Tag: Bitcoin Lightning Network

Binance Announces Integration of Bitcoin Lightning Network for Enhanced Transaction Efficiency

by Blockchain News

Cryptocurrency exchange giant Binance has announced its plans to integrate the Bitcoin Lightning Network for deposits and withdrawals. The move aims to improve transaction efficiency and provide users with a faster and more cost-effective experience.

The news broke when some observant users noticed the presence of new lightning nodes, which were later confirmed by Binance to be their own. This revelation created a buzz among the cryptocurrency community, generating anticipation for the forthcoming integration.

By leveraging Bitcoin Lightning Network, Binance users can expect quicker transactions and lower fees without compromising the integrity of the underlying network. This innovative solution offers a promising avenue to address the scalability concerns associated with the Bitcoin network.

Despite the exciting progress, Binance acknowledges that there is still further technical work to be completed before the Lightning Network can be fully integrated. However, the exchange has assured users that it will provide timely updates on the integration process, ensuring transparency and open communication with its community.

The integration of the Lightning Network aligns with Binance’s commitment to enhancing user experience and optimizing its platform’s functionality. By implementing this cutting-edge technology, Binance aims to offer a seamless and efficient trading experience for its customers.

With Binance’s integration of the Bitcoin Lightning Network on the horizon, cryptocurrency enthusiasts eagerly anticipate the prospect of faster transactions and reduced fees. 

The Bitcoin Lightning Network is a second-layer protocol designed to address scalability issues and enhance transaction efficiency on the Bitcoin blockchain. It functions as an overlay network built on top of the existing Bitcoin blockchain, enabling faster and cheaper transactions. The primary goal of the Lightning Network is to facilitate instant microtransactions while reducing transaction fees. It achieves this by creating payment channels between users, which are essentially off-chain channels for conducting transactions. These channels enable users to transact directly with each other without requiring every transaction to be recorded on the Bitcoin blockchain.

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Gamers in Africa Can Earn Bitcoin While Playing Classic Titles

by Blockchain News

Zebedee, a fintech and payments processor, has partnered with Bitnob to allow African gamers to earn Bitcoin while playing classic games such as Counter-Strike. The partnership will provide African users with a new way to earn Bitcoin through Zebedee-powered apps and games. The offering serves as a second layer in games that allows developers to replace vague in-game points rewards with satoshis, the smallest denomination of Bitcoin. These, in turn, can be converted to a local currency like the Nigerian nairas.

The partnership was driven by game developers who had Bitcoin in mind for tournaments and other gaming rewards. Zebedee’s chief strategy officer, Ben Cousens, explained that the Bitcoin Lightning Network will allow game developers to offer rewards to African gamers without the high costs associated with fiat rails.

“If I’m Activision Blizzard or EA Games and I have 30 million players of my games in Africa, and I run tournaments or giveaways, I cannot pay those players on fiat rails — it is too expensive. I am limited to the U.S., and I lose money from loss of engagement. Try sending $0.01 to these territories on another rail,” Cousens said.

Africa benefits from a young demographic and a digitally native population. Cousens continued, “We’ve seen consistent evidence of high demand for our platform across the African continent, where the purchasing power of Bitcoin is considerably higher than markets like the U.S. and Europe.”

The partnership between Zebedee and Bitnob highlights the growing trend of using the Bitcoin Lightning Network in gaming. Cousens stated that it is a natural evolution of the interactive entertainment landscape, where “Rewarded Play” provides meaningful performance uplift for game developers against a backdrop of slowing growth in mobile gaming revenue while engaging players in a fun and creative way.

In addition to its partnership with Bitnob, Zebedee has also launched its own mobile game, Infuse Challenge. The game allows players to earn Bitcoin by completing simple challenges and is powered by the Bitcoin Lightning Network. The company is also working on a gaming platform that will allow game developers to integrate Bitcoin Lightning Network payments into their games.

