Hi friends,
Hope you had a great week and welcome to The ₿it Economy! I’m Rob, and each week I write a blurb about something I learned that’s broadly Bitcoin related. I’ll be taking the next three weeks off to move and get a couple of side projects off the ground. I look forward to sharing what I've been up to when I return on August 15th. And per usual, if you have thoughts, I'd love to hear from you. My goal is to shed a tidbit of info that I believe will get you thinking about the digital world around you. If you know anyone who would be interested, please do forward this along, send them to the archive, or have them subscribe here. 👇
-Rob
I WUMBO, You WUMBO
Earlier this week the developers over at Lightning Labs announced that LND 0.11 will enable wumbo channels. Yup that wumbo — the opposite of mini. But don't let the Spongebob reference confuse you, this is a big milestone for the Lightning Network. By agreements among early LN implementations, it was decided that each channel's capacity was to be limited by default to 0.168 BTC (~1,500). It was chosen to help prevent users from putting too much money into unproven software.
Up to now and until the new software is released the only way to expand the limit of a transaction was by typing "option_I_wumbo_you_wumbo" which opened a new channel with an expanded limit. The other node must agree to remove the limit and thus begins the science and art of wumbology.
With the governor removed and wumbo channels enabled, users of LND will be able to remove the past limitations on how much Bitcoin they can hold and send via their node. But more importantly, exchanges can join the fun. Back in December, this newsletter shared that Bitfinex launched support of Lightning payments in a bid to kickstart the layer 2 micropayments economy. However, they remain the only ones to do so and a large reason for that is the current limit on channel capacity.
In the March MIT Bitcoin Expo, OpenNode shared this slide on the current wumbo channels it has open on ACINQ's eclair, a different implementation of the Lightning Network.
Keep an eye out for exchange integration as Lightning makes wumbo the standard. L2 solutions like the LN facilitate the movement of bitcoin in a cheaper and faster way than the base chain. As exchanges continue to search for cost saving mechanisms those that fail to adapt will be replaced by those who do. This period will kick off a boom in the overall adoption of the LN. Bitcoin exchanges are already processing extremely high volumes of Bitcoin transactions, and LN integration would further signal the protocol is maturing.
Just remember what Patrick Says:
Threads🧵
Breakdown of long-form content into an easy to read and concise format.
Monday |Bitcoin Banks & the Wyoming SPDI| Nic Carter hosts Caitlin Long of Avanti bank to talk about the recent FATF guidance, building institutional grade bitcoin products and PII & the 4th amendment.
Tuesday |How to Close the Web's Memory Hole| Brewster Kale & Sam Williams discuss decentralized networks and methods to combat loss information on the web.
Wednesday |Bitcoin is a Tool for Collaboration| Ben Prentice & Mark Moss talk about sound money, the Federal Reserve's role in marketing Bitcoin and why money is a form of communication.
Thursday |Advancing Bitcoin Adoption| Kingdom Trust CEO Ryan Radloff joins Anthony Pompliano to discuss customized and innovative custody solutions for bitcoin asset management.
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The top announcements in Bitcoin. All in one place.
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What I'm Listening To 🔊
Give your eyes a break and pop in the earbuds.
Tales from the Crypt #170: Kevin Mulcrone
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What I'm Watching 📺
Take a break from Netflix and check these out.
Bitcoin, Crypto Market, Coinshares, Libra Testimony & DeFi with Meltem Demirors
Sovereign Recovery Backdoor Webinar
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Final Quote 🎩
Thanks for reading. Send me tips, stories I’ve missed, or comment below. And if you liked this piece, you can sign up here for more issues of the Bit Economy, a newsletter on something bitcoin related.
Until then, have a great week! See you next Sunday.