Lightning Network

Lightning is a layer-2 payment network on top of Bitcoin. Two parties open a 'channel' by locking BTC in a 2-of-2 multisig on the mainchain; subsequent payments between them happen off-chain by exchanging signed updates. Channels can route through intermediaries (the 'network' part), allowing payments between any two participants without direct channels. Settlement to the mainchain happens when channels close.

For offshore hosting customers, Lightning offers fast (sub-second), cheap (sub-cent fees) BTC payments — particularly useful for small recurring payments. Drawback: requires a Lightning-capable wallet (Phoenix, Mutiny, Breez, Strike, etc.) and acquiring inbound liquidity. Most reputable offshore hosts that accept Bitcoin also accept Lightning via their BTCPay infrastructure. SilentHosts supports it natively.