𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝗖𝗧𝗩 (𝗕𝗜𝗣-𝟭𝟭𝟵) 𝗖𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗕𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗳𝗶𝘁 𝗕𝗶𝘁𝗰𝗼𝗶𝗻

There has been some controversy lately about a possible upgrade known as OP_CheckTemplateVerify, often referred to as simply CTV or BIP-119.

Every potential #Bitcoin upgrade should pass through a stage of harsh scrutiny so it can be thoroughly explained, debated, and tested before it’s implemented by a consensus of the users.

I’m here to help facilitate that process.

Here’s a high-level overview👇

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CTV is a proposed upgrade to Bitcoin’s protocol that’s 𝗱𝗲𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗻𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝗲𝗻𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗻𝗲𝘁𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸'𝘀 𝘀𝗺𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘁 𝗰𝗮𝗽𝗮𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗲𝘀. It enables more complex transaction conditions, 𝘵𝘩𝘶𝘴 𝘪𝘯𝘤𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘴𝘦𝘤𝘶𝘳𝘪𝘵𝘺 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘦𝘧𝘧𝘪𝘤𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘺. Many Bitcoiners view CTV as a necessary step towards unlocking advanced functionalities and utilizing block space more efficiently, while maintaining Bitcoin's robustness and decentralization.

The primary benefit of CTV is 𝗶𝘁𝘀 𝗮𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝘁𝗼 𝗰𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝘀𝗼𝗽𝗵𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗽𝗿𝗲𝗱𝗶𝗰𝘁𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘁𝘀 𝗱𝗶𝗿𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗹𝘆 𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗕𝗶𝘁𝗰𝗼𝗶𝗻 𝗯𝗹𝗼𝗰𝗸𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗶𝗻. This feature could lead to 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘴𝘦𝘤𝘶𝘳𝘦 𝘴𝘢𝘷𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴 𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘯𝘴, 𝘪𝘮𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘥 𝘰𝘯-𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘪𝘯 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘨𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘢𝘨𝘦𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵, and 𝘪𝘯𝘯𝘰𝘷𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘭𝘢𝘺𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘸𝘰 𝘴𝘰𝘭𝘶𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴. It's particularly promising for scaling Lightning by allowing off-chain channel resizing and batched channel openings.

However, as the adage goes: “𝘞𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘨𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘵 𝘱𝘰𝘸𝘦𝘳 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘴 𝘨𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘵 𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘱𝘰𝘯𝘴𝘪𝘣𝘪𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘺.” The complexity introduced by CTV raises significant security considerations. Ensuring that it doesn't open up new vectors for attacks or vulnerabilities is paramount. Extensive testing and community scrutiny are vital to safeguard the network's integrity.

Additionally, the potential for misuse cannot be ignored. Users could create overly complex or flawed conditions, inadvertently leading to loss of funds or other unintended consequences. 𝗨𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗺𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗴𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘀𝗲 𝗿𝗶𝘀𝗸𝘀 𝗶𝘀 𝗰𝗿𝘂𝗰𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗯𝗼𝘁𝗵 𝗱𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗹𝗼𝗽𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘂𝘀𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗮𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲.

CTV also paves the way for enhanced security vaults, inheritance vaults, and more decentralized mining payouts. These applications demonstrate the versatility of CTV, but also 𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘤𝘰𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘪𝘮𝘱𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘪𝘵𝘴 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘱𝘭𝘦𝘹𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘦𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘱𝘰𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘢𝘭 𝘳𝘪𝘴𝘬𝘴. Bitcoiners must learn all they can to navigate these carefully.

As the Bitcoin community contemplates a possible CTV upgrade, it's 𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘢𝘭 for every user to be well-informed on what this upgrade entails and what its implications could be. The decision to implement such a change should be based on a 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩 understanding of both its benefits and tradeoffs.

All Bitcoiners should dive deep into the details of CTV, learn all about its potential, come to understand its inherent challenges, and engage in the discussion surrounding it. And, of course, 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗰𝗮𝗻 𝗮𝗹𝘄𝗮𝘆𝘀 𝗮𝘀𝗸 𝗺𝗲 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗶𝗻𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗶𝗻𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗮𝗻𝘆 𝗼𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝗕𝗶𝘁𝗰𝗼𝗶𝗻-𝗿𝗲𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗼𝗽𝗶𝗰. I’m here to help you make informed decisions on this and other pivotal upgrades for Bitcoin's future.

Remember to give this a 𝗟𝗶𝗸𝗲🤙, and 𝗦𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗲🔄 it so more can be made familiar with this proposed upgrade.

And 𝗕𝗼𝗼𝗸𝗺𝗮𝗿𝗸🔖 this for quick reference later.

What’s your opinion on OP_CHECKTEMPLATEVERIFY?

Let me know in the 𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀⬇️