Tools · Bridges & conversion
Boltz
Non-custodial atomic swaps between on-chain Bitcoin, Lightning, and Liquid — the submarine-swap bridge, exposed as an API.
What it is
Boltz is a non-custodial bridge that performs atomic (submarine) swaps between on-chain Bitcoin, Lightning, and Liquid, exposed via a RESTful API. Because the swaps are atomic, neither side can take the funds and run — it’s the trust-minimized way to move value across those rails without a custodian. For agent treasuries, Boltz is a building block for rebalancing and converting between layers at the boundary.
A Border Zone tool: it crosses between rails. See The Border Zone for where conversion mechanics fit relative to the pure substrate.
When to use it
- Moving value between on-chain BTC, Lightning, and Liquid without a custodian.
- Acquiring inbound Lightning liquidity or sweeping to on-chain via atomic swaps.
- Programmatic conversion at the edge of an agent treasury.
Quick start
Integrate against the API at api.docs.boltz.exchange; the service is powered by boltz-backend (github.com/BoltzExchange/boltz-backend), which you can also self-host. Follow the docs’ common-mistakes guide before going live.
Gotchas
- Non-custodial only if integrated correctly — Boltz explicitly warns integrators to keep API clients client-side and never run swaps or store refund data on users’ behalf, or the non-custodial guarantee breaks.
- Submarine swaps require correct refund/timeout handling; abandoned or failed swaps need user-controlled refund flows.
- Swap liquidity and limits are provider-set.