Check out episode #39 of Blockstream Talk! Host Jesse Knutson chats with Andrew Howard and Raúl Velasquez from JAN3 about Aqua wallet's innovative approach to Tether and Bitcoin. Discover JAN3 Financial's role in driving institutional adoption and its influence on global policies. Plus, get the scoop on Aqua's upcoming BTCmap integration and collaboration with Botev Plovdiv.

🎧 Listen: https://tinyurl.com/blockstreamtalk39
📺 Watch: https://youtu.be/i1kxB7JnX84

Blockstream Talk

Welcome back to Blockstream Talk. This week, we're speaking to Andrew Howard and Raúl Velasquez from JAN3. JAN3’s Aqua wallet has received quite a bit of attention. In this conversation, we talked a bit about what sets it apart and why they decided to focus…

Are you curious about Shamir's Secret Sharing and how it compares to multisignature regarding Bitcoin wallet security and backups? Learn directly from the Director of Blockstream Research, Andrew Poelstra, in these two video shorts:

Shamir's Secret Sharing overview:
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O2Wx0B-prSU]

How it differs from multisignature:
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g1vus8_yOsw]

YouTube

What Is Shamir’s Secret Sharing?

Head of Blockstream Research, Andrew Poelstra, discusses the Shamir’s Secret Sharing scheme and how it can be beneficial when storing Bitcoin secrets. Blockstream Research: https://research.blockstream.com/ Codex32: https://store.blockstream.com/products/codex32…

Building Bitcoin infrastructure is at the core of what we do at Blockstream. Feedback from the community is essential so we can continue providing developers with the best resources and tools to succeed.

Please share your insights and help us refine our resources for Core Lightning, Greenlight, Elements, and other open-source Bitcoin projects. The survey is short and anonymous!

https://form.typeform.com/to/LR4l7nxY

Typeform

Developer Satisfaction Survey

Let us know what you think about the developer experience for Blockstream tools & SDKs

We've just released episode #38 of Blockstream Talk, featuring insights from Blockstream Liquid Engineer Byron Hambly. We delve deep into Bitcoin's scalability, the development of layer-2 solutions and explore crucial topics like the blockchain trilemma and covenants on Bitcoin. We also discuss the significance of interoperability between the Lightning and Liquid networks for the global south.

🎧 Listen: http://tinyurl.com/blockstreamtalk38
📺 Watch: https://youtu.be/Jn-XKKcQ-NA

Last year, we improved upon Green's security and privacy fundamentals by wholly redesigning the mobile wallet for a more refined self-custody experience. In the latest 2.0.0 release of Green Desktop, users will get this same refreshed experience, including a more user-friendly interface for hardware wallet users, the ability to have one recovery phrase for both your Bitcoin and Liquid accounts, an all-new dashboard with Bitcoin price and fees, and much more!

https://blog.blockstream.com/blockstream-green-2-0-a-new-accessible-experience-for-bitcoin-desktop-wallets/

Blockstream

Blockstream Green 2.0: A New, Accessible Experience for Bitcoin Desktop Wallets

Blockstream Green offers a range of security models to support all your HODLing needs, from basic 12 or 24-word single signature wallets to more advanced options like the assisted two-factor authentication multisig solution (previously known as Multisig Shield). …

Yesterday, we joined forces with leading digital assets platform Bitfinex Securities for the launch of ‘Bitcoin Capital,’ a new virtual roundtable series designed to explore the dynamic intersection of blockchain technology and traditional finance.

The first hour-long session featured legendary cryptographer and Bitcoin pioneer Dr. Adam Back, CEO and co-founder of Blockstream, and Paolo Ardoino, CTO of Bitfinex Securities. Together, they explored a range of topics, touching on everything from the projected impact of the recent Bitcoin ETF approvals to the role of tokenization in transforming the issuance of traditional financial instruments like securities, bonds, and even mortgages.

