RIADeFi
Refusal file · other

Why Ketju rejected Lightning Network

Memo v1Published by Ketju Research

A registry memo, published verbatim and versioned. Superseded versions are recorded, never edited away. A rejection is a judgment for Ketju's client base and thesis, not a universal safety claim. Not investment, legal, tax, or compliance advice.

The memo

REJECTED. Lightning is valuable Bitcoin payment infrastructure, but public channel capacity is not a passive investable protocol position. Earning routing or lease fees requires operating a hot, continuously available node, choosing peers, balancing inbound and outbound liquidity, managing backups, and monitoring for revoked-state broadcasts. That operating business is unsuitable for a standard advisory diversification sleeve even though the underlying settlement asset and base chain are approved.

What would reopen the file

  • A separate sophisticated mandate authorizes Lightning routing as an operating business with node, key, peer, liquidity, and loss limits
  • A named wallet or Lightning service passes a custodian/provider review for transactional use
  • A proposed-size cooperative and unilateral close test completes within the documented fee and time limits
  • Any lost channel state, missed breach remedy, or unrecoverable node-key event opens an immediate review

Facts on file

Verdict
Rejected
Exposure
other
Chains examined
Bitcoin
Memo version
v1
Reviewed
Next review

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