Introducing the First Round of 2025 Btrust Event and Developer Education Grants

Africa, May 16, 2025 — At Btrust, we continue to put our resources behind supporting and building out a fully fledged pipeline for open source developers to thrive. As such, we have supported numerous initiatives over the last few years, from developer education programs to conferences and events.

This year, we opened the application to the public to apply for our developer education and event grants, adhering to our commitment to transparency and ensuring all relevant projects and initiatives get the support they need. As such, we are pleased to announce the first set of developer education and events grantees.

In this round of support, Btrust awarded a total of $1,004,010 across 10 grants; specifically, four developer education, two events, and four conferences.

Bitcoin Developer Education Grants

As a critical component of our mission—seeking out, training, and supporting Bitcoin open-source developers—we intend to support a healthy path for developers to onboard to the Bitcoin open-source ecosystem. While we have our internal engine for doing this in Africa via Btrust Builders, for other Global South regions we are present in, such as LatAm and India, it is equally essential to support similar pipelines to train Bitcoin open-source developers.

Summer of Bitcoin

Summer of Bitcoin is a global online internship program that introduces university students to Bitcoin open-source development and design. Where students propose open-source projects and collaborate with mentors to develop Bitcoin tools, while receiving stipends in Bitcoin, and top performers get job referrals or open-source grants.

Since its inception, over 40,000 students have applied from 74 countries, with 218 eventually contributing to over 60 open-source Bitcoin projects—a growing number of which are from the Global South, underscoring the program's impact in expanding access and inclusion in Bitcoin development.

The 2025 edition takes place from May to August, starting with a four-week intensive bootcamp on Bitcoin fundamentals.

Website: Summer of Bitcoin

Vinteum

Vinteum is a Bitcoin research and development center dedicated to growing open-source developer talent in Brazil. Its mission is to train and fund developers working on Bitcoin and the Lightning Network, ultimately empowering the region's next generation of open-source contributors.

Through quarterly online seminars and their all-new 12-week Bitcoin Dev Launchpad and 6-month fellowship, Vinteum introduces engineers to Bitcoin and Lightning development fundamentals. Simultaneously, it offers grants to experienced developers, enabling them to work full-time on Bitcoin open-source projects and cultivating a thriving, technically skilled developer community in the region.

Website: Vinteum

Developer Education Program Long Term Support (LTS)

While supporting ecosystem-critical programs is essential, we concluded that Bitcoin developer education programs need consistent long-term support from our conversations with past grantees and subsequent evaluations.

As with individual developers, programs benefit significantly from long-term support as it allows them to set long-term goals and think, plan, and act more strategically, avoiding the usual hustle and bustle of constantly using their time to raise funds.

This kind of support is vital to ensuring a mutual shared vision by aligning on a long-term roadmap, making collaboration seamless, planning less stressful, and giving the program team much-needed breathing room to execute their visions.

To this end, Btrust is pioneering giving out long-term support grants to developer education training programs that align with our mission, have shown an excellent track record of execution, and have previously received a grant from us.

We proud to welcome Bitshala and Librería de Satoshi's Bitcoin For Open Source (B4OS) as the first recipients of the developer education long-term support grant.

Grant Structure

Presently, we are only making this available to grantees we have previously supported, subject to our discretion, who have consistently delivered on their metrics and align with the long-term vision of churning out exemplary developers from the Global South.

These long-term support grants are commitments for three consecutive years of funding. At the end of each year, they undergo an annual performance review to determine whether they continue receiving this support during that period.

Bitshala

Bitshala is a grassroots training initiative in India inspired by the ancient pathshala system, a traditional, community-driven approach to education. Founded in 2023, Bitshala exists to make Bitcoin open-source development more accessible, practical, and collaborative for developers at the start of their journey.

Since its inception, Bitshala has cultivated a vibrant ecosystem of learning. Its programs range from hands-on study cohorts that guide developers through core Bitcoin concepts to PR review clubs that collectively dissect and discuss Bitcoin Core pull requests. It also organizes regular BitDevs-style meetups, supports real-time collaboration through its physical dev hub Bitspace in Bengaluru, and runs the Bitshala Fellowship—a paid program—that supports fellows contributing directly to open-source Bitcoin projects.

