Graham Krizek, CEO of Voltage, said the Lightning Network could handle 5% of global stablecoin transactions by 2028. He explained this shift could follow increased use from both retail and institutional users.
“Five percent [or more] of stablecoin volumes [will be] on Lightning Network at minimum in three years,”
Krizek said.
Based on current data from CoinGecko, stablecoins process about $180 billion in daily volume. A 5% share would equal $9 billion per day for the Bitcoin Layer-2 network. Krizek noted that while stablecoin activity on Lightning is still low, it may rise quickly, especially after the GENIUS Act and similar laws take effect globally.
He added that
“Lightning is the top scalability tool for stablecoins.”
According to him, stablecoins could push billions in volume through the network as the ecosystem expands.
Tether and Taproot Signal Start of Stablecoin Integration
Tether, the largest stablecoin issuer, began supporting Bitcoin’s Lightning Network in January. It announced native LN support for USDT, marking a key shift for stablecoin use on Bitcoin’s Layer-2.
In June, Lightning Labs launched Taproot Assets v0.6. This update is meant to help create a decentralized forex layer for stablecoins on Bitcoin. Krizek pointed to these moves as early signs of growing adoption, even though “some of the major players like Tether or Circle are not yet live” in full capacity.
Paolo Ardoino, CEO of Tether, commented in April on why the company sees value in Lightning’s peer-to-peer structure.
“The beauty of USDT on Lightning is that it is the perfect way to do high-scale transactions,”
Ardoino said. He also raised concerns about the scalability of traditional blockchains, emphasizing that Lightning avoids the “global shared state” problem.
Retail Demand and Developer Activity Drive Lightning Adoption
Krizek stated that developers and retail users are currently leading the adoption of Lightning Network. “Edge cases are being built by developers,” he said, and retail users are constantly testing the network’s potential.
He emphasized that customers are requesting Lightning integration from businesses. This growing demand has led exchanges and financial apps to add Lightning support. For example, Cash App now routes 25% of its Bitcoin payments through Lightning.
“Any business that uses Bitcoin will have Lightning integrations,”
Krizek said. He believes instant settlement will become a baseline expectation in crypto payment services.
Krizek also mentioned that large institutions are beginning to explore Lightning for risk management and faster access to capital.
“We are still early,”
he noted, but he sees a clear path for enterprise use cases to grow.
Lightning Network Metrics Show Mixed Activity in 2025
The Lightning Network has 14,000 nodes and 44,800 channels,according to Amboss. The network’s capacity stands at 3,820 BTC, worth about $448 million based on current prices. Amboss is Krizek’s preferred source for Lightning data.
Another platform, Bitcoinvisuals, confirms similar figures. However, it reports a 23% drop in BTC capacity since the beginning of the year. The term “capacity” refers to the total amount of BTC locked into the network, not necessarily the volume processed.
Krizek noted that while total channels are declining, their size is increasing.
“We are seeing less channels in total, and larger channels established, which validates capital efficiency and a more optimized network,”
he said.
He also said that access to the Lightning Network—based on users of exchanges, wallets, and payment apps—now exceeds 700 million. That figure has more than doubled since 2024, according to his estimates.
Voltage Focuses on Stablecoin Tools for Developers
Voltage aims to help other developers bring stablecoin support to Lightning-based wallets. The firm operates as a backend infrastructure provider.
Krizek did not provide a specific timeline for when major stablecoins likeUSDC will be live on Lightning. Still, he expects usage to grow as more apps and services launch new integrations in the coming months.
He sees stablecoins as a practical fit for Lightning, particularly in payments.
“Stablecoins are just now starting to come to Lightning,”
he said, adding that their current share of volume remains close to zero. However, he expects that to change during the second half of 2025.
