<p>Lightning Network uses Revocable Sequence Maturing Contracts.</p>
<p>The <a href="https://lightning.network/lightning-network-paper.pdf" rel="nofollow noreferrer">LN Paper</a> specifies that:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>If one wishes to permit revocable transactions [...] the output
transaction construction would remain a 2-of-2 multisig:</p>
<p>2 Alice1 Bob1 2 OP CHECKMULTISIG</p>
</blockquote>
<p>However, the current implementation uses <em>elliptic curve point multiplication</em> (not <em>multisig</em>).
I have found this information in <a href="https://github.com/lightningnetwork/lightning-rfc/blob/master/03-transactions.md#to_local-output" rel="nofollow noreferrer">BOLT03 - to_local</a>, but also <a href="https://medium.com/@yyforyongyu/till-its-lightning-fast-uncover-the-lightning-network-transactions-f3180e467857" rel="nofollow noreferrer">here</a>.</p>
<p>The benefits of the current approach are:</p>
<ul>
<li>smaller size of the Output Script</li>
<li>only one signature required to unlock (vs 2 in the original spec)</li>
</ul>
<p>Are there any other considerations besides these two for using <em>elliptic curve point multiplication</em> instead of <em>multisig</em>?</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-02-15T16:05:52.987Z
The output referred to in your citation from the paper is the *funding transaction output*, which is still the same: https://github.com/lightningnetwork/lightning-rfc/blob/master/03-transactions.md#funding-transaction-output. The commitment transaction (RSMC) spends this output to one or more outputs.
Mark H
CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-02-16T08:51:38.930Z
Thanks Mark! I'm still trying to fully understand the LN Paper.
But I think it **does not** refer to the *funding transaction output*, it does not make much sense in the given context.
Either way, do we know if originally the revocation was a *multisig* and then changed to *eliptic curve point multiplication*, and why?
Vlad Stan
<lightning-network>
Lightning Network - revocation format
Vlad Stan
# Lightning Network - revocation format

(Asked by: username_0 on 2021-02-15)

Lightning Network uses Revocable Sequence Maturing Contracts.

The [LN Paper](https://lightning.network/lightning-network-paper.pdf) specifies that:

> If one wishes to permit revocable transactions [...] the output
> transaction construction would remain a 2-of-2 multisig:
>
> 2 Alice1 Bob1 2 OP CHECKMULTISIG

However, the current implementation uses *elliptic curve point multiplication* (not *multisig*).
I have found this information in [BOLT03 - to\_local](https://github.com/lightningnetwork/lightning-rfc/blob/master/03-transactions.md#to_local-output), but also [here](https://medium.com/@yyforyongyu/till-its-lightning-fast-uncover-the-lightning-network-transactions-f3180e467857).

The benefits of the current approach are:

* smaller size of the Output Script
* only one signature required to unlock (vs 2 in the original spec)

Are there any other considerations besides these two for using *elliptic curve point multiplication* instead of *multisig*?

**Tags:** lightning-network

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: The output referred to in your citation from the paper is the *funding transaction output*, which is still the same: https://github.com/lightningnetwork/lightning-rfc/blob/master/03-transactions.md#funding-transaction-output. The commitment transaction (RSMC) spends this output to one or more outputs.  
> **username_0**: Thanks Mark! I'm still trying to fully understand the LN Paper. But I think it **does not** refer to the *funding transaction output*, it does not make much sense in the given context. Either way, do we know if originally the revocation was a *multisig* and then changed to *eliptic curve point multiplication*, and why?  

---

## 0 answers