In 2025, Bitshala is doubling down on its mission. The team is expanding its study cohort model to reach more aspiring developers, scaling its Fellowship program to support more fellows working on real-world Bitcoin tools, and deepening regional engagement through Bitspace and new city-based hubs. These efforts aim to decentralize Bitcoin education in India and support more localized, developer-led communities.

With multi-year Long-Term Support (LTS) from Btrust, Bitshala has the security and stability to focus on what matters most: building depth, not just scale. This funding enables the initiative to grow the team, support more fellows, invest in developer infrastructure, and grow sustainably, free from the constant cycle of short-term fundraising.

Btrust has supported Bitshala since its inception in 2023. Our continued backing reflects our strong belief in its approach as a critical on-ramp for Bitcoin open-source developers across India and the broader South Asia region.

Website: Bitshala

Librería de Satoshi's Bitcoin For Open Source (B4OS)

Since its launch in 2022, Librería de Satoshi has trained over 1100 professionals. Today, their alumni are actively contributing to the Bitcoin Ecosystem by working as FOSS contributors, joining prestigious Bitcoin companies, launching their own startups, and teaching in National Universities, among other projects.

Bitcoin 4 Open Source (B4OS), spearheaded by the Librería de Satoshi, is a free Bitcoin training program focused on empowering senior developers. For approximately 6 months, developers work to improve their technical skills and build a solid international portfolio through collaborations on real projects. The culmination is a two-week all paid residency with mentorship from some of the most respected leaders in the ecosystem.

Since its inception in 2024, Btrust proudly supported B4OS launch, helping it grow into one of the region's most effective developer accelerators. Senior Devs from the past cohort got awarded with grants from Spiral and BDK Foundation. B4OS will also provide micro-grants to 21 devs, while Librería de Satoshi will give 5 micro-grants to educators and 3 micro-grants to UI/UX designers. 

In its earlier version, the program required participants to have a strong foundation in coding skills and Bitcoin. In 2025, B4OS redesigned its curriculum to include foundational training, broadening access and onboarding a new group of developers with no previous Bitcoin background.

With long-term support, Librería de Satoshi and B4OS can now expand the efforts to run its 2025 cohort, provide grants to developers, and help other related developer-focused activities such as local Bitdevs in Mexico City, Buenos Aires, Santiago, Córdoba, Lima, Barcelona, Madrid.

Website: B4OS

Event Grants

Beyond developer education, Btrust also supports the earlier stages of the Bitcoin open-source pipeline—what we consider the gateways into the ecosystem—events and conferences. These play a vital role in attracting developer talent, offering entry points for those interested in building on Bitcoin, and creating spaces for technical exploration and community connection.

We view all conferences as events in their own right, and under our Event Grants, we support a broad spectrum of initiatives, from technical bootcamps and hands-on workshops to large-scale convenings.

In 2025, we've focused our support on events that together lay a strong foundation across our core regions in the Global South. These gatherings help introduce new developers to Bitcoin and expand opportunities for deeper collaboration across ecosystems throughout the year and into the future.

Adopting Bitcoin Cape Town 2025

Adopting Bitcoin is a leading global conference dedicated to advancing Bitcoin adoption. Traditionally held in El Salvador, the conference expanded to the African continent with the launch of Adopting Bitcoin Cape Town in January 2024.

Since its African debut, Btrust has proudly supported the conference, recognizing its value as a regional catalyst and a global bridge for developers, educators, and advocates. By combining technical depth with real-world context, Adopting Bitcoin Cape Town has become a potent entry point for those looking to build meaningful, community-aligned Bitcoin solutions across the region.

Website: Adopting Bitcoin Cape Town

Bitcoin++ Florianopolis 2025

Bitcoin++: Hacking Edition returned to South America in February 2025 with its first-ever Brazilian edition, a beachside, hackathon-style event in Florianópolis, Brazil.

Breaking from traditional conference formats, this edition focused almost entirely on hands-on work. Participants engaged in technical workshops, live coding challenges, and hacking sessions, with bounties totaling over 10 million sats.

This was the first Bitcoin++ conference held in Brazil and the first time Btrust has supported the conference. It marks a pivotal milestone in our ongoing commitment to support Bitcoin open-source talent beyond Africa, particularly in Latin America, where innovation hubs are rapidly emerging.