Zebedee’s innovative use of the Bitcoin Lightning Network in gaming has the potential to revolutionize the way gamers earn rewards and interact with their favorite games. With the growing popularity of Bitcoin in Africa, it is likely that more African gamers will be eager to take advantage of this new way to earn Bitcoin while playing their favorite games.

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TBD’s Block Launches c= to Enhance Bitcoin Lightning Network

by Blockchain News

TBD, a subsidiary of Block, has announced the launch of c=, a new initiative that aims to improve the Bitcoin Lightning Network. c= is a new endeavor that aims to improve the Bitcoin Lightning Network. The Lightning Network is a layer 2 payment network that aims to make Bitcoin transactions quicker, cheaper, and more reliable. Its primary function is to reduce the fees associated with Bitcoin transactions. From its inception, the network has been subject to unplanned expansion, with the acceptance of its services in the real world being the primary driver of its liquidity and capacity.

TBD wants to further extend the scope of the Lightning Network by offering more liquidity and routing services, and with the introduction of c=, they hope to accomplish this goal. The objective of the c= project is to enhance the architecture of the network in order to better facilitate the use of Bitcoin as a payment mechanism by the general public.

The Lightning Network is a crucial breakthrough for Bitcoin since it overcomes some of the difficulties associated with the original blockchain, such as sluggish transaction times and excessive fees. This makes the Lightning Network a vital addition to the Bitcoin ecosystem. Lightning Network transactions are peer-to-peer transactions that are more trustworthy, cheaper, and quicker than typical blockchain transactions. This is made possible by the addition of a second layer to the network, which is what the Lightning Network does.

Nevertheless, there are several difficulties associated with using the Lightning Network. Lack of liquidity is one of the primary problems, which might make it challenging to route transactions over the network. This is one of the fundamental challenges. Services such as c= come into play at this point. c=’s goal is to enhance the user experience by providing more liquidity and routing services. This will make it simpler for more individuals to use Bitcoin as a payment method and should encourage more people to do so.

Since it displays a dedication to developing the Lightning Network and making Bitcoin more accessible to a larger audience, the introduction of c= is an exciting step for the Bitcoin community. Services like as c= are vital for guaranteeing that the Bitcoin network is able to continue to satisfy the demands of users all around the globe as it continues its rapid expansion and widespread acceptance.

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Strike Secures $80m in Funding to Propel Instant Bitcoin Payments

by Blockchain News

Strike raised $80 million in funding to revamp BTC payments for top financial institutions, marketplaces, and merchants.

Jack Mallers, the CEO and founder of Strike, pointed out:

“We’re moving full speed ahead not just to integrate Strike’s revolutionary payments with leading merchants, but globally, with a variety of businesses and partners to innovate and deliver on more financial inclusion.” 

As a leading digital payments platform built on Bitcoin’s Lightning Network, Strike recently launched its flagship API meant to render instant, cash-final, and global payments by eradicating interchange and other processing fees. 

Some investors taking part in the $80 million funding included the University of Wyoming, Ten31, and Washington University in St. Louis, among others. 

Since Strike is poised to revamp the Landscape’s payments and financial services, Grant Gilliam believes it will offer everyone a more inclusive, innovative, and efficient financial experience.

The co-founder and managing partner of Ten31 added:

“Strike and Ten31 have a shared vision for the positive impact bitcoin can have on the world and are mutually aligned on accelerating its adoption. It was therefore a natural fit to partner with Strike as its lead investor.” 

Strike intends to use the capital to boost growth beyond its commerce API, enhance existing partnerships, and launch new collaborations. For instance, the digital payments platform intends to roll out new product lines that will take the hassle of building in-house solutions for large businesses and financial institutions. 

Mallers added:

“Businesses and institutions want a groundbreaking experience sending payments as well. We can empower businesses to move money in ways networks such as card networks and SWIFT can’t, and we pay these partners in the form of commissions to do so, which makes it an exciting innovation for everyone. We’ve seen a lot of demand here.”

