The January 28 transaction to Kraken represents the largest Lightning payment ever publicly recorded.
Secure Digital Markets (SDM) has completed a $1 million Bitcoin transaction via Lightning Network in a pilot project with exchange Kraken, marking what the two companies call the largest Lightning payment ever publicly recorded.
The transaction, executed on January 28 and valued at $1 million at the time of execution, settled almost instantly with minimal fees. The operation was facilitated by Voltage‘s Lightning enterprise infrastructure, a Bitcoin payments and infrastructure provider focused on institutional clients.
“Moving $1 million to Kraken via Lightning Network marks a definitive shift in global settlement architecture,” said Mostafa Al-Mashita, co-founder and director of sales and trading at SDM. “We have moved beyond the era of questioning Bitcoin’s institutional capacity.” The SDM-Kraken pilot was designed to test whether the network can support high-value transfers between regulated counterparties.
SDM, which operates an institutional trading and lending desk, stated that the pilot demonstrated how Lightning can support use cases such as internal treasury movements, high-value settlements, and transfers between trading venues without the delays associated with on-chain settlement.
Kraken has supported Lightning for retail payments for several years. The company stated that the transaction reflects growing demand from institutional clients for faster settlement options. “Milestones like this demonstrate what’s possible when innovation meets real-world demand,” said Calvin Leyon, head of on-chain at Kraken. “By drastically reducing settlement times, Lightning Network unlocks Bitcoin’s potential on a global scale.”
“A $1 million Lightning transfer highlights the network’s maturity and its ability to meet enterprise requirements,” said Graham Krizek, founder and CEO of Voltage.
