BITCOIN LIGHTNING’S NETWORK EXPERIENCES REMARKABLE 1,200% GROWTH IN TWO YEARS 🎉
The Bitcoin Lightning Network has witnessed an astonishing 1,212% surge in transactions since August 2021, reaching 6.6 million transactions in August 2023, as reported by River Financial, a Bitcoin financial services company.
This data showcases a remarkable growth story for the Lightning Network, with the number of routed transactions soaring from 503,115 in August 2021 to a staggering 6,599,553 in August 2023, marking a remarkable 1,212% increase. Notably, routed transactions involve more than two nodes, and there's a belief that the actual figures might be even higher than reported.
The Lightning Network, a layer-2 protocol built on the Bitcoin blockchain, is designed to enable peer-to-peer transactions without the need for traditional blockchain verification.
Despite challenges like a bear market and a decrease in Google searches for Bitcoin by 45% and a 44% drop in its price, the Lightning Network has shown significant progress. The report also highlights a substantial increase in network volume, rising from $12.1 million and 303 BTC in August 2021 to $78.8 million and 2,950 BTC by August 2023, marking impressive growth at 546% and 874%, respectively.
In August 2023, the typical transaction size on the Lightning Network was around 44,700 satoshis (approximately $11.84). River Financial's estimates suggest an active user base ranging from 279,000 to 1.1 million in September 2023.
What's fascinating is that the Lightning Network continues to be a hub for micropayments, with a quarter of all transactions falling in the 1-10 satoshi range (equivalent to $0.0002), primarily used for gaming and streaming services. Another quarter of network activity involves transactions in the 10-1,000 satoshi range, often associated with tipping. Transactions exceeding 10,000 satoshis are geared towards commercial activities, remittances, and node rebalancing.
