This is a pretty big milestone for Bitcoin interoperability. In simple terms, someone just moved USDT from Ethereum into Bitcoin’s Lightning Network using the RGB protocol which is essentially a smart contract and asset layer for Bitcoin that works off-chain, with cryptographic proofs anchored in Bitcoin transactions.
The bridge (Tricorn) locks ERC-20 USDT on Ethereum, then issues an equivalent RGB-USDT token on Bitcoin. Once it’s in RGB, it can travel over Lightning channels almost like BTC, but with stablecoin value. Intermediate Lightning nodes don’t even need to know the asset is there only the endpoints validate the RGB state.
The upside is instant, low-fee, Bitcoin-native stablecoin payments that can plug into any Lightning Service Provider. The trade-off is that you still have to trust the bridge operator to hold the Ethereum-side funds so the trust model is as strong (or weak) as the bridge design.
LNFI and Astra Labs being involved hints at bigger ambitions: automated, AI driven liquidity routing and cross-chain swaps between Bitcoin and other ecosystems. If they can reduce bridge trust assumptions (via federations or multiparty custody), this could be a serious step toward decentralized, Bitcoin first stablecoin infrastructure.
This is a pretty big milestone for Bitcoin interoperability. In simple terms, someone just moved USDT from Ethereum into Bitcoin’s Lightning Network using the RGB protocol which is essentially a smart contract and asset layer for Bitcoin that works off-chain, with cryptographic proofs anchored in Bitcoin transactions.
The bridge (Tricorn) locks ERC-20 USDT on Ethereum, then issues an equivalent RGB-USDT token on Bitcoin. Once it’s in RGB, it can travel over Lightning channels almost like BTC, but with stablecoin value. Intermediate Lightning nodes don’t even need to know the asset is there only the endpoints validate the RGB state.
The upside is instant, low-fee, Bitcoin-native stablecoin payments that can plug into any Lightning Service Provider. The trade-off is that you still have to trust the bridge operator to hold the Ethereum-side funds so the trust model is as strong (or weak) as the bridge design.
LNFI and Astra Labs being involved hints at bigger ambitions: automated, AI driven liquidity routing and cross-chain swaps between Bitcoin and other ecosystems. If they can reduce bridge trust assumptions (via federations or multiparty custody), this could be a serious step toward decentralized, Bitcoin first stablecoin infrastructure.