New Bitcoin Protocol Makes Payments Easier
Original story by: Gizmodo.com
Last updated: Oct 22, 2025
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- Context: Ark Labs has launched the public beta of Arkade, a new upper-layer network protocol built on Bitcoin. It aims to enhance user-friendly payments and financial use cases while retaining Bitcoin's core properties. This launch is considered a significant Bitcoin protocol development, following the Lightning Network.
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- Detailed Summary:
- Arkade seeks to combine Bitcoin's decentralized, non-custodial nature with the speed and ease of centralized fintech systems.
- It was developed to address perceived issues with the Lightning Network's direct, non-custodial user adoption.
- Arkade has been extended to support decentralized finance (DeFi) functionalities, similar to those on networks like Ethereum and Solana.
- Early ecosystem partners include exchanges Swan and Bull Bitcoin, and wallet/payment apps like Breez and BTCPayServer.
- The protocol introduces Ark Service Providers (ASPs) who are centralized but do not have full custody of user funds, with mechanisms for users to prove malicious behavior on the Bitcoin blockchain.
- Arkade offers a third option beyond the base Bitcoin blockchain and the Lightning Network, aiming for a balance between decentralization and usability, though it acknowledges some trust limitations.
- Beyond payments, Arkade can be used for lending and trading through its native tokenization standard, Arkade Assets, reviving the "colored coins" concept.
- This initiative is seen as a new approach in the Bitcoin technology stack, striving to balance Bitcoin's cypherpunk ethos with the functionalities of alternative crypto systems.
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