Bitstamp Initiates Litecoin Trading Function as the Currency's Price Surges

European digital currency exchange Bitstamp rolled out Litecoin trading on Monday. The trading function will be accomplished by using trading pairs. It is paired with USD, EUR, and BTC. Now customers are able to effectively trade Litecoin via Bitstamp’s service.

Also read: China Blames Bitcoin Transactions for Leading to More Synthetic Drug Deaths

Bitstamp’s official press release read, “Today we are happy to be launching Litecoin (LTC) trading, which will be paired with BTC, EUR and USD! But that’s not all. We are also exploring the benefits of the Lightning Network and, in order to provide our customers with the highest level of security possible, we have implemented multisig Litecoin wallets.”

According to their site, they implemented Litecoin’s multisig functionality in anticipation of testing Segwit, which the Litecoin ecosystem recently gained consensus on initiating. Bitstamp mentioned this upgrade, saying the Lightning Network will interface as a new technology with Segwit. The team wants to see what the possibilities of implementing the Lightning Network are.

Bitstamp further stated they want to integrate the Lightning Network because their customers have been sending them messages about it. There appears to be high demand for the type speed and functionality Lightning Network is expected to deliver. The company also partnered with open source platform Bitgo, which is what allows the multisig functionality. The press release said Bitstamp Litecoin transactions will come with two addresses, one for multisig applications and one for wallets that do not yet support the multisig feature.

Litecoin’s Market Position and Vibrant Ecosystem

This news also comes as Litecoin is experiencing major price and market capitalization boosts. It is currently sitting at the number 4 spot in terms of its value, with a market capitalization of about $2.3 billion dollars as of this writing. A Financial Magnates article captured Litecoins’ market capture yesterday:

As we reported yesterday, Litecoin has been on a roll recently which brought it back to the number four spot in the list of the world’s most valuble cryptocurrencies. Today Litecoin is trading at an all time high with the LTC/USD exchange rate now above $50 for the first time, giving it a $2.6 billion market cap.

This recent boost in value could have come as a result of changes in Litecoin’s community. For instance, recently Litecoin founder Charlie Lee resigned with Coinbase to focus on Litecoin full time. This move combined with Litecoin’s Segwit implementation may have positioned Litecoin for its meteoric price gains over the last few days.

Bitcoin.com covered Charlie Lee’s resignation, saying, “Founder of Litecoin, Charlie Lee, tweeted he will no longer be working for Coinbase. He is leaving the company to focus on his brainchild creation, Litecoin.”

This pivot created an unprecedented opportunity for Litecoin to experience gains, and the overall ecosystem seems especially vibrant as it pushes into the future.

Will you be trading Litecoin on Bitstamp’s platform? Do you see the Litecoin market value increasing in the future? Let us know in the comments below.

Images via Shutterstock and Forbes.com

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