Coinbase Will Integrate Bitcoin Lightning Network

Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong said the crypto exchange would integrate Bitcoin Lightning network into its platform, according to an April 8 tweet.

Armstrong made this statement in response to a tweet by Bitcoin bull Wicked who challenged him for not publicly commenting about the Lightning network before. 

According to Armstrong, his tweets auto-delete after some months, which is why there is no history of his comments on the scaling solution. He added that he believes “Lightning is great” and is “something we’ll integrate.”

Armstrong did not provide further information on when this integration would happen.

Lightning is a layer2 network built on Bitcoin that helps it solve its scalability issues. The network offers faster transaction speed and cheaper fees. It is also the most popular BTC L2 solution.

Community Reacts Positively to Armstrong’s Statement

Several crypto stakeholders, like MicroStrategy’s founder Michael Saylor, have reacted positively to Amrstrong’s statement. A Bitcoin holder Derek Ross said:

“Adding Lightning support for deposits and withdrawals would be phenomenal.”

Several others were skeptical, noting that it might take forever for Coinbase to do this.

Meanwhile, some advised Coinbase to be fast with the integration because the exchange might end up with nothing to offer apart from Bitcoin, given the current regulatory environment.

If Coinbase integrates Lightning, it will join rivals like Kraken, Bitfinex, BitStamp, and OKEx, which already support the L2 solution.

Bitcoin Lightning Growing Adoption

Meanwhile, Bitcoin Lightning’s adoption has grown steadily over the past year. The number of Bitcoin locked in Lightning reached an all-time high of 5,490 BTC in February but has dropped to 5,420 BTC, according to defillama. This is a significant growth considering it had 3,350 BTC at the beginning of last year.

It is not just the total value locked (TVL) for the network that has increased; transaction volume is also up. BitPay reported that transaction volume increased by 18% in 2022 compared to 2021. The growth in the fourth quarter of 2022 was 32% higher than in 2021.

Given that the network does not have a native token like most protocols, experts believe that the growth so far has been organic. A Valkyrie Investment report in February 2023 highlights the adoption of Lightning Network since its inception.

Meanwhile, payments platform Strike launched a mobile payment application on the network in 2020. Since then, it has integrated with Shopify and expanded into Africa, El Salvador, and the Philippines.