Get the recap below:

https://blog.blockstream.com/blockstream-and-bitfinex-securities-launch-new-bitcoin-capital-virtual-roundtable-series/

Blockstream

Blockstream and Bitfinex Securities Launch New ‘Bitcoin Capital’ Virtual Roundtable Series

Yesterday, we joined forces with leading digital assets platform Bitfinex Securities for the launch of ‘Bitcoin Capital,’ a new virtual roundtable series designed to explore the dynamic intersection of blockchain technology and traditional finance. Aimed…

After three months and 418 commits submitted by 36 contributors, the latest release of Core Lightning, v24.02, codenamed "Uint Needs Signature," is now out!

While mainly a maintenance release, there are numerous changes that node operators will love, as well as some under-the-hood improvements that will make it simpler and more affordable for users to run CLN, including:

⚡️Testnet fix
⚡️New recovery plugin for greater reliability
⚡️Optimization of block process (now >50% faster)
⚡️The gossip_store file can now be shared among multiple nodes
⚡️Bonus: Dual funding has officially been added to the Lightning spec!

Read more on the official Blockstream blog:

https://blog.blockstream.com/core-lightning-v24-02-uint-needs-signature/

Blockstream

Core Lightning v24.02: "Uint Needs Signature”

After three months and 418 commits submitted by 36 contributors, we are excited to announce the release of Core Lightning v24.02. While mainly a maintenance release, there are numerous smaller changes that node operators will like, as well as some under-the…

Most institutional blockchain projects have avoided using Bitcoin as a technical foundation due to its restricted-by-design nature. Yet, it's precisely Bitcoin's conservative approach to development strategy and design, epitomized by architectural choices like the Unspent Transaction Output (UTXO) model, that gives it the robustness that financial institutions need.

Contrasted with the account model and overemphasis on smart contracting utilized by altcoin chains like Ethereum and Solana, Bitcoin's careful design may position it as the ideal starting point for operationally sound financial infrastructure that will ultimately disrupt the status quo.

Read more from our Chief Product Officer, Jeff Boortz:

https://blog.blockstream.com/why-bitcoins-utxo-model-is-best-for-blockchain-based-finance/

Blockstream

Why Bitcoin Offers the Best Foundation For Blockchain-Based Finance

One thing even the harshest Bitcoin critics concede is the revolutionary, world-changing potential of blockchain technology. Despite the recent bear market, we have so far seen a steady stream of announcements for blockchain pilots and tokenization projects from…

A proposed solution to #Bitcoin scalability and lack of expressivity is the addition of new covenant opcodes. Each new covenant proposal has its own advantages, disadvantages, and trade-offs, but all include a certain level of Miner Extractable Value (MEV) risk. Given these inherent traits in the nature of programmable money, what level of risk is acceptable?

We explore this question by examining MEV and the limitations of Bitcoin Script. We also look at some of the covenant proposals, such as CAT + CSFS and CTV, as well as the new Simplicity blockchain language, an alternative to Bitcoin Script that is more expressive with static analysis and formal verification.

The latest from Blockstream Research:

https://blog.blockstream.com/miner-extractable-value-mev-and-programmable-money-the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly/

Blockstream

Miner Extractable Value (MEV) and Programmable Money: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly

The core of Bitcoin’s security model relies on this basic game theory—miners, armed with their digital pickaxes, are in a relentless chase for profit. And it’s this pursuit that keeps the network secure. Basic vanilla mining involves producing blocks to earn…

On Bitcoin’s 15th birthday, we celebrate a tremendous year in Bitcoin development. We formalized the Blockstream Research team, revamped the Blockstream Green UX, and built out Blockstream Jade to service a planetary scale.

We launched the Greenlight Lightning-as-a-Service, fully open-sourced the Liquid Network functionary code, and helped integrate splicing to the #LightningNetwork spec through the Core Lightning development process.

We’re grateful to all of you who HODL’d alongside us throughout the journey. Thank you for engaging with our content, sharing your feedback, contributing to the open-source projects we maintain, and always challenging us to make Bitcoin infrastructure better and more accessible.

We’re excited to keep pushing towards hyperbitcoinization in 2024, and we hope you’ll join us for the ride! 📈