Stable money.
Your bitcoin.
Choose how much of your balance targets a steady dollar value, and how much stays exposed to Bitcoin's price. All in a self-custodial Lightning wallet.
No stablecoins. No custodian. Open-source software.
Dollar stability depends on channel liquidity, connectivity, and continued settlement with your counterparty. How stability works, and its limits
Desktop downloads · iOS coming soon
Swipe to explore app features
Watch one balance hold its value.
A $100 target is set, Bitcoin's price drops five percent, a Lightning payment arrives, and the dollar value stays put.
Why Choose
Stable Channels?
Discover the advantages of instant, continuous USD stability powered by Bitcoin Lightning.
- Instant
Continuous Settlement
Choose your exposure
Move the slider to set how much of your balance targets a steady dollar value, and how much stays in bitcoin. Change it whenever you want.
Bitcoin, end to end
Adjustments are ordinary Lightning payments between you and your counterparty, enforceable on Bitcoin. No tokens and no IOUs are issued.
Your keys stay yours
Manage your Bitcoin exposure without handing custody to an exchange or a stablecoin issuer. Funds sit in a 2-of-2 Lightning channel, and your keys never leave your device.
> channel_balance: $100.00> state: 2-of-2 multisig> keys: on your deviceGlobal Lightning Coverage
Maintain a steady dollar-value target anywhere in the world over the Bitcoin Lightning Network.
24/7WorldwideInstant
Engineered for Stability.
100% Bitcoin-Native.
Scroll to experience how synthetic dollar agreements settle continuously across standard 2-of-2 Lightning channels with zero bank intermediaries or token issuance.
Continuous Settlement
Balances rebalance automatically every few minutes. No manual action required.
Close Anytime
All agreements are at-will. Either party can end the agreement and withdraw funds at any time. Continuous settlement minimizes counterparty risk.
Built for Privacy and Resilience
Stable Channels is a Bitcoin-native, self-custodial solution. No tokens, no banks, no third-party custody.
Continuous Settlement in Motion
Unlike traditional stablecoins or margin exchanges that rely on periodic audits and centralized liquidation cascades, Stable Channels continuously updates channel state across the Lightning Network.
Up and running in minutes.
Simple three-step setup to protect your Bitcoin purchasing power without a bank or custodian.
Download
Android: install straight from Google Play. Desktop: macOS and Linux builds are on the releases page. iPhone: iOS is not released yet.
Fund
Send Bitcoin to your wallet. On-chain funds can be moved into a Lightning channel to manage your volatility exposure.
Manage
Slide the balance bar to adjust your mix of USD stability and BTC exposure. Settlements happen instantly over Lightning.
Frequently Asked
Questions.
Funding, fees, limits, and how to leave. The practical answers, in one place.
Another participant takes the opposite Bitcoin exposure. When Bitcoin rises, you send them bitcoin. When it falls, they send bitcoin to you. These payments adjust the amount of bitcoin you hold toward your chosen dollar target.The trade-off is symmetric: the stabilized part of your balance gives up Bitcoin's upside as well as its downside. The part you leave in bitcoin keeps both.
Bitcoin, and nothing else. Your first Lightning payment opens a channel and activates the account, up to $100 to start. You can also deposit on-chain and move those funds into the channel afterwards.
Converting between bitcoin and a dollar target costs 1%, shown on the confirmation screen before you accept. Lightning routing fees and on-chain fees when you deposit or withdraw are the usual network costs, and the settlement payments that keep your target are not charged separately.
Today it is the Stable Channels node, which takes the opposite Bitcoin exposure and runs the settlements. The protocol is open, so anyone can run the other side.
Settlement pauses while your wallet is unreachable and resumes when it comes back, so your dollar target can drift in the meantime. The app only settles against a recent view of the chain, and push notifications wake it in the background.
Adjustments keep running every few minutes. If Bitcoin falls far enough, the channel can run out of room to hold the target, and keeping it would need more funds added. Your stabilized balance can only be as large as the channel can cover.
Convert your dollar target back to bitcoin at any time, then spend over Lightning or withdraw on-chain. You can also close the channel from settings, which returns your funds on-chain without anyone else’s cooperation.
Stable Channels is an open-source project that brings Bitcoin-backed dollar balances to the Lightning Network, matching users who want USD stability with users who want additional BTC exposure.
Stable Channels pairs users who want dollar stability with users who want more Bitcoin exposure in a Lightning channel. The system settles frequently based on the BTC/USD price - if the price goes up, the stable side pays the other side, and vice versa. This maintains a constant dollar value on one side.
Bitcoin price volatility. Stable Channels provides a decentralized, self-custodial alternative to custodial stablecoins - no banks, no token issuers, no asset freezes.
Stable Channels involves two types of users: Stable Receivers, who want less BTC price exposure, and Stable Providers, who want more BTC price exposure.
No. Stable Channels does not issue any tokens. It uses native Bitcoin in Lightning channels to create synthetic dollar exposure. There are no new assets - only Bitcoin.
Every few minutes. The app queries several independent exchange price feeds and uses the median, so one bad or stale feed cannot move your balance.
The Stable Provider compensates the Stable Receiver. If the price drops significantly (more than 50%), additional collateral may be needed via a splice-in to maintain the agreement.
Risks include extreme Bitcoin price volatility, node outages, and the possibility of non-cooperative channel partners. Proper risk management, using reputable channel partners, and frequent settlement can help mitigate these risks.
If the BTC price drops more than 50%, the channel may not have enough capacity to maintain stability. Cooperative actors may need to splice in additional funds to continue the agreement.
You can find more information on the Stable Channels GitHub and join the discussion on the Stable Channels Telegram.