Having clocked more than two million app downloads, it seems the sky’s the limit for Strike, given that it permits users to send dollars instantly and feeless globally.

Meanwhile, Strike enabled Shopify merchants to have the option of receiving BTC off-chain payments, which are readily confirmed, faster, and cheaper than that processed on-chain, Blockchain.News reported. 

Image source: Shutterstock

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Bitcoin Lightning Network Would be Practical for Small Payments than Debit Cards, Morgan Stanley Says

by Blockchain News

The Bitcoin Lightning Network attracts fees close to zero. It becomes more practical to use it when undertaking small payments than a debit card, according to leading investment bank Morgan Stanley.

As a layer two scaling solution on the BTC network, the Lightning Network (LN) boosts the blockchain’s capacity to undertake transactions more efficiently through micropayment channels. 

Therefore, transactions on lightning networks are more readily confirmed, cheaper, and faster than that processed on-chain or Bitcoin mainnet (layer one).

With more than 85% of sales in the United States happening in shops compared to online, Morgan Stanley believes partnering with physical stores would play an instrumental role in boosting Bitcoin as a medium of payment.

As a result, the Lightning Network is expected to bridge the gap based on its low transaction fees. An analysis of the  Bitcoin Lightning Network recently noted:

“Roughly a year ago the Lightning Network took off on Bitcoin. The on-chain transaction fees instantly started to go down and remained low ever since. Growing number of transactions sent at lightning speed with rock-bottom fees both on-chain and off-chain.”

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Source: Blockchain.com 

According to Arcane Research, the Lightning Network continues to gain steam because it recorded a 410% year-over-year growth.

Arcane Research also noted that the Lightning Network could radically change the business model of content providers in gaming, video, audio, and many more categories by providing a structure where continuous micropayments were made.

Meanwhile, merchants on Shopify, a global e-commerce giant, were recently given the option to receive off-chain payments through the Bitcoin Lightning Network after sealing a deal with Strike, a digital payments platform.

Image source: Shutterstock

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Shopify Inks Deal with Strike, Enabling Bitcoin Lightning Payments

by Blockchain News

Merchants on Shopify, a global e-commerce giant, will have the option of receiving Bitcoin (BTC) off-chain payments through the Bitcoin Lightning Network after sealing a deal with Strike.

As a leading digital payments platform built on Bitcoin’s Lightning Network, Strike will enable Shopify merchants to receive off-chain transactions, which are readily confirmed, faster, and cheaper than those processed on-chain or Bitcoin mainnet.

Jack Mallers, the founder and CEO of Strike, noted that the strategic partnership would easily enable Shopify merchants to accept Bitcoin payments as dollars. 

He added:

“The Lightning Network is a global payments network that lowers costs, enhances speed, drives innovation, improves financial inclusion, and brings the power of choice to consumers and merchants.”

Through Strike’s integration, Shopify merchants will be able to expand their existing payment options. As a result, they will utilise the potential purchasing power among global markets. 

Per the announcement:

“Strike’s integration also allows Shopify merchants to generate savings through low-cost payment processing.”

The partnership is also seen as a stepping stone towards reducing various complexities merchants face when holding BTC, given that their Bitcoin payments will be instantly converted to dollars.

With the Lightning Network (LN) being a layer two scaling solution on the BTC network, micropayment channels are used to enhance the blockchain’s capacity to undertake transactions more efficiently. 

A previous study by Arcane Research noted that the Lightning Network could radically change the business model of content providers in gaming, video, audio, and many more categories by providing a structure where continuous micropayments are made.

Therefore, Arcane Research foresaw a situation where the Lightning Network would transit from online services to everyday use. 

Image source: Shutterstock

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Bitcoin Lightning Network Continues to Gain Steam, Hitting Historic Highs of 3,436 BTC

by Blockchain News

After crossing the 3,000 BTC capacity for the first time in October 2021, the Bitcoin Lightning Network does not show signs of slowing down as its upward quest continues.

