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Side chains (e.g., Liquid): alternative blockchains pegged to Bitcoin, with centralized or federated elements.
Payment channels (Lightning): state updates and balance exchanges occurring off-chain, settled later on Bitcoin.
Scaling: The Historical Context
The dialogue emphasizes that scaling discussions started almost immediately after Bitcoin's white paper was published. Early proposals included
Banking systems, such as XATM and ecash, envisioned as ways to privately and efficiently handle transactions.
Block size increases, championed by figures like Roger Ver, which sparked the famous block size debates.