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How to send and receive payments on the Lightning Network
Learn to use Lightning Network by setting up a wallet, funding it, and using it to make and receive payments.
To send and receive payments on the Lightning Network, users must first set up a Lightning wallet and fund it with Bitcoin. From there, they can create payment channels and start transacting. This article will guide users through the process, from setting up their Lightning wallet to making their first Lightning payment.
The Lightning Network (LN for short, or simply “Lightning”) is a decentralized system for instant, high-volume micropayments that prevents users from delegating custody of funds to trusted third parties. It is a layer-2 protocol — a computer network built on top of the Bitcoin base layer (layer 1), the actual blockchain. The Lightning Network uses the Bitcoin base layer’s high protection standards to secure the network.
Bitcoin is a payment system designed to be slow, and its transactions are finalized in as long as one hour; this is because Bitcoin assembles transactions into blocks spaced on average 10 minutes apart, and payments are considered secure after confirmation of six blocks, which is about one hour. This is not ideal for micropayments and smaller transfers that are typically inefficient due to high base-layer fees. Read More
Michael Saylor: Bitcoin Ordinals Are a ‘Catalyst’ for Adoption
Saylor roped in the rise of Bitcoin Ordinals as yet another catalyst for adoption alongside hyperinflation and the rash of bank failures.
Bitcoin bull and Microstrategy co-founder Michael Saylor said the latest Ordinals craze has been a catalyst for Bitcoin adoption
“Every time someone builds an application that’s cool on Bitcoin, like all the Ordinals and inscriptions and whatever that are driving up transaction fees, its a catalyst,” said Saylor on the PBD Podcast.
He roped in bank failures, hyperinflation, regulators calling the asset a commodity, and whenever “a company like Microstrategy buys another $100 million worth of Bitcoin” as similar catalysts for adoption.
Ordinals, unlike the other catalysts mentioned, is a newer development on the leading blockchain.
They offer a way to store media on the network by inscribing their data on the smallest unit of Bitcoin, satoshi. It was developed in early 2023, essentially ushering in non-fungible tokens (NFTs) on the largest network in the industry. Read More
Bitcoin Community Divided: Scaling Challenges Trigger Intense Debate as Mempool Overflows
This week, the Bitcoin community has been abuzz with discussions about the network’s scaling challenges. As the blockchain’s transfer fees continue to surge, the backlog of transactions stuck in the mempool has hit an unprecedented high. Crypto enthusiasts have been sharing their diverse perspectives on the matter, leading to a flurry of takes across various social media platforms.
Bitcoin’s Scaling Challenges Spark Controversy and Diverse Perspectives:
The recent surge in Ordinals and BRC20 token usage has led to a significant increase in onchain activity, causing the mempool to overflow with over 400,000 transactions. Currently, a whopping 194 blocks need to be mined to clear the backlog, which would take more than 24 hours at an average of ten minutes per block. As a result, people have been sharing a wide range of opinions on the matter, with some revelling in the higher fees and increased onchain activity, while others suspect that the blockchain is under attack. Meanwhile, some believe that the so-called attacker’s scheme is unsustainable and will eventually fizzle out.
“[The] mempool is spammed with dust payments (546sat) to drive fees high and block normal transactions,” one person speculated. “What if a state is behind this? Or Satoshi itself?” the individual asked. Some people shared the opinion that high fees are meant to prevent spammers. Read More
Limewire has raised over $16M for its blockchain-focused revival
The project's LWMR token will be listed on top exchanges in the coming days.
Limewire said on May 9 that it raised more than $16 million for its revived platform through sales of its cryptocurrency token (LMWR).
Limewire surpasses $15M goal:
By raising $16.5 million, Limewire has surpassed its $15 million funding goal and is more than halfway to its $30 million fundraising limit.
The project’s website says that the sale will close on May 11 and that the token will be listed on four major exchanges beginning on May 16.
The project raised funds in fiat as well as cryptocurrencies, including Ethereum (ETH), Bitcoin (BTC) USD Coin (USDC), Tether (USD), and Binance Coin (BNB). It added support for XRP, Cardano (ADA), and Polygon (MATIC) payments around May 6.
Limewire previously announced on April 21 that it had raised $10 million through a private sale led by led by Kraken Ventures, Arrington Capital, and GSR. Read More
A democratic society values a free-flowing media ecosystem. A healthy media ecosystem is one of the characteristics of a democratic society. Mass media outlets such as newspapers and cable TV networks were prominent in the past. Today, the internet and social media platforms allow for greater communication across society.
Journalism, investigative correspondents, and even freelance writers are essential to that ecosystem. High-quality reporting revealing brutal truths and users' scope and exposure on social media to either create or access information are forces that can drive genuine societal change. And even keep the power structures in check.
Despite the positive aspects mentioned above, harmful practices and negative external forces related to the media ecosystem often eclipse them. These issues are usually easy to recognize once they’re identified. Therefore, it is important to acknowledge them and spread awareness about their potential risks.