The Bitcoin Lightning Network capacity reached a new all-time high (ATH) at 3,436 BTC.

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Source: Glassnode

What is making the Lightning Network tick?

As a second layer integrated into the Bitcoin blockchain, the Lightning Network carries out off-chain transactions, which are readily confirmed, faster, and cheaper than those undertaken on-chain on Bitcoin mainnet or layer one.

Therefore, it prompts micropayment channels that scale Bitcoin’s capacity to execute transactions more efficiently. 

A previous study by crypto analytic firm Arcane Research noted that the utilization of the Lightning Network was transiting from online services to everyday use.

Arcane Research also acknowledged that this network could revamp the business model of content providers in audio, video, and gaming, among others, by availing a micropayment infrastructure.

Is Bitcoin experiencing a short squeeze?

The Bitcoin market has been sluggish since the start of the year based on massive liquidations that drove the price to lows of $33,000 recently.

Nevertheless, tables have turned because the top cryptocurrency has witnessed a 31.6% surge from these lows to record $43,450 during intraday trading, according to CoinMarketCap. 

Glassnode believes a short squeeze has prompted this price increase. The market insight provider explained:

“After three months in a persistent downtrend, Bitcoin has experienced a counter-trend rally, pushing above $44K. Short liquidation dominance has also increased, suggesting that a short squeeze is a partial driver of the move.”

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Source: Glassnode

With Bitcoin edging closer to a hyper-adoption phase, it remains to be seen how the top cryptocurrency plays out in the short term. 

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Cash App Set To Bring Bitcoin Lightning Network To Its 36 Million Users

by NEWSBTC

The Lightning Network has been integrated into Cash App, a peer-to-peer payment service operated by Block, previously Square Inc.

The feature allows transactions between parties that aren’t connected to the blockchain network. It was created to address the scalability issues with the flagship cryptocurrency.

Bitcoin Lightning Important For Speedy Transactions

Block (previously Square), a fintech firm co-founded by former Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey, owns Cash App. The news of the BTC L2 integration was announced as a notification on the official Cash App app, which Crypto Twitter picked up:

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With a throughput of five transactions per second (TPS) and an average transaction price of $1.79, Bitcoin falls far short of the mark in terms of payments.

$1.79 is a bargain compared to the highs of April 2021, when transactions cost an average of $62.78. Nonetheless, any transaction costing more than a few cents is impracticable as a widely accepted payment method.

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With its layer-2 solution, the Lightning Network provides tremendous scalability and cheap transaction costs.

It operates by diverting transactions from the main chain and placing them into peer-to-peer “payment channels” between two parties, such as a buyer and a coffee shop. Once the channel is created, it can handle an endless number of transactions in real-time.

The payer must first lock Bitcoin into the network to open a payment channel. After the recipient has been locked, they can invoice amounts based on the cost of the items and services sold.

Fees are a mix of routing fees for sending payment information between Lightning Nodes and Bitcoin transaction fees for opening and closing channels. These, however, are still far less than direct main chain transactions.

In November 2021, the Lightning Network’s total USD value locked (TVL) peaked at $216 million. Since that time, the TVL has reduced.

TVL locked in the lightning network. Source: DeFiPulse

Block CEO Jack Dorsey, who was previously the CEO of Twitter, has long advocated for the tool’s inclusion. “It’s not a ‘if,’ it’s more of a ‘when,’” he told podcaster Stephan Livera in 2019 that they would combine the scaling technology with payments provider Block’s mobile app.

“We don’t think it stops at [bitcoin] buying and selling,” he remarked.

Steve Moser, editor-in-chief of TheTapeDrive and a contributor to MacRumors, tweeted in November that Cash App “is working on Lightning network integration.” Moser said he discovered proof that Cash App was preparing to implement the additional features in December.

