Following the Plan B Forum in Lugano and the Liquid Developer Bootcamp in Viareggio, Blockstream is announcing the opening of a research center in Lugano, Switzerland.
The center aims to accelerate the development of financial products enabled by the Liquid Network, working with partners and the Build On L2 community.
This initiative reinforces Blockstream’s dedication to innovation in the financial sector, particularly in Switzerland, a hub for traditional finance and emerging blockchain / DLT tech.
By combining expertise and resources, the research center seeks to foster growth and drive adoption of Liquid as well as Lightning solutions.
Dr. Adam Back, CEO at Blockstream said thta the positive response from key players during our recent events has been inspiring.
Back added that they’re pleased to build on this momentum by providing shared resources and support to “accelerate development on the Liquid and Lightning networks, especially for financial products that can benefit traditional finance companies.”
A key element of this initiative is the collab with Build On L2, a community of builders on Lightning and Liquid that has experienced growth.
The community has enrolled hundreds of students in the Elements Academy and provided significant grants, such as $150,000 for integrating the Validating Lightning Signer (VLS) into Greenlight—an open-source project enhancing Lightning Network applications across platforms.
The launch of the research center follows the successful Liquid Developer Bootcamp held on October 28 in Viareggio, Italy.
Aimed at recruiting talents from Europe and beyond, this bootcamp provided more than 20 developers with the skills and knowledge needed to “build innovative solutions on Liquid.”
The bootcamp focused on “real-world” applications, guiding developers through key aspects of asset tokenization, Lightning and Liquid interoperability, and building “secure financial products on Bitcoin’s infrastructure.”
After the completion of the bootcamp, developers were connected with Liquid Federation members with the “potential for compensation or employment.”
Via the Plan B Hub and POW.space community, Blockstream will support startups building on Liquid and Lightning, “offering mentorship and dedicated development hours to help them create prototypes.”
Maintaining a relationship with the Liquid developer community, Blockstream released the Liquid Wallet Kit and language bindings and libraries.
To encourage innovation, Blockstream will offer CHF 10,000 sponsorships for promising projects, with a “panel of judges evaluating submissions.”
Selected projects will receive an invitation to Lugano, including travel and accommodation, to work with Blockstream’s team.
Blockstream is foucused on supporting innovation in the financial sector and providing resources to devs and startups.
Developers and startups are being encouraged to join the initiative.
By becoming part of the Build On L2 community, they can contribute to and benefit from a network that is “shaping the future of blockchain technology.”
Founded in 2014, Blockstream is a Bitcoin and blockchain infrastructure provider with offices and team members around the world.
Serving as the tech provider for the Liquid Network, Blockstream offers a sidechain solution that enables Bitcoin swap settlements and smart contracts, empowering FIs to tokenize assets.
The company’s Core Lightning is an implementation of the open Lightning Network protocol, adopted for Bitcoin Lightning Network deployments.
Blockstream Jade, an open-source hardware wallet, delivers security for Bitcoin and Liquid assets in an “easy-to-use” form factor.
For consumers, Blockstream Green is a “user-friendly” Bitcoin wallet.
