The lightning network aims to solve Bitcoin’s (BTC) problem with scalability, and it has been growing quickly since its introduction. The goal for the lightning network is to lower transaction times and fees. Recently, Armin van Bitcoin, an active voice in the crypto community, tweeted the following:
We just passed 2,000 nodes with over 5,650 open channels on mainnet. The total network capacity is now $150,000 USD. The universe keeps expanding at an accelerated rate. Send $BTC instantly for 1 sat / tx or less… yes… less. ?⚡ #LightningNetwork #bitcoin #segwit pic.twitter.com/PXeuPbdtA3
— Armin van Bitcoin ⚡ (@ArminVanBitcoin) April 22, 2018
At press time, these numbers are even higher, with 2027 nodes, 5818 channels, and a network capacity of $155 thousand USD. This is an incredible increase in the Lightning Network’s total network capacity from where it started. When the Lightning Network fully released back in January, it only had 29 active nodes in its network.
The followings pictures visualize this change:
January 2018:
April 2018:
If the lightning network can continue this amount of growth, transaction times and fees will continue to diminish to almost nothing. The network is doing a great job in solving Bitcoin’s (BTC) scalability problem and as a result, the network is opening up new possibilities for the use of Bitcoin (BTC).
