What Is Splicing (Lightning)?
Splicing is a Lightning Network feature that allows users to add or remove funds from a payment channel without closing it. This enables dynamic channel capacity management while keeping channels open and operational.
Seamless Channel Management
Traditional Lightning channels require closing and reopening to adjust capacity, losing routing history and requiring on-chain confirmations. Splicing allows in-flight adjustments with a single on-chain transaction.
Types of Splicing
Splice-In
Adding funds to an existing channel by combining on-chain UTXOs with the channel output. This increases channel capacity without disrupting connectivity or losing established routes.
Splice-Out
Withdrawing funds from a channel to on-chain addresses while keeping the channel open. Useful for moving excess liquidity or making on-chain payments without closing channels.
Splicing improves Lightning's user experience by making channel management more flexible and less disruptive. It reduces on-chain transaction costs and maintains channel state continuity. Combined with other Lightning advancements, splicing makes the network more practical for everyday use.
Quick Facts
- •Splice-in: add funds to channel
- •Splice-out: remove funds from channel
- •No channel downtime required