Litecoin (LTC), one of the oldest cryptocurrencies in the market, has already released its long-awaited network update called Mimblewimble through extension blocks – also known as MWEB. This is the most important update for Litecoin’s network after the activation of Segregated Witness (SegWit) several years ago. Thanks to this new update, the virtual currency is now the largest privacy-focused digital currency in the market. 

Litecoin Adds Mimblewimble Extension Blocks (MWEB)

The cryptocurrency market forgot about an old player in the space. We are talking about Litecoin, which has been one of the most popular cryptocurrencies over the last few years. Due to the large growth and expansion of other blockchain networks such as Solana (SOL), Terra (LUNA), Avalanche (AVAX) and Dogecoin (DOGE), Litecoin lost its position as one of the top 20 digital currencies in the market. 

Despite this, Litecoin developers have been working very hard over the last years in order to add Mimblewimble through extension blocks to the Litecoin network, bringing fungibility to LTC transactions. According to a recent tweet published by the Litecoin Foundation, MWEB is the largest upgrade to the Litecoin network ever, promising to provide fungibility for all and improve Litecoin’s scalability. 

#MWEB is set to be the largest upgrade to the Litecoin network ever, promising to provide fungibility for all, while improving Litecoin's scalability.

— Litecoin Foundation ⚡️ (@LTCFoundation) January 31, 2022

Moreover, the Litecoin Foundation explained that the MWEB upgrade is an opt-in feature that makes Litecoin the most fungible cryptocurrency in the space. This could help Litecoin become one of the most used digital payment instruments in the market. 

The lead developer behind Litecoin’s implementation of Mimblewimble Extension Block is David Burkett, who worked for several years in order to enhance Litecoin’s blockchain. His work included development, testing, reviewing and auditing alongside dozens of other contributors. It is also worth taking into consideration that the new update has also included Taproot. 

About the recent update, David Burkett said:

“MWEB is a crucial next step in Litecoin’s evolution. The optional confidentiality MWEB provides gives the user notable and needed protections for small everyday items, to salaries or even buying a home.”

Meanwhile, Charlie Lee, the founder of Litecoin, said that this implementation has been a true community effort based on donations from Litecoin supporters from all over the world. Other supporters and contributors included Andrew Yang, who helped with the Litecoin Improvement Proposal, and Hector Chu, who made extensive code reviews. 

According to CoinGecko, Litecoin is the 22nd largest cryptocurrency in the world with a market capitalization of $8.58 billion. Each LTC coin can currently be purchased for $123.