Strike

Jack Mallers founded Strike in 2020 with a specific thesis: the global remittance industry charges too much, Lightning can replace it, and the first company to build the rails will capture an enormous market.

Strike’s model is straightforward. A user in the United States links their bank account. They send dollars to a recipient abroad. Strike converts to Bitcoin, routes via Lightning, and the recipient receives local currency on the other end — or Bitcoin directly if they prefer. The fee: typically under $1 regardless of transfer size.

For El Salvador specifically, Strike partnered with the government’s Chivo wallet and with local businesses to create a direct corridor. A US sender could enter a dollar amount, and a Salvadoran family would receive colones or Bitcoin within seconds.

The implications for the remittance industry — dominated by Western Union, MoneyGram, and a handful of regional players — were significant. These incumbents had built their moats through physical infrastructure, regulatory compliance, and brand trust. None of those advantages protect against a Lightning-based competitor charging a dollar where they charge $28.

Mallers demonstrated Strike’s technology publicly in 2021 by sending $10 from the United States to El Salvador in less than a second for a fee of $0.01 — while standing on stage at a Bitcoin conference. The transfer took longer to announce than to execute.

Strike has since expanded to multiple countries and payment corridors. The remittance use case remains its strongest argument — not because Bitcoin is interesting, but because losing 7% of every transfer is a tax that Lightning makes unnecessary.

Tomorrow: the week in review — real world Lightning use cases.

— The Daily Bit