So far this year, I have been using AQUA wallet as my main mobile Bitcoin wallet for keeping some on-the-go spending sats. In this article, I’m going to give a few reasons why AQUA is the best starter wallet to recommend to folks getting into bitcoin for the first time.
First of all, it offers the ability to interact with Bitcoin directly on-chain and on various Layer-2 solutions, which include the Lightning Network and the Liquid sidechain. On-chain bitcoin is separated from Layer-2 bitcoin in separate “saving” and “spending” accounts, which I think clearly helps users identify the proper use case for each account.
Second, it allows users to send and receive Lightning Network transactions in a self-custodial manner without the need to worry about opening lightning channels. This is because the Layer-2 “spending” account is technically a Liquid wallet. Transactions on the Liquid sidechain work similarly to transaction on the main Bitcoin blockchain, making it easy for users to self-custody. When a user wants to send or receive a payment via lightning, a third-party provider built into the app is used to provide atomic swaps between Liquid and Lightning. I think this is an excellent compromise that allows newbies to start using the Lightning Network. My most recent transaction involved sending funds from AQUA to my other self-custodial Lightning wallet and it worked seamlessly.
Finally, AQUA allows its users to send and receive the Tether (USDT) stablecoin and swap between it and bitcoin directly in the app. Tether is issued across many different cryptocurrency chains, such as Ethereum and Tron. However, USDT is also issed as an asset on the Liquid sidechain. Balances of USDT in the AQUA wallet are held on Liquid, however users can also send/receive USDT to/from addresses on Liquid, Ethereum, and Tron. This is facilitated with the SideShift integration in the app. This is great for users in countries looking for a stable alternative to their local currency in the form of a dollar stablecoin for their day-to-day transactions.
These are just three of my reasons why I would recommend AQUA wallet to new bitcoiners. Let me know what you think! Continue the conversation by following me on X and subscribing to my YouTube channel.