A major issue with the Bitcoin network has been the problem of scalability mainly because of the limited block size of 1MB. To bypass this problem, The Lightning network was created as a second layer solution. There have been so many controversies on whether this is a real solution to Bitcoin’s block size problem.
However, a software engineer Igor Korsakov says the layer 2 protocol renders 99.85% of altcoins obsolete based on his personal calculations, although he did not share the details of how this calculation was done.
The lightning network has become more popular over time though. With the increasing popularity of Bitcoin and its adoption, most of the merchants who have adopted Bitcoin did so through the Lightning Network.
The Lightning Torch campaign may have also significantly contributed to the popularity and Lightning Network transactions reached $2 million as at November 2018. That was even prior to the Lightning Torch program which took place in Q1 of 2019.
Although it is not clear how this connects to the current Bitcoin market, it is becoming clear that Bitcoin is forging ahead of altcoins. Bitcoin dominance is already approaching 60% and is likely to go beyond that according to analysts. If it does, altcoins are likely to suffer terribly as this could stunt their price growth significantly.
This is also in alignment with Max Keiser’s projection since 2011 that Bitcoin will be heading to $100,000 and will “kill” altcoins on its way there. Although altcoins are also in the green at the time of writing, it took a while after Bitcoin started going up in the last 24 hours for them to come to this level.
It may not just be Bitcoin killing them though, Binace’s ban on U.S traders has also been implicated as a cause of the growing Bitcoin and the potential fall of altcoins as it continues to rise. Analysts say it is as traders withdraw from Binance to invest and trade in Bitcoin that the price continues to rise with more USD coming into the asset.
The only solution to the fall of altcoins in the coming days is for the prices to keep growing. Otherwise, they may be sinking soon as Bitcoin is expected to go far this time. Has Lightning Network significantly contributed to the surge Bitcoin is experiencing now? If not, in what way does it render altcoins obsolete? We’d like to know your thoughts on this.
