Data from the Bitcoin-only exchange River reveals that the layer 2 Lightning Network for Bitcoin grew by an estimated 1,212% over the past two years, with almost 6.6 million routed transactions in August, a considerable increase from the 503,000 transactions in August 2021.

Sam Wouters, a River research analyst, explained why the increase in routed transactions—which need the usage of more than two nodes to complete a transfer—came about on October 10 despite a 44% decline in Bitcoin's price and significantly lower internet search activity.

In response to criticism of Lightning, Wouters stated in a follow-up X (previously Twitter) post on October 10 that the phrase 'Nobody is using Lightning' should now be "a dead meme".

River's estimate of 6.6 million Lightning-routed transactions is a lower-bound estimate, or the lowest value it is capable of estimating.

The company also cited a 2021 study by K33, formerly Arcane Research, as its basis for the 503,000 figure for August 2021, and claimed that it was unable to evaluate private Lightning transactions or those involving just two parties.

Additionally, $78.2 million in transaction volume was processed on Lightning in August 2023, an increase of 546% from the $12.1 million amount reported by K33 for August 2021.

Wouters highlighted that at least 47% of Bitcoin's on-chain transactions are now being handled by Lightning.

He continued, "This will be an interesting metric to monitor." “It is an indicator of Bitcoin becoming more of a medium of exchange.”

Sources:

https://cointelegraph.com/news/bitcoin-lightning-network-growth-surges-over-two-years

https://river.com/learn/files/river-lightning-report-2023.pdf?ref=blog.river.com

https://x.com/SDWouters/status/1711758161042866231

https://k33.com/research/articles/the-state-of-lightning