Context

Alice wants to pay Quentin
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q

Conventional Routing

Alice says:
  • "Hey Charlie, send these 21 sats to Quentin"
  • "Confirm once the payment is through"
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q

Implications for Alice

  • Does not have to know how payment arrives
  • Only needs to be able to cooperate with Charlie
  • Charlie knows who is paying how much to whom!

Source Routing

  • Alice defines the route herself
  • Through onion routing she tells every node how to forward the payment
    • A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q

Implications for Alice

  • Needs to know entire network
  • Charlie (and every other hop) know how much is being sent but not who pays whom