Arcane Research predicts that the number of Lightning Network users could exceed 700 million by 2030. Remittance, gaming, and streaming use cases will help lift the scaling solution to that figure.
The Layer 2 scaling solution, the Lightning Network, is expected to reach more than 700 million users by 2030, according to estimates by some experts. The research division of Arcane Crypto published The State of Lightning report early in Oct., which details developments related to the use of scaling solution Lightning Network.
The report begins to comment on Lightning usage has increased significantly since the start of 2020, with public metrics believing real growth, which is much higher. For example, wallet payment volume grew by 20% monthly with every month this year. More importantly, the real usage is now starting to come largely from everyday usage as opposed to online services.
But the highlight of the report is that the combined utility of Lightning will potentially result in over 700 million users by 2030. Arcane says that using the network for remittances, led by people like El Salvador, will help greatly. It notes that, should other countries follow, this exponential growth will only be more likely.
Putting the Lightning Network in a larger context, Arcane categorizes the Lightning ecosystem into six subsectors. Among these are the those building the technical foundation, including those working on node management, liquidity services, implementations; payment solutions and savings, including wallets, merchant payment solutions; finance; rewards and earnings; gaming and gambling; and a miscellaneous suite of developers including for social apps, gift cards, and more.
Arcane Research drew the conclusions with the help of OpenNode and Lightning Labs, one of the many pioneering companies in the development of Lightning Network. Elizabeth Stark, CEO of Lightning Labs, also offered her thoughts on the report and the scaling solution’s growth, saying that “building the native transaction rails of the internet is a marathon, not a sprint” and that it was “just hitting an inflection point.”
Lightning Network Use Reaches New Heights
At the end of last month, the capacity of the Lightning Network hit an all-time high, with data from Glassnode showing nearly 2,400 BTC was locked in the layer. The overall performance itself experienced parabolic growth, jumping from roughly 1,000 BTC locked to its current figure.
Stark’s view of expanding Lightning’s presence is consistent with that of Jack Dorsey, who believes that bitcoin is the currency of the Internet. The Twitter CEO has also talked about integrating Lightning wallets into the social media platform. Such a move would be a tremendous boost for the solution, although it is not known exactly when that might happen.
Square has also announced lightning development kits to boost bitcoin adoption, which will have a strong impact on its growth. The general sentiment surrounding the Lightning Network seems to suggest that it will indeed meet the high estimates put forward by Arcane Research and others.
