Really glad to finally see this out in the world! Over the past few years, I’ve had the privilege of working closely with #BitDevs communities across Africa and seeing what it actually takes to build technical spaces that last, not just meetups, but real cultures of learning, openness, and collaboration. This playbook is an attempt to document those lessons in a practical, honest way: what works, what’s hard, and what organizers should think about if they’re serious about building credible, technical #Bitcoin spaces. It’s all in there. Thank you @ihate1999, @dzeg5, and @TChileta for shaping this first release! Also, to @btrustteam for backing the work and continuing to invest in long-term ecosystem building. If you care about open-source, learning-driven communities, or you’re thinking about starting (or improving) a BitDevs chapter, I hope this is genuinely useful. It’s fully open-source and meant to evolve. Contributions are welcome!

What does it take to build a pathway for developers to find their place in Bitcoin open source? In the latest episode of Btrust in Focus, @proofofpaul sits down with @StephTitcombe, Head of Program & Operations at Btrust, to discuss the evolution of Btrust Builders and what it takes to support developers as they enter, grow and contribute to the Bitcoin ecosystem. They talk about the lessons that have shaped the program, the communities and projects that have grown around it, and the role of mentorship in creating a cycle where developers eventually become mentors and leaders themselves. Stephanie also shares what comes next for @btrust_builders, from expanding its technical pathways and supporting local communities to creating more opportunities for developers to build together. Watch the full episode here👉 piped.video/mfiMVJeT-Rg?si=5ozS…

We’re excited to announce the Q3 2026 Btrust developer grant recipients. 🚀 Ten Bitcoin open-source developers are receiving support: five starter grant recipients and five long-term open-source cohort members. This quarter also marks an important first: Btrust developer grants are going directly to developers outside Africa. Through our recent expansion of long-term grants across the Global Majority, we’re now supporting developers in Brazil 🇧🇷 and India 🇮🇳. Their work, alongside that of recipients in Nigeria 🇳🇬 and Kenya 🇰🇪, spans @bitcoincoreorg, mining ⛏️ infrastructure, Lightning⚡, wallet libraries, and privacy-preserving payments. Meet the recipients and learn about their work:

We’re excited to support the Nairobi 🇰🇪 edition of @hack4_freedom, happening from September 22nd to October 5th. The two-week program will bring together women interested in Bitcoin development for hands-on learning, building, and connecting with developers and mentors from the ecosystem. @Murugi___, @_frankomosh, @dzeg5, @nkatha_kk and @BrandonOdiwuor will also be joining the program and contributing to the sessions over the two weeks. Huge thanks to @ibrahim_sekinah, @briimhd, @DadaDevs, and everyone involved in making this happen and helping grow the pipeline of female Bitcoin open-source developers. 🧡 If you haven’t registered yet, there’s still time to join. Register here: app.evento.so/e/evt_thLRxQBL…

This is what a healthy Bitcoin developer ecosystem looks like. We’re proud to have supported @AnshSharma54105 along his journey, from Bitshala Fellowship and Starter Grant support to now working full-time on @braidpool with @btrustteam’s long-term support.

We’ve always wanted to give some of our senior contributors the peace of mind that comes with long-term support, but our own funding limitations haven’t allowed us to do that. I’m really glad Btrust can now offer @_oleonardolima and @plebhash that stability. Congrats to both of you. Very well deserved!

🚀Pleased to share that I am the Communications, Growth & Marketting Lead for @afribitcoiners and Chief Editor for @AfriBitcoinNews. I also had the pleasure of going to Kigali, Rwanda 🇷🇼 for @FreeRoutingAf Bootcamp and gave a speech on #Bitcoin and what we do at @afribitcoiners.

.@Murugi___ and @StephTitcombe from @btrustteam also gave speeches to encourage the participants to keep on building and looking at going further into Bitcoin open-source and contributing to more projects. @Murugi___ also was on the panel that vetted the projects built.🤝

Our Lightning Developer Bootcamp in Kigali officially came to an end yesterday 🇷🇼⚡ Five days of learning, building, contributing, and getting hands on with Bitcoin and Lightning came to an end yesterday. The final day was hackathon day. After four days of learning the fundamentals, working with Bitcoin Core, contributing to open source, building on Lightning, and exploring real world use cases, participants had the opportunity to put everything together and build. From ideas to working prototypes, it was amazing to see the creativity, technical skills, and energy in the room. More importantly, participants walked away with not just knowledge, but the confidence to keep building and contributing to the Bitcoin ecosystem. A huge thank you to every participant who showed up, asked questions, wrote code, broke things, fixed them, and kept learning throughout the week. 🙌 A special shoutout to our instructor, @dzeg5 , for taking the participants through an incredible five days of technical learning and hands on sessions. Your dedication made a huge difference. Also, a special shoutout to the @btrustteam, @Murugi___, and @StephTitcombe for joining us in Kigali and supporting the bootcamp. 🙌 And to our planning and organizing team, @EMbits, @JJ_the_creator and @MIhejimba, thank you for all the work behind the scenes that made this bootcamp happen. From logistics to coordination and everything in between, we appreciate you. ❤️ We are incredibly grateful to our sponsors and partners for making the Kigali Bitcoin Developer Bootcamp possible: @btrustteam , @HRF, @Tether_Africa , @afribitcoiners, and @planb_network, alongside our local partners and everyone who supported us in Kigali. Kigali, it has been a pleasure. This is only the beginning. Our next stop is Dar es Salaam 🚀

