The Client

Boltz is a bitcoin swap exchange.

Their foundational product is a web app and API that allows users to swap bitcoin between on-chain and Lightning, all in a non-custodial manner. As you can imagine, this requires some serious liquidity. For this reason, Boltz runs two of the largest Lightning nodes on the network, with over 1,400+ payment channels, 2,600+ peers and 68 bitcoin ($1.8 million) in capacity.

The Challenge

Lack of visibility lead to uneconomical use of capital.

The primary challenge that led Boltz to consider Torq was the lack of a functioning user interface that could effectively manage their nodes and channels, with existing open-source solutions like Ride The Lightning and Thunderhub failing to deliver as needed.

The main pain points revolved around the sluggish performance of their LND database, an inability to identify and manage crucial channels, and the time-consuming task of managing uneconomical channels manually. Previous solutions like RTL proved to be too slow, with long waiting times just to load the main dashboard and ultimately failed to load.

“It was like, you open RTL and you might as well go make a coffee and hang out for a while and hope the browser didn’t crash.”

Boltz also aimed to automate the identification and management of uneconomically active channels, which was nearly impossible to do prior to Torq. Torq promised to replace their internal bots and scripts, streamline the management of their two nodes (one CLN and one LND), and provide insights into their most productive channel partners.

The Solution

An integrated & scalable user interface.

Torq served as a one-stop solution offering a unified view of crucial data, aiding in identifying closing candidates for channels, automating processes, and facilitating channel debugging. Instead of spending months of development time building custom scripts and bots, Boltz used Torq’s advanced filtering views to identify inactive channels and close them automatically. They also took advantage of Torq’s notification system, which connects to Slack, Telegram, and Discord.

The Result

Less time on custom scripts and bots, more time building core business.

The adoption of Torq led to a significant reduction in unused capital by 20-30%, rescuing and redeploying liquidity from inactive channels. It replaced all custom bots and scripts, saving weeks of workload. The newfound efficiency in routing and channel management has positioned Boltz to make routing more of a business, as they now have the tools necessary to make data-driven decisions. 

“Before Torq, all those little inconveniences were adding up. Having to look up that, look up this, it’s super annoying and takes lots of time. Those are pretty much gone.”

After implementing Torq, Boltz is now equipped with the capability to manage their CLN and LND nodes efficiently, identify crucial channels, and automate previously manual, time-consuming tasks. This transformation not only elevated their operational efficiency but also positioned them for growth, with a strong recommendation for other lightning companies to adopt Torq for a smoother operational journey:

“For businesses that actually want to build something on top of Lightning, you’ll want to use this, otherwise you won't have time to build anything else. RTL and Thunderhub are nice, but you’ll need to switch eventually anyways. So you might as well just start off with Torq. It’s the only thing that will work for you if you plan to grow.”