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Maelstrom<\/a>, the family office of Arthur Hayes, has awarded the first grant from its Bitcoin developer program<\/a> to contributor Rkrux<\/a>. The funding will support Rkrux working full-time on Bitcoin Core.<\/p>\n Bitcoin relies on voluntary developers to maintain its codebase as an open-source project. Maelstrom recently launched a grant program to encourage more full-time work on improving and contributing to Bitcoin’s core infrastructure.<\/p>\n The first recipient is Rkrux, an emerging Bitcoin Core reviewer<\/a> who completed Chaincode Labs’ FOSS program this year. The grant will enable Rkrux to quit his job and focus entirely on Bitcoin development.<\/p>\n “One of the goals of the grant program is to recognize and reward emerging talent contributing to Bitcoin Core development,” said Arthur Hayes<\/a>, Maelstrom’s CIO.<\/p>\n Hayes added that supporting full-time developers strengthens the Bitcoin ecosystem. Rkrux represents the type of new talent Maelstrom hopes to back through its grants.<\/p>\n Rkrux<\/a> said the funding came at the perfect time as he was deciding whether to leave his job to pursue Bitcoin Core full-time. “The financial support from Maelstrom has made this possible,” he remarked.<\/p>\n As an experienced engineer but newer Bitcoin contributor, Rkrux is eager to step into the role and advance the project. He aims to become a top Bitcoin Core<\/a> developer with Maelstrom’s grant backing. The more full-time developers working on Bitcoin core, the better it is for the network’s improvement and resilience over time.\u00a0<\/p>\n