Bitcoin's Lightning Network Passes $1 Billion In Monthly Volume

"Bitcoin's Lightning Network, the layer-two protocol designed to facilitate faster and cheaper transactions, has surpassed $1 billion in monthly transaction volume, according to new data from River. In November 2025, the network processed an estimated $1.17 billion across 5.22 million transactions, marking a milestone in adoption despite Bitcoin's stagnant price performance throughout the year. River's research aggregates anonymized data from major Lightning node operators to provide a network-wide estimate."

"Their methodology accounts for overlapping channels and extrapolates to untracked nodes, giving a more accurate picture of the Lightning ecosystem. "This approach allows us to debunk misconceptions that Lightning adoption isn't happening," River said, noting contributions from entities including ACINQ, Kraken, Breez, Lightspark, LQWD, and others, covering over 50% of network capacity. Interestingly, the transaction count fell slightly compared to 2023."

"Last week, Lightning Labs released an open-source toolkit that enables AI agents to run Lightning nodes, make autonomous payments, and host paid services using the Network, addressing the need for native, machine-to-machine transactions. Bitcoin lightning transactions shifts toward larger transfers Despite being known as a network for micropayments, the average Lightning transaction in November 2025 was $223, up from $118 the previous year."

The Lightning Network reached $1.17 billion in monthly transaction volume in November 2025 across 5.22 million transactions. River aggregated anonymized data from major Lightning node operators and adjusted for overlapping channels and untracked nodes to estimate network-wide activity. Reported contributors covered over 50% of network capacity, including ACINQ, Kraken, Breez, Lightspark, and LQWD. Transaction counts dipped slightly versus 2023 as micropayment experiments in gaming and messaging faded. Lightning Labs released an open-source toolkit to enable AI agents to run nodes and make autonomous payments. Average Lightning transaction size rose to $223, reflecting more transfers between exchanges and larger-value flows.

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