Scaling Bitcoin for global adoption

What if Satoshi's original whitepaper already solved Bitcoin's scaling problem? It's time we actually built Simple Payment Verification.

#1about 3 minutes

Why SPV is the original Bitcoin scaling solution

The original Bitcoin design intended for users to use Simple Payment Verification (SPV) rather than running a full node to achieve global scale.

#2about 3 minutes

Understanding the mechanics of SPV and Merkle trees

SPV works by using a lightweight chain of block headers and Merkle proofs to cryptographically verify a transaction's inclusion in a block without downloading the full block data.

#3about 4 minutes

The peer-to-peer model for transaction validation

In a true peer-to-peer model, the receiver validates the transaction for correctness, fees, and script logic before broadcasting it to the network nodes.

#4about 3 minutes

Practical reasons for pre-broadcast transaction validation

Merchants should validate transactions before broadcasting to control fees, manage state channels, handle complex scripts, and receive more precise error messages.

#5about 3 minutes

Using SPV validation as an alternative to OP_PUSH_TX

Validating transaction logic off-chain with SPV is a more efficient and flexible alternative to using on-chain techniques like OP_PUSH_TX for enforcing rules.

#6about 6 minutes

A detailed walkthrough of the end-to-end SPV payment flow

A complete SPV payment protocol involves service discovery, invoice creation, payment requests, client-side signing, and merchant-side validation before broadcasting via mAPI.

#7about 6 minutes

Identifying the missing tools for a complete SPV ecosystem

Achieving a full SPV solution requires standardizing invoice creation, fee communication, the SPV envelope for metadata, and dynamic mAPI endpoint discovery.

#8about 1 minute

Contributing to open source tools for Bitcoin SV

Developers can contribute to building the foundational SPV tools through open-source projects like GoBitcoinSV and LibSV to help standardize the ecosystem.