Marathon's Layer-2 Chain, Anduro, Plugs In 'Portal to Bitcoin' for Atomic Swaps

Portal uses Bitcoin layer-2 network Lightning to allow users to convert assets like ETH into BTC by the use of atomic swaps.
As well as introducing greater utility to Bitcoin, Anduro may present an opportunity for further revenue streams for miners, hence Marathon's involvement.

Anduro, a multi-chain layer-2 network incubated by bitcoin miner Marathon Digital Holdings (MARA), has incorporated the decentralized exchange (DEX) network Portal to Bitcoin – formerly known simply as Portal – with the goal of enhancing utility on the world's oldest blockchain network.

Publicly-traded Marathon began incubating Anduro in February as a "platform built on the Bitcoin network that allows for the creation of multiple sidechains."

The integration with a San Francisco-based fintech provider DEX network coincides with a renaming of the project to Portal to Bitcoin, according to an emailed announcement shared with CoinDesk on Wednesday.

The company formerly known as Portal raised a $34 million seed round in March, and uses the Bitcoin layer-2 network Lightning to allow users to convert assets like ETH into BTC by the use of atomic swaps - peer-to-peer transactions where cryptocurrencies can be exchanged on different blockchains.

Such practice is commonplace between Ethereum-based assets and on other blockchains, but is a far more recent development on Bitcoin.

As well as introducing greater utility to Bitcoin, Anduro may present an opportunity for further revenue streams for miners; hence Marathon's involvement.

Anduro’s sidechains use a process called merge-mining, whereby participating miners could earn Bitcoin-denominated revenue from transactions that occur on these chains while continuing to mine bitcoin on the base-layer.

Edited by Bradley Keoun.

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