Bitcoin developer Paul Sztorc has challenged the current state of the Lightning Network, claiming that custodial services process over 80% of all payments. He compared the marketing of these services to the Theranos fraud scandal, arguing that the industry promotes a vision of self-custody that does not reflect actual usage.
Sztorc has criticized the network's design since 2022, citing issues with onboarding, liquidity, routing, and security. He advocates for Drivechains, proposed via BIP 300 and BIP 301, as a more effective scaling solution for Bitcoin.
On October 3, 2026, Alex Bosworth of Lightning Labs noted that private, non-custodial Lightning payments are significantly slower than standard tap-to-pay systems. A Cointelegraph report on October 4 highlighted these concerns alongside Sztorc's claims.
Network data shows that in November 2025, the Lightning Network processed $1.17 billion across 5.22 million transactions. This volume remains below the peak of 6.6 million transactions recorded in August 2023.
