Lightning Network facilitates 15% of Coinbase's bitcoin transaction volume, firm says

The crypto exchange Coinbase said that 15% of its bitcoin transaction volume is powered through Lightning Network, according to a release shared with The Block on Monday. 

Coinbase integrated the Lightning Network in April 2024 to facilitate faster and easier bitcoin transactions for customers, The Block previously reported. 

"Integrating the Lightning Network was a key milestone in supporting the Bitcoin ecosystem and making payments faster, cheaper, and more useful for everyone," said Michael Rihani, Product Director at Coinbase, in a statement to The Block. "Within a year, 15% of our Bitcoin transactions utilizing Lightning demonstrates its real-world utility. We're quickly proving that Bitcoin is a powerful tool for global payments with Lightspark." 

Lightspark is a firm focused on scaling global payment infrastructure undergirded by the Lightning Network. It also builds a software development kit (SDK) and other tools to make it easier for developers to connect to the Network. 

In addition to streamlining bitcoin transactions, Coinbase also seeks to augment consumer yield on BTC holdings. The firm announced that it will launch the "Coinbase Bitcoin Yield Fund" on May 1, which is targeting annual returns of between 4% and 8%. 

Bitcoin, the world's largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization, drew in $31 billion in trading volume within the past day, The Block's BTC price page shows. 

Coinbase holds the second-highest market share of USD-supporting crypto exchanges, with the firm recording $102.08 billion in spot market volume in March, according to The Block's Data Dashboard.