Lightning Network

Scalable, Instant Bitcoin/Blockchain Transactions

## Overview The Lightning Network is a second-layer payment protocol built on top of the Bitcoin blockchain. It enables users to conduct payments without broadcasting every transaction to the main chain, dramatically reducing confirmation times from minutes to milliseconds and scaling transaction throughput from roughly 7 transactions per second to millions. The network operates by creating payment channels between participants—two parties lock Bitcoin in a multi-signature address and exchange signed transactions off-chain. Only when a channel is closed do the final balances settle on the bloc