BSV Standards & Protocols Reference
Comprehensive index of BSV blockchain standards, protocols, and specifications.
Quick Reference
| Category | Standards | Description |
|---|
| BRCs | BRC-1 to BRC-100+ | Official BSV Request for Comments |
| BitCom | AIP, MAP, B, BAP, SIGMA | Data protocols using Bitcoin addresses as prefixes |
| Tokens | BSV-20, BSV-21, STAS | Fungible token standards |
| Ordinals | 1Sat Ordinals | NFT inscriptions on BSV |
| Identity | Paymail, BAP | Identity and addressing standards |
| Off-Chain | bitcoin-auth, bitcoin-backup, bitcoin-image | Authentication, backup, URL standards |
| Data Schema | Bitcoin Schema, Ord Schema | Standardized on-chain data structures |
Official BRC Standards
Key Derivation (BRC-42, BRC-32, etc.)
| BRC | Name | Description |
|---|
| BRC-32 | BIP32 HD Keys | Hierarchical deterministic key derivation |
| BRC-42 | Type42 Derivation | Modern ECDH-based key derivation |
| BRC-43 | Protocol IDs | Security levels and key ID conventions |
| BRC-69 | Key Linkage | Revealing key associations |
| BRC-72 | Linkage Protection | Encrypted linkage transmission |
Wallet Standards (BRC-1, BRC-2, etc.)
| BRC | Name | Description |
|---|
| BRC-1 | Transaction Envelope | Standard transaction format |
| BRC-2 | Encryption | Message encryption standard |
| BRC-29 | Paymail | Human-readable payment addresses |
Script Templates (BRC-48, etc.)
| BRC | Name | Description |
|---|
| BRC-48 | Pay to Push Drop | Token output template |
| BRC-100 | Wallet Toolbox | Standard wallet implementation |
Overlay Networks (BRC-22, etc.)
| BRC | Name | Description |
|---|
| BRC-22 | Overlay Networks | Network topology standard |
| BRC-31 | Authrite | Authentication protocol |
BitCom Protocols
Data protocols using Bitcoin addresses as OP_RETURN prefixes.
AIP (Author Identity Protocol)
Prefix:
15PciHG22SNLQJXMoSUaWVi7WSqc7hCfva
Signs content with Bitcoin addresses for verifiable authorship. Similar to Sigma protocol but does not require inputs.
OP_RETURN | <data> | AIP_PREFIX | "BITCOIN_ECDSA" | <address> | <signature>
Use cases: Content authentication, author verification
MAP (Magic Attribute Protocol)
Prefix:
1PuQa7K62MiKCtssSLKy1kh56WWU7MtUR5
Key-value metadata storage on-chain.
OP_RETURN | MAP_PREFIX | "SET" | "key1" | "value1" | "key2" | "value2"
Commands: SET, DEL, ADD, SELECT
Use cases: Metadata, tags, attributes, social data
B (Binary) Protocol
Prefix:
19HxigV4QyBv3tHpQVcUEQyq1pzZVdoAut
Arbitrary file storage on-chain.
OP_RETURN | B_PREFIX | <data> | <media-type> | <encoding> | [filename]
Use cases: Images, documents, any binary data
BAP (Bitcoin Attestation Protocol)
Prefix:
1BAPSuaPnfGnSBM3GLV9yhxUdYe4vGbdMT
Identity attestation and management.
OP_RETURN | BAP_PREFIX | "ID" | <identity-key> | <address> | [attributes]
Use cases: Identity creation, attestations, key rotation
SIGMA
Transaction-bound signatures for OP_RETURN data.
OP_RETURN | <data> | SIGMA | <algorithm> | <address> | <signature> | <vin>
Algorithms: BSM (Bitcoin Signed Message), BRC-77 (SignedMessage)
Use cases: Multi-party signing, transaction authentication
Token Standards
BSV-20
Fungible tokens using inscription format.
json
{"p":"bsv-20","op":"deploy","tick":"TOKEN","max":"21000000","lim":"1000"}
{"p":"bsv-20","op":"mint","tick":"TOKEN","amt":"1000"}
{"p":"bsv-20","op":"transfer","tick":"TOKEN","amt":"100"}
Operations: deploy, mint, transfer, burn
BSV-21
Enhanced fungible tokens with contract control.
Features: Programmable supply, transfer rules, metadata
STAS (Simplified Token And Smart Contracts)
Native token protocol using Bitcoin script-level enforcement.
Features:
- Script-enforced token transfers (no indexer required for validation)
- Fungible and non-fungible token support
- Atomic swaps and contract capabilities
- Native Bitcoin script validation
Run (Defunct)
Early BSV token protocol (runonbitcoin.com - no longer operational).
Status: Abandoned protocol from early BSV days. Stored data on-chain using B protocol, so historical artifacts remain accessible via ORDFS (ordfs.network).
Ordinals (1Sat Ordinals)
NFT inscriptions using ordinal theory on BSV.
Inscription Format
OP_0 OP_IF "ord" OP_1 <content-type> OP_0 <content> OP_ENDIF
Key Concepts
- Inscription: Data embedded in transaction scripts
- Ordinal ID: unique identifier
- Collections: Grouped inscriptions with parent reference
Identity Standards
Paymail
Human-readable payment addressing (BRC-29).
Capabilities:
- - Public key infrastructure
- - Get payment address
- - Peer-to-peer payments
- - Direct transaction delivery
BAP Identity
On-chain identity management.
Components:
- Root address (identity anchor)
- Identity key (deterministic ID)
- Attestations (claims about identity)
- Key rotation (address transitions)
Off-Chain Standards
bitcoin-auth
HTTP authentication using Bitcoin private keys.
Token Format:
pubkey|scheme|timestamp|requestPath|signature
bitcoin-backup
Encrypted backup file standard (.bep files).
Encryption: AES-256-GCM, PBKDF2-SHA256 (600k iterations)
Types: BapMasterBackup, BapMemberBackup, WifBackup, OneSatBackup, VaultBackup
bitcoin-image
On-chain image reference normalization.
Protocols:
,
,
,
,
, native txid
Data Schema Standards
Bitcoin Schema
Standardized data structures for on-chain data built on MAP and B protocols.
Types: Post, Like, Follow, Reply, Repost, Friend, Message, Payment, Ordinal
Ord Schema Type
Base metadata schema for ordinals inscriptions.
Related Packages
| Package | Purpose |
|---|
| Core BSV functionality |
| Script template implementations (replaces bmapjs) |
| Ordinals/inscriptions (migrating to - in progress) |
| BAP identity management |
| SIGMA signing |
| HTTP authentication |
| Encrypted backup files |
| URL normalization |
Deprecated:
- replaced by
Additional Resources
Reference Files
- - Complete BRC specification index
references/bitcom-protocols.md
references/token-standards.md
references/implementations.md
references/offchain-standards.md
External Links