Day 1 of the Kigali Bitcoin Developer Bootcamp is in the books 🇷🇼⚡ Yesterday, we kicked things off by diving into the foundations of Bitcoin. We explored the history of Bitcoin, hash functions, cryptography, Proof of Work, and how Bitcoin works under the hood. Then it was time to get hands on. Participants set up Bitcoin Core, created wallets, sent transactions, listed transactions, and decoded transactions. The afternoon was dedicated to practical sessions, giving everyone the opportunity to interact directly with Bitcoin. A huge thank you to @StephTitcombe and @Murugi___ from @btrust_builders for joining us on Day 1 and taking the time to speak with the participants. It was great having you with us. Big shoutout to our instructor, @dzeg5 , for leading the sessions and helping bring the technical concepts to life. Thank you to our incredible sponsors and partners for making this bootcamp possible: @btrustteam , @HRF, @Tether_Africa , @afribitcoiners, @planb_network

NEW:⚡️Btrust Builders Announces 2026 Open-Source Fellowship for Bitcoin and Lightning Developers. The selective 12-week, part-time program runs from August 24 to November 13, 2026, with a formal kick-off on Monday, August 24. Read More: bitcoinnews.africa/btrust-bu…

Today, we chose to spotlight some of the amazing women making their marks in the Nigerian Bitcoin ecosystem. Meet: - @IamMissNabs - @WhatsHautewithH - ⁠@tochionyiah - ⁠Ezeobi Jennifer - @lady_neerah - ⁠@LilianNwamaife - @bevely_n - @StephTitcombe These are only a few of the many women doing meaningful work in the space in Nigeria. There are women building, teaching, writing, designing, researching, organising and contributing across Nigeria in ways that deserve recognition too. So if you’re a woman contributing to Bitcoin in Nigeria and you don’t see your name here, this celebration includes you too. 🧡 We’ll be bringing some of these women and more together at Dada Day Nigeria — a space to learn, connect, share ideas and celebrate the women helping shape Bitcoin and the broader tech ecosystem. 📍 IBIS Hotel, Ikeja, Lagos 🗓️ 15 August 2026 🕑 2 PM Come meet the women behind the work. Register for Dada Day Nigeria: luma.com/gud7a7z1 #BitcoinDada #DadaDayNigeria #WomenInBitcoin #BitcoinNigeria #BitcoinAfrica #WomenInTech

I’m grateful for the day I met the @btrust_builders team and @StephTitcombe at oscafest25🥹💃🏽❤️⚡️

₿OSS is truly a life changer. Grateful to have been part of this journey. 🖤

Had so much fun bringing this series to life 🔥 A huge thank you to all of our incredible guests for sharing their stories, to @withjpphoto for making the magic happen behind the camera, and to the superstar host, @proofofpaul, for leading the conversations.

The end of a program is not always the end of the story. Months after the 2026 ₿OSS Challenge, @abeeujah, @jolah99, Winterrdog, @tech_lateef, @JunaidAaliyah, @dev_useee, @chukwuxdike, @Su_Githaiga, @Its_nkathake, @_RulesPlayer and @_ceceji are still finding different ways to contribute to Bitcoin open source. Some are reviewing PRs and contributing to established projects. Others are building new applications, improving developer tools, exploring Lightning infrastructure, mentoring the next generation of developers and deepening their understanding of Bitcoin’s technology.

What does it take to grow the Bitcoin open-source ecosystem? Behind every contribution, project, program, and community is a story of curiosity, persistence, collaboration, and the people creating opportunities for others to build. Btrust in Focus is a new conversation series exploring the people behind Btrust's mission and the broader Bitcoin open-source ecosystem. Through conversations with builders, educators, community leaders, program operators, ecosystem partners, and members of the Btrust team, we explore the journeys, challenges, lessons, and experiences behind the work of growing Bitcoin. Across nine episodes, you'll hear from people building products, supporting developers, strengthening communities, advancing Bitcoin education, and creating pathways for the next generation of open-source contributors. The first episode premieres next week, with new episodes dropping every Friday. Subscribe to our YouTube channel and turn on notifications so you don't miss an episode: piped.video/@btrust_tech

Today, we wrapped up the final study group session of the second Bitcoin CLI Live cohort of 2026. 🎉 This week, participants completed their journey through Bitcoin script by exploring advanced scripting concepts, including conditionals and other opcodes that expand what's possible when building Bitcoin applications. They also examined real-world Bitcoin scripts, learning how different scripting patterns are used to create more powerful and flexible spending conditions. Over the past six weeks, the cohort has progressed from setting up @bitcoincoreorg and learning the basics of bitcoin-cli to creating transactions, working with multisigs and PSBTs, and writing increasingly sophisticated Bitcoin scripts through hands-on exercises and collaborative discussions. While the live sessions have come to an end, the journey isn't over just yet. Participants will now focus on completing their capstone projects before the final evaluation process begins. Congratulations to everyone who made it to the final week. 🚀

Today, we wrapped up the week 7 study group session, and with it, the second Mastering Bitcoin live cohort of 2026! 🎉 For the final week, participants explored Bitcoin security and second-layer applications, examining best practices for protecting bitcoin, managing private keys, and understanding the trade-offs involved in securing digital assets. They also looked beyond the base layer to explore how second-layer technologies help Bitcoin scale while preserving its core principles. Over the past seven weeks, participants have built a strong foundation in bitcoin through weekly readings, partner discussions, and collaborative study sessions. With the live cohort now complete, the next step is the evaluation process before publishing the final list of graduates. Congratulations to everyone who made it this far. 🔥

Welcome our first set of dev education grants. They are an important pillar of our mission