Bitcoin's Lightning network continues to break records: more than 6,000 nodes

Bitcoin's "Layer 2" payment protocol, Lightning Network (also known as "Lightning" or "LN") continues to grow at a very fast pace, the latest statistics indicating that there are now more 6,000 Lightning nodes.

According to the latest data from Lightning Network's 1ML monitoring site, over the last 30 days, the Lightning Network has experienced impressive growth:

• number of Lightning nodes: 6,085; up 14.55%
• number of Lightning channels: 24,647; up 27.2%
• network capacity: 656.94 bitcoins (BTC); up to 15%

Here are some graphs of "Bitcoin Visuals" that could help you better understand the growth rate of Lightning Network:

Why is Lightning Network growing so fast? There are several explanations:

• There is a real need for very fast Bitcoin payments at very low cost, which is particularly true in the case of micro-transactions (for example, to give creators interesting or useful social media messages), which are not addressed in chain Bitcoin transactions. ;
• Increased availability of easy-to-understand tools and tools for using Lightning Network, such as Pierre Rochard's Node Launcher, Jack Mallers 'Zap Desktop, and William O' Beirne's Joule Chrome plugin; and
• Public awareness of the benefits of Lightning Network, such as the Lightning Torch initiative launched by the Twitter user "hodlonaut" on January 19th.

Featured Image Credit: Photo via Pexels.com. Graphics via BitcoinVisuals.com