Blockstream, the global leader in Bitcoin infrastructure technology, has announced the public rollout of its “Lightning-as-a-Service” solution, Greenlight.
This launch aims to transform the way developers and enterprise clients worldwide “integrate fast, low-cost bitcoin payments into their software via the Lightning Network.”
In the current landscape of Lightning payments, users face “a choice between convenience and self-custody.”
Custodial solutions offer ease “but compromise on security and financial sovereignty.” Non-custodial solutions, “while secure, demand significant operational expertise.” The complexities of running Lightning node software “have long been a barrier to entry, often requiring users to understand the network’s intricacies before experiencing its benefits.”
Greenlight’s unique architecture ensures “that private keys granting exclusive control of funds are stored by the user and never shared with Blockstream’s infrastructure.”
For an app developer, this reduces “the risk and liability associated with holding user funds.”
For businesses building on Lightning, Greenlight alleviates “the challenges developers face in building and maintaining Lightning infrastructure.”
By offloading these complexities to Blockstream, companies can “focus on creating innovative applications on the Lightning Network without compromising on security or functionality, all while avoiding costly solutions, freeing up valuable time for innovation.”
Greenlight developer certificates grant access to the service’s API and are available via the Greenlight developer console.
To promote growth of applications that utilize self-custodial Lightning, Blockstream is offering a free tier of access designed “to empower developer experimentation.”
The free plan offers developers the capability to deploy up to 1,000 “on-demand” nodes. Each on-demand node is designed to “wake up” and remain active while in use by an end-user. For enterprises with more demanding requirements, Blockstream will “offer paid plans that expand the node limits and also provides uptime and availability guarantees. Contact Blockstream to learn more about enterprise pricing options.”
As noted in the update, Blockstream claims it is “the global leader in Bitcoin and blockchain infrastructure. Blockstream’s sidechain technology (Liquid Network) enables trustless Bitcoin swap settlements and secure, dependable smart-contracts while empowering financial institutions to tokenize assets. Blockstream Mining provides colocation services to miners, across multiple enterprise-class mining facilities.”
Blockstream’s Core Lightning implementation of the open Lightning Network protocol is “the go-to code for enterprise Lightning Network deployments on Bitcoin.”
Blockstream Jade is described as “an easy-to-use, open-source hardware wallet that offers advanced security for Bitcoin and Liquid assets.” Blockstream Green is reportedly “the world’s most advanced consumer Bitcoin wallet.”
Blockstream was founded in 2014, “with offices and team members distributed around the world.”