What is Lightening Network (LN)?
Lightning Network, a so-called layer 2 protocol that facilitates near-zero-fee transactions for Bitcoin, processed almost instantly. Lightning is a decentralized network using smart contract functionality in the blockchain to enable instant payments across a network of participants.
The Lightning Network is dependent upon the underlying technology of the blockchain. By using real Bitcoin/blockchain transactions and using its native smart-contract scripting language, it is possible to create a secure network of participants which are able to transact at high volume and high speed
Mainnet Lightning transactions are still in the “testing phase”, as Blockstream engineers put it in a post Jan. 16, and are happening on a small scale, with only around 50 nodes and 80 channels in operation.
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