By backing events like Bitcoin++ Florianópolis, Btrust continues to help expand the global reach of open-source Bitcoin development, connecting builders, nurturing ecosystems, and ensuring that talent from across the Global South has the resources to thrive.

Website: Bitcoin++ Florianopolis

Dakar Bitcoin Days 2025

Dakar Bitcoin Days returns for its third edition from October 29–31, 2025, in Dakar, Senegal. Launched in 2022, the event has consistently drawn together builders, educators, and enthusiasts around the future of Bitcoin in the region.

Btrust first supported the second edition in 2023, and we're proud to return in 2025, now with an expanded mandate and deeper engagement. This year's edition builds on that momentum, with a sharper focus on technical programming, grassroots adoption, and regional developer discovery.

As part of our ongoing push into French-speaking Africa, Dakar Bitcoin Days is a key platform for identifying and onboarding new contributors to the open-source Bitcoin ecosystem.

Website: Dakar Bitcoin Days

Africa Bitcoin Conference 2025

The Africa Bitcoin Conference (ABC) is the continent's premier gathering for Bitcoin builders, educators, and advocates.

Since its inaugural edition in 2022 in Accra, Ghana, ABC has grown into a cornerstone of the African Bitcoin ecosystem, with subsequent editions in Accra (2023) and Nairobi, Kenya (2024). The 2025 edition will take place in Mauritius, continuing its mission to rotate across the continent and reflect the diversity of Bitcoin communities across Africa.

ABC was the first conference ever supported by Btrust, and we've been proud to stand behind it from the very beginning. As part of our support, we've enabled dozens of developers, educators, and community leaders from across Africa to participate, ensuring that those closest to the challenges are also closest to the solutions.

Website: Africa Bitcoin Conference

Africa Free Routing Lightning Bootcamps

In 2024, African Bitcoiners' Africa Free Routing initiative launched a series of Bitcoin developer bootcamps focused on the Lightning Network, designed for a frequently overlooked segment: experienced developers in tech companies and the broader digital assets space who are curious about Bitcoin.

Following the success of initial bootcamps, the team has already run over five Lightning-focused sessions in 2025, including one in Cape Town, South Africa, earlier this year. To continue delivering these high-impact trainings, Btrust partnered with Africa Free Routing to support five additional bootcamps across the continent throughout 2025.

The first of these new bootcamps is underway in Kaduna, Nigeria. It will run until May 17, with the final bootcamp in the series returning to Cape Town in January 2026, just ahead of the Adopting Bitcoin Cape Town 2026 conference.

Base58's LARP Tutor Session in Mauritius

In 2024, Base58 ran its first-ever Live Action Role Play (LARP) Tutor Training in Guadalajara, Mexico, equipping ecosystem leaders with a fun, technically accurate way to teach Bitcoin concepts through immersive roleplay.

Since then, trained tutors have brought LARP sessions to their communities, including at the Africa Bitcoin Conference 2024, where Brittney M (Co-organizer, Honolulu Bitcoin) and Stephanie Titcombe (Btrust Builders program lead) led a session introducing over 40 participants to the inner workings of Bitcoin.

Recognizing the impact of these sessions in sparking curiosity and deepening technical understanding, Btrust is supporting Base58's second LARP Tutor Training in Mauritius. This edition will train ecosystem leaders from across the continent, each receiving LARP kits to take back and run sessions within their communities, further spreading accessible, engaging Bitcoin education across Africa.

Btrust's 2025 Outlook

As we approach mid-year 2025, Btrust will continue to seek out, partner with, and provide necessary support to programs and events aligned with the ethos of the Bitcoin open-source ecosystem, seeking, training, and increasing the pipeline of quality Bitcoin open-source developers.

As part of our philosophy of ensuring we champion a healthy ecosystem, we will continue to encourage collaboration among Bitcoin grant organizations and within our ecosystem of grantees, to streamline applications, and also create a cohesive environment where projects, programs, and events feed into each other in an additive and mutually beneficial manner—leading to a robust pipeline of burgeoning Bitcoin open-source developers.

With many more activities, partnerships, and collaborations ahead, we look forward to continuing to deliver on our mandate of fostering and supporting the Bitcoin open-source developer ecosystem in Africa and the Global South.

Learn more about our work and explore our grant programs on our website.

Onwards!