  Following in the footsteps of pioneer Bitcoin, many altcoins as well as
coloured coins have been being developed and merchandised adopting blockchain
as the core enabling technology. However, since interoperability and
scalability, due to high and capped (in particular cases) transaction latency
are deep-rooted in the architecture of blockchain technology, they are by
default inherited in any blockchain based applications. Lightning Network (LN)
is one of the supporting technologies developed to eliminate this impediment of
blockchain technology by facilitating instantaneous transfers of cryptos. Since
the potentials of LN is still relatively unknown, this paper investigates the
current states of development along with possible non-monetary usage of LN,
especially in settlement coloured coins such as securities, as well as creation
of new business models based on Lightning Applications (LApps) and microchannel
payments as well as micro-trades. The legal challenges that may act as
impediment to the adoption of LN is also discussed.
