Key facts:
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Atomic exchanges between XMR and BTC are already possible, although not yet in this wallet.
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The exchange protocol works in a decentralized manner and without intermediaries.
The Android wallet, Samourai Wallet, has announced that it is working on implementing atomic exchanges between bitcoin (BTC) and monero (XMR).
The confirmation was given directly from the Samourai Wallet official Twitter. It was in response to a user asking whether the wallet would integrate atomic exchanges, specifically with monero, through an “anonymous payment bridge”. Although the Monero developer team declare being “delighted” with the news, even it is unknown which project or protocol will be using Samourai Wallet.
At the end of May the news was released that, through the COMIT project, bitcoin and monero could be exchanged between blockchains without intermediaries. However, as can be seen in a report made by CriptoNoticias, at least three projects are working on atomic exchanges with monero and other cryptocurrencies.
Monero is a cryptocurrency that stands out for being one of the most private. Within your blockchain it is not possible to track the origin and destination of funds on each transaction. This, among others, is one of the differences it has with Bitcoin.
An atomic exchange refers to the possibility of making exchanges between two cryptocurrencies, coming from different blockchains, without the need for intermediaries. For example, in Bitcoin, thanks to the HTLC contract protocol, which allows you to create transactions with conditional signatures (if a certain condition is not met, BTC cannot be claimed), atomic exchanges can be made between Lightning network to Bitcoin main network.
However, with other cryptocurrencies the challenge varies. In the case of Monero, it does not use HTLC time contracts. The aforementioned COMIT project, took 2 years of development, in create a protocol that, using Bitcoin’s HTLC contracts, makes exchanges between Bitcoin and Monero possible, without the need for a third party.
It should be stressed that, in order for these exchange protocols to work, must have sufficient liquidity, that is, users willing to exchange XMR for BTC or vice versa. While it is an exchange without intermediaries, it is still a peer-to-peer exchange. A user sends the bitcoins they want to exchange for monero and the protocol takes care of pairing them with someone who wants to exchange their moneros for bitcoins. Without this, exchange is not possible. This is usually the main limitation of this type of technology.