OKCoin is running a node on the Bitcoin Lightning network. The minimum deposit and withdrawal reduction is from 0.001 to 0.0001 bitcoins.
The speed and low fees of the Bitcoin Lightning Network continue to gain traction among exchanges. OKCoin is the latest to announce support for deposits and withdrawals via the Lightning Network.
OKCoin reported on January 22 that the integration with Lightning would be available in the first quarter of this year, 2021, but they did not clarify the specific date. “By integrating the Lightning Network, OKCoin turns into a node inside the network, serving as a linker to other nodes on the network for transaction processing,” the exchange added through a statement posted on its blog.
The Lightning Network is a bitcoin solution that works with two layers. Unlike transactions on the Bitcoin network, you should not wait for inclusion in a block to confirm a transaction in Lightning. This solution reduces the waiting times drastically and sets an allowance for you to trade almost immediately. Also, there is no need for commissions to miners to issue transactions, so any amount of satoshis, the minimum unit of bitcoin (BTC), is at a low cost.
The exchange house stressed that the new modality would speed up deposits and withdrawals with bitcoin. Despite that, the limit for the two types of operations on the platform suffered a considerable reduction. In operations on the main chain, users must deposit or withdraw a minimum of 0.0001 BTC or 100,000 satoshis. For Lightning transactions, the minimum wage is 100 satoshis.
With a foundation in 2013 and with roots in San Francisco, OKCoin has become one of the most popular Bitcoin exchanges in the environment. Currently, around $ 40 million of volume in trades on its platform in 24 hours, according to data from LiveCoinWatch.
Growth and Support of Exchanges to the Bitcoin Lightning Network
Hong Fang, CEO of OKCoin, assured that the payment channel network’s inclusion responds to an exhaustive evaluation of Lightning. “We now feel that the network is strong enough to participate as an exchange with a high volume of withdrawals and deposits per day,” added Fang.
OKCoin is not the first extensive exchange that sees in Lightning a chance to improve its services regarding Bitcoin, allowing it to operate quickly and at low costs even in times of network congestion. Before them, Bitfinex and Kraken announced support for the payment channel network.
Before 2020 ended, The Lightning Network has been growing, and it shows that behavior through the network’s statistics. During the recently concluded year, an increase surprised both public channels and nodes with a peak of 100%.
Also, there were significant technological advances, such as the launch of Wumbo, which expanded the storage capacity of BTC in the channels of the Lightning network; or the creation of Loop, an implementation that improves channel management, allowing the load and release of funds without having to close the channels.
By: Jenson Nuñez
