[tlrobinson]

Sidechains and Lightning Network are not the same thing.

https://en.bitcoin.it/wiki/Lightning_Network

https://lightning.network/

https://bitcoinmagazine.com/articles/greg-maxwell-lightning-...

It's basically a network of "payment channels" you can route instantaneous off-chain payments over, which occasionally settle on the blockchain. And you don't need to trust anyone in the network with your funds.

[bduerst]

So it's an alt-coin that still requires bitcoin?

[tlrobinson]

No, you're still transacting in Bitcoin, it's just using fancy smart contracts to allow you to do it (mostly) off the blockchain in a secure way.