Bitcoin developer Paul Sztorc has reopened the debate on the Lightning Network, claiming that custodial services handle more than 80% of Lightning payments. He compared the promotion of custodial Lightning to the Theranos fraud scandal, arguing that the community is selling a vision the underlying product does not deliver. In November 2025, Lightning processed $1.17 billion across 5.22 million transactions, down from a peak of 6.6 million in August 2023. Lightning Labs Alex Bosworth added that private, non-custodial Lightning payments are extremely slow compared with tap to pay. The debate has not yet produced any immediate impact on network metrics or market prices.
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