Enabling Lightning Payments with Liquid Swaps in the Blockstream App

Enabling Lightning Payments with Liquid Swaps in the Blockstream App
Enabling Lightning Payments with Liquid Swaps in the Blockstream App

Coffee in Lugano. Lunch at Steak and Shake in Chicago. Merchandise at a convention sales space in El Salvador. With the newest 5.1.4 replace to the Blockstream app, Bitcoin funds turn into easy, dependable, and intensely personal due to Liquid ↔ Lightning swaps. By connecting its longest-running-in-production and battle-tested layer-2s—the Lightning and Liquid networks—you’ll be able to entry Lightning’s pace and comfort with out having to handle channels or pay for inbound liquidity. All self-custodial, all open-source, empowered by Bitcoin-native trustless atomic swaps.

Using Liquid and Lightning Swaps

  • Scan a Lightning bill at a service provider
  • Confirm fee
  • Done. 

It’s as straightforward as paying with fiat, however with higher cash. 

The mechanism? Trustless atomic swaps. Users pay Lightning invoices from a Liquid bitcoin (LBTC) stability and obtain Lightning funds that add to their LBTC stability mechanically. The swap occurs immediately and self-custodially; keys keep beneath your management with none middleman involvement. Atomic swaps use cryptographic hash locks to make sure each events get what they need—or neither does. If the swap fails or occasions out, funds return mechanically to the unique proprietor.

Unlike mainchain bitcoin, Liquid hides service provider holdings from clients, and buyer balances from retailers, whereas stopping exterior events from monitoring the circulation of funds on the community. You get all of the pace and all of the privateness.

Liquid ↔ Lightning swaps are additionally wonderful for personal, low cost, and environment friendly unspent transaction output (UTXO) administration. Withdraw from exchanges that assist Lightning withdrawals, obtain to your LBTC stability, and swap LBTC to mainchain bitcoin when it’s prepared for chilly storage.

Scaling Payment Accessibility Without Increasing Complexity

Lightning excels at high-volume, instantaneous funds. For customers able to handle channels and liquidity, native Lightning delivers most effectivity.

For everybody else, Liquid supplies the bridge, eliminating the have to incur on-chain prices simply to obtain liquidity, and deferring the have to pay these charges while you off-board to mainnet till a time that’s most cost-effective. Use your LBTC to have interaction with the quickly rising Lightning fee assist throughout the world now, after which take into account native Lightning channels if and while you’re prepared. It’s your cash, and your alternative. 

Coming Soon: On-Chain Swaps 

This replace is the first of a sequence of updates that can make swapping in the Blockstream app extra versatile than ever earlier than. Once you’ve acquired your stack of LBTC, in some unspecified time in the future it’s possible you’ll wish to swap again to on-chain BTC. Our subsequent replace will shut the loop, permitting you to swap between all three layers at your comfort: Lightning, Liquid, and on-chain. 

On-chain swapping will unlock some additional handy use instances: 

  • Stack LBTC by way of Lightning funds, and easily defer the on-chain charges to a time that’s higher for you if mempool charges are operating sizzling or if inbound Lightning liquidity is operating low. 
  • Move funds to your air-gapped Jade, clearing your Liquid or Lightning stability on to chilly storage. Or vice versa: Move funds out of your air-gapped Jade, topping up your Liquid or Lightning stability instantly from chilly storage. 

By enabling seamless swapping between all three networks, the Blockstream app will maximize flexibility whereas minimizing prices.

Making Bitcoin Better 

Using each layer-2 networks–Lightning and Liquid—retains liquidity in Bitcoin. It’s the identical system: verifiable, self-custodial, and open-source.

Lightning supplies instantaneous funds. Liquid supplies confidential settlement. Together, they create a symbiotic relationship, providing interoperability that strengthens each networks and Bitcoin total. Transaction quantity will increase throughout each layers and extra use instances turn into viable.

This structure permits interoperability with different rising layer-2 protocols and wallets, demonstrating that multi-layer Bitcoin infrastructure works with out sacrificing self-custody ideas.

Get Started

Liquid and Lightning swaps are reside in the newest model of the Blockstream app, and on-chain swaps are coming quickly. Read this tutorial to learn to begin swapping in the present day.

The Blockstream app is continuous in its evolution as the final monetary companion. We’re constructing for tomorrow whereas catering to our customers’ wants in the present day.

Every Bitcoiner’s private journey is totally different, which is why, since 2014, we’ve embraced the full scope of Bitcoin growth to unlock novel performance to accommodate each consumer. Together, we’re shifting towards a monetary expertise that’s uncompromising, unifying, and obtainable to anybody.

With Bitcoin as our spine, we’ll proceed constructing towards a monetary future that doesn’t accept something much less.