Ethereum Successfully Converted to Bitcoin Without 3rd Parties Involved
CryptoBit News Today2 min read
A small group of cryptocurrency developers successfully completed a cross-chain atomic swap of Bitcoin and Ethereum last week. The team, led by Ethereum developer Dean Eisner, performed the swap without relying on any third parties, demonstrating the ability to move value peer-to-peer between the two blockchains.
Atomic swaps are a way of securely exchanging cryptocurrencies on a decentralized peer-to-peer basis. The process directly trades cryptocurrencies between two parties without the need for a trusted third party. The trade happens automatically if specific conditions are met, and if the conditions cannot be satisfied, the trade does not happen.
This marked the first successful atomic swap involving Ethereum. Previously, atomic swaps have been attempted only on Bitcoin, Litecoin, and Decred.
Atomic swaps could have important applications for cryptocurrency trading and cross-chain transactions. They enable users to make decentralized trades that settle immediately and have no counterparty risk. Meanwhile, they can cut out the middleman in cryptocurrency trades, eliminating fees for exchange services.
For both Bitcoin and Ethereum, this is a significant breakthrough. It shows how developers are exploring ways to connect the two most valuable cryptocurrency networks. ## Challenges Remain
Even though the Ethereum and Bitcoin swap demonstrated the potential, it is still in a nascent stage. This was a small-scale swap, and the process of setting up the connection between the two blockchains remains a complicated, expert undertaking.
The two cryptocurrencies are on different development paths that disagree over some core premises. Bitcoin has a limited block time and script, while Ethereum has a different hash algorithm and smart contract language. Their communities are used to doing things their own way.
Trade-offs are needed to make the two blockchains talk to each other. The recent trade could take a long time to finalize, according to Forster. So, atomic swaps are not yet a complete alternative to trading on cryptocurrency exchanges. ## Looking Ahead
Still, the swap between Bitcoin and Ethereum happened. In a long-debated space, that can be an important result. Many developers view atomic swaps as one solution to connect cryptocurrencies in a decentralized future. Other options being explored include sidechains and networks that rely on a single trustless third party.
Additionally, the creators of Ethereum have remained active in the Bitcoin ecosystem. Some Bitcoin-focused projects, like Bitcoin Cash, have hired Ethereum developers. Others, such as OmiseGO, apply Ethereum technology to the Bitcoin blockchain. For Valeriya Zhukovskaya, an Ethereum developer, atomic swaps are one piece of a bigger chip.
The atomic swaps development team are not planning to pursue any specific product. Before that, they want to keep the atomic swaps technology free to use. That way, they hope, to encourage a wider group of developers to run with it.
They have made the atomic swap codebase available for free on GitHub. Any developer can download it, modify it, and try to implement their own atomic swaps. The hope is to build an ecosystem of atomic swap-based decentralized exchanges, and eventually show what decentralized cryptocurrency trading can be like.
For now, atomic swaps are a proof of concept. Atomic swaps can demonstrate the principles of decentralized, peer-to-peer cryptocurrency trading. But before the idea takes over the industry, much development work remains.