According to the most recent data from Business of Apps, Cash App had over 36 million users in the United States and the United Kingdom.

BTC/USD trades below $%k. Source: TradingView

Related article | Number Of Bitcoin Lightning Network Nodes Jumps 23% In Three Months

Cash App Is Not The Only One Adding The Feature

Belo App, based in Argentina, said on Monday that it has partnered with infrastructure provider OpenNode to enable Lightning Network access to its users.

Julie Landrum, OpenNode’s Head of Growth, stated that the deal allows millions of people in Latin America to conduct quick Bitcoin transactions.

Last month, ConsenSys, the Ethereum blockchain software startup, announced a solution that makes blockchain technology scalable on the Ethereum Mainnet or for private use, in conjunction with Mastercard.

Related article | Lightning Speed: Taproot And The Lightning Network, A Match Made In Heaven

Featured image from The Block, chart from TradingView.com, and DeFiPulse

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Number Of Bitcoin Lightning Network Nodes Jumps 23% In Three Months

by NEWSBTC

Despite the recent downtrend, bitcoin has been experiencing increased adoption on a larger scale. From El Salvador buying the dip to lightning network adoption going up, the digital asset has not been doing too bad. The most recent indication of increased bitcoin adoption has come in the form of bitcoin lightning network nodes. Data shows that these lightning nodes have recorded a significant uptick in the last three months.

Bitcoin Lightning Nodes Increase

Since its launch, the bitcoin lightning network has seen slow but steady adoption. Mostly, the need for a lightning network had not become pertinent until the bull run of 2018 that saw transaction fees spike significantly. It soon became important for there to be a way to lower transaction fees on the bitcoin blockchain even during peak transaction times and as such, the lightning network was adopted.

Related Reading | Calls For Tesla To Resume Bitcoin Payments As Mining Reaches 57% Renewable Energy

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The number of lightning nodes has grown since then, recording small upticks at various times in its history. However, none as significant as the increase recorded across the last three months.

From September 3rd to December 3rd, nodes added to the network had continued to climb. In this time period, there were a total of 3,534 nodes added to the network. This three-month period saw the total lightning network nodes break above 18,000, representing a 23% increase in this time frame.

Chart showing growth of bitcoin lightning network nodes

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Number of nodes on lightning network grows 23% | Source: bitcoinvisuals.com

This growth has been synonymous with a number of adoption initiatives that have seen more users adopt the bitcoin lightning network as a default way of sending BTC. Most notable has been the adoption of bitcoin as a legal tender in El Salvador and citizens using the lightning network to pay for goods and services using bitcoin.

The lightning network basically enables transactions to be sent off-chain, making it faster and cheaper than on-chain transactions, the main driver behind its recent adoption.

How Does The Increase Affect The Network?

The increase in the number of bitcoin lightning network nodes is a positive one. For starters, this allows the network to accommodate more transactions. It will enable the blockchain to scale and as such, carry out more transactions. It also means faster transaction times and lower fees for users for the network.

Related Reading | SEC Boss Acknowledges That Bitcoin Is A Competitor For U.S. Banking System

Bitcoin’s growth has attracted a lot of investors but more are expected to come in as the years go by. This influx of new entrants into the blockchain would lead to increased network activity, hence slower transaction times and higher fees. With the lightning network expanding, it will be able to increase the capacity to allow more transactions at low fees.Bitcoin price chart from TradingView.com

BTC settles above $51K | Source: BTCUSD on TradingView.com

Besides El Salvador, another popular implementation of the lightning network has been the Twitter Tip Jar. This feature on one of the largest social media platforms allows followers to tip their favorite content creators quickly at low or even zero fees.

