Google Analytics counts our visits, with cookies. No thanks turns it off and removes its cookies; in Europe, the UK, Switzerland and India, or wherever we cannot tell where you are, it stays off unless you accept. Cookie Notice

Advertise
PRICES
BTCETHSOLXRPBNBTONDOTLTCPOLHBARNEARARBUNI

← Back to NewsDesk

AI summary of a third-party reportNeutralNewsDesk

Olaoluwa Osuntokun says Layertree could put millions of Bitcoin owners in one output

The Lightning Labs developer has published a 103-page paper proposing a shared Bitcoin output that tracks individual balances off-chain, but the design needs protocol changes before it can run.

Why it matters: It sets out a concrete design for cutting the cost of Bitcoin block space for large groups while keeping self-custody, and shows how far it still is from running on the network.

InvestIn.News NewsDesk · 1 min read
Share
Picture from Bitcoin.com News for: Olaoluwa Osuntokun says Layertree could put millions of Bitcoin owners in one output
Image: Bitcoin.com News
Original reporting: Jamie Redman, Bitcoin.com News

Key points

  • Osuntokun published the Layertree paper on 15 October 2026, describing a Merkle-sum tree that tracks balances outside the blockchain.
  • In a system with 65,536 positions, an individual withdrawal would take about 1,020 vB, against roughly 2,511 vB for a comparable Ark-style exit.
  • Enrolling around 1,000 members could cost under 1 vB each under the paper's funding assumptions, but Bitcoin's current scripting rules cannot support it.

Lightning Labs developer Olaoluwa Osuntokun has published a 103-page paper proposing Layertree, a way for millions of Bitcoin owners to share a single blockchain output while keeping control of their coins. The proposal, dated 15 October 2026, was reported by Bitcoin.com News. Bitcoin currently records holdings as separate unspent transaction outputs, each taking up space and incurring fees when moved. Layertree would instead let thousands or millions of users share one output, with individual balances kept in a mathematical record off the blockchain.

The design uses a Merkle-sum tree to track each member's balance so Bitcoin can verify ownership without storing every account separately. An operator manages the shared system and approves new members, but cannot seize coins or block a valid withdrawal. Anyone leaving submits a proof of their balance, and a covenant, a proposed Bitcoin rule, checks it, releases the funds and updates the remaining balances. No operator approval or waiting period is required.

The paper gives figures for a system with 65,536 positions. An individual withdrawal would need about 1,020 virtual bytes, roughly nine times a basic Bitcoin transaction but well below the approximately 2,511 vB for a comparable Ark-style exit. Group enrollment of around 1,000 members could cost less than 1 vB each under the stated funding assumptions.

Several problems remain.

What to watch: Layertree cannot operate until Bitcoin activates the proposed scripting capabilities it depends on, which the paper says have not been activated.

Read the full story on Bitcoin.com News

Live updates on NewsFeeds:BitcoinDesk editor: Keshav Aggarwal (accountable for this page; this summary was not edited by hand)

How this was produced: an AI model wrote this summary of Bitcoin.com News’s report, which we credit and link above. Read our Editorial and AI policy. Spotted a mistake? See Corrections.

Not investment advice. Read the risk disclaimer.

← Back to NewsDesk