Lawyer John Deaton criticizes Lightning Network, praises Spend The Bits protocol
Lawyer and cryptocurrency supporter John Deaton has expressed his criticism of the Lightning Network, stating that the “Spend The Bits” protocol on the XRP Ledger (XRPL) is more effective. The Lightning Network is a layer-2 scaling solution for Bitcoin that aims to improve scalability and efficiency by enabling off-chain transactions.
Deaton’s involvement with Spend The Bits
In an October 21 tweet, Deaton revealed that he is an angel investor and the chief legal officer of Spend The Bits. He had previously praised the protocol as a more secure alternative to Lightning on the Bitcoin blockchain.
Concerns about Lightning Network’s security
Deaton’s disclosure coincided with concerns raised by WhaleWire, an online crypto investigator. A developer had discovered a significant security vulnerability in Lightning, prompting their withdrawal from the project. The developer alleged deliberate vulnerabilities in the network’s code that could give attackers complete control. These claims have raised doubts about the security and trustworthiness of Lightning, especially since major backers are involved in Tether, Bitfinex, and BlockStream.
Doubts about Lightning Network’s resilience and viability
The Lightning Network currently has a network capacity of 5,338 BTC according to 1ML. However, there has been a 15% reduction in capacity over the past three months, leading to doubts about its long-term viability and resilience as a payment protocol.
Hot Take: John Deaton highlights flaws in Lightning Network
John Deaton’s criticism of the Lightning Network and support for the Spend The Bits protocol underscores concerns about Lightning’s security vulnerabilities and its declining capacity. As an angel investor and chief legal officer of Spend The Bits, Deaton’s perspective adds weight to the debate surrounding the effectiveness and trustworthiness of different scaling solutions. It remains to be seen how Lightning Network will address these issues and regain confidence from the crypto community.
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