitcoin blockchain, functioning as a metaprotocol that extends Bitcoin's native capabilities. The platform provides a suite of wallets (Casa Tookan, Horizon Wallet, RarepepeWallet, Freewallet, CounterWallet V2), block explorers (Memepool, XCP.io, Tokenscan, Pepe.wtf, XCPDex, XCP Ninja), and marketplaces (Firemints.xyz, OpenStamp, ORBital, Scarce City, Horizon Market). The protocol enables token issuance, decentralized exchange trading, smart contract automation, native oracles, and trustless gaming. Counterparty Core v10.4.0 (Counterparty 2.0) introduced major protocol features including UTXO Support, Fair Minting Protocol, Native Atomic Swaps, and Gas System for attaching Counterparty assets to Bitcoin UTXOs. The ecosystem is accessible via a public RESTful API (API v2) for developers to build applications.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Counterparty Protocol The original DeFi and NFT protocol on Bitcoin that extends Bitcoin's functionality by embedding data in Bitcoin transactions. Implements token issuance, decentralized exchange, smart contracts, native oracles, and trustless gaming on the Bitcoin blockchain.
• Counterparty Core The reference client software for the Counterparty protocol. Runs alongside Bitcoin Core and interprets Counterparty data embedded in Bitcoin transactions to construct the protocol's ledger. The v10.4.0 release ('Counterparty 2.0') introduced major protocol features including UTXO support, Fair Minting Protocol, native atomic swaps, and a Gas System, with the API remaining backwards-compatible and no reparse required.
• Counterparty RESTful API (API v2) RESTful node API for building applications and automating transactions on the Counterparty protocol. The v2 API was rebuilt in 2024 and enables developers to interact with Counterparty transactions, create sends, manage assets, query blockchain data, compose transactions (send, dispense), and integrate with exchanges. The deprecated API v1 also remains available.

Quantifiable outcome

• Protocol operational since 2014 with 10+ years of continuous operation
• +2 more outcomes

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

Yes

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration6 records

Feature14 records

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Casa TookancoreTechnology or Integration · 1 January 2014Multi-chain non-custodial mobile wallet supporting Bitcoin and Ethereum ecosystems. Official wallet for the Spells of Genesis (SoG) game, allowing players to manage SoG assets alongside other Counterparty and Ethereum tokens. Provides dispensers, asset creation, DEX, and fairminter functionality.
• Horizon WalletcoreTechnology or IntegrationSleek, modern wallet rebuilt from the ground up for the Counterparty Bitcoin metaprotocol. Features smart asset swaps with DEX trades and PSBT atomic swaps, deep integration with Horizon Market, dispensers, asset creation, DEX, and fairminter functionality.
• RarepepeWalletcoreTechnology or IntegrationWallet supporting Rare Pepes and the entire Counterparty NFT ecosystem. Created in 2016, supports legacy Counterwallet seedphrases and Ledger hardware wallets. Features buying/selling from DEX, sends, asset transfers, address sweeps and message signing.
• CounterWallet V2coreTechnology or IntegrationWeb-based Counterparty wallet interface supporting asset creation, dispensers, DEX trading, fairminter. Connects with external wallet providers including Unisat, OKX, Leather, and FreeWallet.
• Pepe.wtfcoreTechnology or IntegrationPopular Counterparty NFT explorer with wallet connectivity and marketplace functionality. Supports auctions, sales and mints for Counterparty assets.
• Firemints.xyzcoreTechnology or IntegrationFacilitates trading of Counterparty assets through atomic swaps for decentralized and risk-free transactions without third-party involvement. Supports XCP tokens, SOG cards, RarePepes, Fairmints and Stamps.
• OpenStampcoreTechnology or IntegrationLeading platform in the Bitcoin STAMPS ecosystem offering comprehensive services including minting, trading, exploration, and leap functionality. Expanded to fully support Counterparty asset trading.
• ORBitalcoreTechnology or IntegrationDecentralized marketplace for Counterparty assets built on the Bitcoin blockchain. Features peer-to-peer trading with seamless navigation and discovery of digital assets.
• Horizon MarketcoreTechnology or IntegrationAllows users to trade any Counterparty asset for BTC trustlessly and peer-to-peer using atomic swaps. Works with Horizon Wallet, Xverse, OKX, Leather, and Unisat Chrome extensions.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Stacks: Stacks is the leading smart-contract layer for Bitcoin, enabling DeFi, NFTs, and programmable applications on top of Bitcoin's base chain. It is a broader incumbent competing for the same developer and user mindshare as Counterparty, with substantially more funding and ecosystem support.
• Rootstock (RSK): Rootstock is a Bitcoin sidechain enabling EVM-compatible smart contracts and DeFi. It competes with Counterparty for Bitcoin-native programmability use cases (DeFi, tokenization) but through a very different sidechain architecture rather than a metaprotocol.
• Liquid Network: Liquid is a Bitcoin sidechain focused on asset issuance, settlement, and exchange-side liquidity (e.g., tokenized BTC). While more institutional in orientation, it overlaps with Counterparty in enabling non-BTC asset transfer and trading on Bitcoin-adjacent rails.

Direct peers

• Bitcoin Stamps: Bitcoin Stamps (and the OpenStamp marketplace) is a competing metaprotocol for inscribing digital assets on Bitcoin via data-carrying UTXOs. OpenStamp is a noted Counterparty marketplace partner but also an independent ecosystem pursuing overlapping NFT and token use cases.
• Bitcoin Runes: Runes is a Bitcoin protocol for fungible tokens launched in 2024 by Casey Rodarmor. Like Counterparty, it enables asset issuance and trading on Bitcoin, and Counterparty's atomic-swap feature is explicitly designed to interoperate with Runes — making it the closest direct peer.
• Bitcoin Ordinals: Ordinals is a Bitcoin metaprotocol for inscribing NFTs and fungible assets directly on satoshis, the most direct functional competitor to Counterparty in the Bitcoin-native NFT/digital-asset space. Counterparty's new UTXO support specifically targets interoperability with Ordinals, underscoring their tight overlap.

Others

• Magic Eden: Magic Eden is a leading multi-chain NFT marketplace that has aggressively expanded into Bitcoin Ordinals and Runes. It is not a direct protocol peer, but it is a key distribution point for competing Bitcoin metaprotocols and influences where Counterparty ecosystem assets get traded.
• OpenSea: OpenSea is the largest general-purpose NFT marketplace. Although it has limited Bitcoin-metaprotocol exposure today, it is a thematic peer competing for NFT liquidity and could expand into Counterparty-style assets, representing an adjacent rather than direct competitive threat.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/CounterpartyXCP
• GitHubgithub.com/CounterpartyXCP
• Facebookfacebook.com/CounterpartyXCP
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/3644957

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Counterparty