Payment Quote by Andreas M. Antonopoulos
““A payment channel is a state channel where the state being altered is the balance of a virtual currency.””
About This Quote
Source Book: Mastering Bitcoin, Andreas M. Antonopoulos, 2014
A payment channel lets two parties update a virtual currency balance off‑chain, reducing on‑chain transactions.
In simple terms: Off‑chain balance updates reduce blockchain load.
Use channels to scale payments.
Themes
Mood
Type
When to use this quote
- micropayments
- gaming
- IoT devices
- cross‑border remittances
Key Concepts
Questions to Reflect On
- How can you ensure channel security?
- When is a payment channel preferable to a direct transaction?
Channels require participants to stay online and can be complex to set up.