Doing so will help you make informed decisions about how you use media and how it can impact your life and the lives of others. The following are a few issues pervasive in many digital news sites, forums, and social media platforms. Read More
Markethive Media has embraced blockchain technology and cryptocurrency, building an ecosystem that belongs to “we the people,” eliminating many of the issues plagued by media outlets today. With its meritocratic culture, dynamic social media interface, and growing community, Markethive is enhancing and bringing the platform into the future internet with new technology and interfaces, but still in keeping with the human touch.
UK Should Not Look This Crypto Gift Horse In The Mouth
With the Biden administration and US regulators looking to run crypto out of town, the UK has a great chance to fill the crypto regulatory void.
With everything said and all the actions implemented thus far, it is obvious that the US wants to drive crypto from its shores. The only real reason for this must be that the bankers are frightened of what would happen if crypto were to really gain some traction and the ordinary investor started to pull out more bank funds with which to buy bitcoin and cryptocurrencies.
The fact that crypto is still not properly regulated in the US is hardly the fault of the cryptocurrency companies. All know that a visit to the Security and Exchange Commission (SEC) in order to register a crypto business is a fairly certain way of jumping to the front of the queue of those waiting to be sued by the regulatory agency.
The companies that the SEC has gone after in recent times are some of the biggest exchanges, probably with the thinking that if these can be pulled down then investors will have far fewer options for buying and selling crypto.
Even so, it’s quite telling that these self-same exchanges are among the most regulated in crypto, and those such as Coinbase have moved heaven and earth to accommodate the SEC, with only one aim - to become fully compliant and regulated. Read More
Why Web2 companies fail in Web3 while others made it
Web3 is now becoming the norm of this new era and therefore, a flurry of Web2 companies and venture capital firms are investing heavily in Web3 to avoid falling behind.
The emergence of Web3 — the next generation of the internet — has led to tremendous growth and profits for creators. This has garnered the interest of several established Web2 companies to join the burgeoning ecosystem.
However, success in Web2 doesn’t guarantee success in Web3. Having been in the industry for a while, I have witnessed many projects skyrocket to success while others crumble, even during the bullish signals. This is because the Web3 world is significantly different from Web2, and navigating this new landscape requires a different approach.
The Porsche 911 7500-edition collection NFT project is a prime example of such a failure. Despite being launched by a luxury automaker, the Porsche 911 collection received disapproval from the Web3 community and failed to sell out in the primary market.
On the other hand, Reddit’s foray into Web3 has been a phenomenal success, surpassing OpenSea’s wallet count in the blink of an eye.
This begs the question, why did others fail terribly and some broke all the records in the same market? The difference in outcomes signifies the importance of doing thorough research before entering Web3. Read More
MetaMask rolls out ETH purchases via PayPal to US users
Users in the United States can also transfer ETH from PayPal to MetaMask. The companies first announced their collaboration in 2022.
Crypto wallet and decentralized application (DApp) provider MetaMask has started rolling out Ether purchases via PayPal for users in the United States — one of MetaMask's biggest markets. The company claims to be the first Web3 wallet to offer Ether transactions via PayPal.
Through the collaboration, American users can now choose PayPal as their payment method when buying ETH using MetaMask. The integration also makes it possible to transfer ETH from PayPal to MetaMask.
The financial technology firm teamed up with MetaMask parent company ConsenSys last December, claiming the partnership would allow users to buy crypto seamlessly and explore the Web3 ecosystem easily. Read More
Uniswap Deliberating On Proposal To Switch On Liquidity Pool Fees
The Uniswap decentralized exchange community is deliberating on a proposal to switch on Liquidity Pool Fees.
The plan to switch on Liquidity Pool Fees would see money being funnelled into Uniswap’s treasury and token holders.
A Critical Revenue-Generating Proposal:
The proposal under consideration would see fees switched on for many of Uniswap’s liquidity pools. It is the latest development in a long-standing debate around Uniswap’s broader finances and protocol fees. If the proposal is passed, then implementing fees on the pools would allow Uniswap to top up its treasury and give rewards to token holders of the protocol’s native UNI token.
The protocol’s decision to monetize its platform by switching on fees for a significant number of its V3 liquidity pools and all of its V2 pools could set a precedent for the larger decentralized finance (DeFi) ecosystem. Uniswap holds nearly 70% of the DeFi market share. The proposal’s author, Getty Hill, stated that Uniswap could help monetize and bring in dollars and help build an excellent open-source protocol. Hill added,
“If Uniswap can monetize and bring in all these dollars by building a really great open-source protocol that gets usage, then that will incentivize other folks to do this too. I’m hopeful that this kind of changes some of those industry norms.” Read More
Disclaimer: These articles are provided for informational purposes only. They are not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or any other advice.
