Use cases

Astra’s versatile infrastructure enables a wide range of use cases, making it an essential component of the PayFi ecosystem. By connecting crypto assets with real-world applications, Astra transforms blockchain technology into a practical solution for everyday needs.

#1: Bridging between Blockchains and Lightning Network

Astra leverage on the Lightning Network to serve as a bridge, facilitating seamless faster and cost-effective asset transfers between different blockchains.

• Blockchain A ↔ Lightning Network

  • Assets from Blockchain A are tokenized or converted into Taproot Assets compatible with the Lightning Network.

  • The Blockchain may then leverage Lightning Network as its off-chain scaling solution.

• Blockchain A ↔ Lightning Network ↔ Blockchain B (Future Expansion)

  • Lightning Network may act as the medium to bridge assets from Blockchain A to Blockchain B.

#2: PayFi on Lightning

Astra allows businesses to accept crypto payments without requiring extensive technical changes to their systems. A coffee shop, for instance, could integrate Astra SDK to accept payments in Bitcoin or stablecoins, with transactions instantly converted into fiat if desired. This flexibility eliminates the volatility concerns associated with cryptocurrencies while opening new revenue streams for merchants. Additionally, Astra’s integration tools ensure that the payment experience remains seamless for both merchants and customers.

#3 Cross-border Remittances

One of Astra’s most impactful applications is in cross-border payments. Traditional remittance systems are often slow, expensive, and reliant on multiple intermediaries. Astra eliminates these inefficiencies by enabling instant, low-cost transfers between users in different countries. For example, a user in Uganda could send stablecoins to a recipient in Nigeria, with the transaction processed on the Lightning Network within seconds. This capability not only reduces costs but also empowers underbanked populations, providing them with access to efficient financial tools.

#4 Machine Payment with AI Agents

Astra will serve as the intermediary to connect blockchains for AI Agents to facilitate next-gen machine-to-machine payments on Lightning. Lightning makes the ideal monetary and payment system for machines for several compelling reasons:

• Lightning operates without accounts or human identities – each wallet is simply a public/private key pair.

• They seamlessly integrate with the existing legacy financial system through services like Lightspark, River, and Strike.

• Lightning enables real-time, global, and programmable micropayments, facilitating use cases such as conditional API calls.

For example, machines could stream 10 satoshis per second until an AI service has paid for 1TB of storage. This concept of programmable payments for API calls is being advanced through the L402 Protocol (developed by Lightning Labs), which will be integrated in Astra SDK.