Featured image from The Block, chart from TradingView.com

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El Salvador’s Chivo And Bitcoin Adoption In Mindblowing Facts And Stats

by NEWSBTC

Why didn’t we thought of measuring Chivo and Bitcoin adoption this way? Cero anecdotal evidence. Only facts, numbers, and reports from wherever we can get them. What do we know about the Chivo Wallet’s Lightning node? What apps besides the government wallet are the Salvadorans using? Are they happy with them? Investor and blogger Kevin Rooke has a fresh take on El Salvador’s Bitcoin adoption and we’re here to summarize it. 

“I wanted a deeper understanding of how real people in El Salvador are interacting with Bitcoin, so I went off in search of other success metrics.”

Related Reading | New To Bitcoin? Learn To Trade Crypto With The NewsBTC Trading Course

However, since “the Lightning Network is private by design,” it’s hard to accurately measure “payment volumes and the flow of funds between various wallets and exchanges.” So, what did Kevin Rooke do? He looked everywhere else for hard data about Chivo and Bitcoin adoption. Let’s explore what he found.

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BTCUSD price chart for 09/24/2021 - TradingView

BTCUSD price chart for 09/24/2021 - TradingView


BTC price chart for 09/24/2021 on Exmo | Source: BTC/USD on TradingView.com

The Chivo Ecosystem Is Growing Fast

To measure the Chivo wallet’s adoption, Rooke used the official information provided by President Bukele. Not ideal, but not uncommon either. It’s easier to get info about the Chivo Lightning node because you can check all the public info here. But wait, why is the Salvadorean government running a Lightning node?

“Just like every other participant on Bitcoin’s Lightning Network, Chivo runs a Lightning node. Since Chivo is a custodial wallet, all Lightning payments that Chivo users send to and from other Lightning wallets will transfer liquidity to and from Chivo’s node.”

Through those sources, what did the author find out about the Chivo ecosystem?

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  • At the moment, “Chivo’s node has 12.7 BTC of public capacity.” Which is 1,269,941,898 sats.

  • The Chivo node “ranks 83rd among public Lightning nodes.” 

  • At the time of writing, it’s connected to 58 other channels, but this number changes daily.

  • Back to the iOS App Store and Google Play Store, the Chivo wallet remains at the top of the popularity list, “beating all the most popular social media apps like WhatsApp, TikTok, and Instagram.”

  • O bet you haven’t thought about this one, “By onboarding over 1.6 million users in just two weeks, Chivo is likely the most popular Lightning Network app in the world today.”

What About The Other Bitcoin Apps? Are They Popular In El Salvador?

Ok, granted. El Salvador’s government incentivizes the downloading of the Chivo wallet app with $30. That has to move the needle. However, when it comes to all the other Bitcoin apps, such an incentive doesn’t exist. How are they measuring up to other financial apps? 

El Salvador's most popular apps, September 2021

El Salvador's most popular apps, September 2021


El Salvador's most popular apps for September 2021 | Source: Kevin Rooke

This infographic says it all:

  • “Salvadorans are already showing strong preference for Bitcoin apps over banking and remittance apps on a national scale,” as the graphic shows.

  • To put it in numbers, “9 and 13 of the top 20 apps on the respective app stores” are Bitcoin apps. And Chivo is at number one.

  • “Most of El Salvador’s banks and payment processors have user ratings of 2-4 stars,” that’s the traditional banking system for you.

  •  On the other hand, “Bitcoin related apps have user ratings of 3-5 stars.” Even though it’s still early, the facts are the facts. It should be noted that the Chivo app is at the lower end of that spectrum.

Related Reading | How Big Is Bitcoin’s Lightning Network? The Answer Will Surprise You

Besides that, Kevin Rooke identified a truth that might be obvious to some, but has to be said:

“The millions of Salvadorans that have already been onboarded to the Lightning Network aren’t Silicon Valley nerds or early tech enthusiasts. They’re regular people that are making a conscious choice to use the Lightning Network because it saves them time and money.”

And they don’t have to use the Chivo ecosystem if they don’t want to. That’s a fact.

Featured Image by Ray Aucott on Unsplash - Charts by TradingView

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