# 2409 Fiber Network AMA ## Metadata **Status**:: #x **Zettel**:: #zettel/fleeting **Created**:: [[2024-09-13]] **Topic**:: [[♯ CKB Fiber]] ## Questions ### Q1 > [!question] > What's the current state of Lightning Network and payment channel technologies? What do you all see as the main challenges facing these technologies? The Bitcoin Lightning Network has seen significant growth and adoption in recent years. Major cryptocurrency exchanges like Coinbase and Kraken have integrated Lightning Network support. Transaction volume continues to increase. However, there hasn't been much technological evolution. However, the evolution of bitcoin's lightning network technology is slow because of the limitations of Bitcoin script, particularly in terms of covenant support and slow adoption of new technologies. I focus on the UTXO channel solution, so I haven't dedicated much time to researching channel technologies on platforms like Ethereum. We began developing a channel-based payment network for CKB in March of this year. We'll soon have a demo which supports CKB and xUDT transfer with path finding and routing. Additionally, our partner, Perun, will introduce their virtual channel-based solutions to CKB, which is based on a different protocol. Despite the progress, there are still several key challenges. In my view, there are two main challenges. The first is the liquidity. Users need to actively manage payment channels and ensure sufficient liquidity, which can be complex. The network is only usable when there are enough nodes in the network, enough channels between these nodes, and enough funds locked in these channels. The second is the node uptime requirements. It presents a challenge in developing a product that requires users online to receive payment. ### Q2 > [!question] > Liquidity management is crucial for channel networks. In our CKB ecosystem, can we have any unique solutions? We currently lack innovative ideas for solving the issue at hand. We believe that the network should include multiple Lightning Service Providers (LSPs), as they offer liquidity and enhance the user experience. As protocol designers, it is our responsibility to ensure that LSPs have sufficient economic incentives to operate the service effectively. ### Q3 > [!question] > Stablecoins are important for the widespread adoption of Lightning networks or payment systems. What challenges have you encountered in this area? How can we approach stablecoin integration? Fiber will support xUDT from day one. Stablecoins in CKB will be released as xUDT. Once Fiber is ready, we can start to send stablecoins via Fiber. ### Q4 > [!question] > How do payment channel solutions synergize with RGB++ and other projects, like Seal, or facilitate cooperation between different channel projects in the CKB ecosystem? First, Fiber will support cross-chain payments between Fiber and Bitcoin Lightning Network. Bitcoin users can send BTC to Fiber, and Fiber users will receive wrapped BTC in CKB. CKB users can send wrapped BTC to Bitcoin, and Bitcoin users will receive native BTC. Second, once RGB++ assets jump to layer 2, they will be xUDT tokens. Like stablecoins, we can send layer2 RGB++ assets via Fiber from day one. ### Q5 > [!question] > Promoting channel-based crypto payments still faces many challenges. What ideas do you have to drive wider adoption? As previously mentioned, the primary challenges we face are liquidity and receiving offline payments. For liquidity, we'll design protocol to incentivize LSPs and provide tools to easily manage and rebalance the channels. Users education is also important. Many users are still unfamiliar with Lightning Network benefits and functionality. Bootstrapping is difficult, but once we achieve it, we can rely on the network effect. For offline payments, we are still researching. The LSP can help end users to receive payments when they are offline. Additionally, we will explore the possibility of utilizing frontier research projects to further enhance this capability.