BTC <-> XMR Atomic Swaps Can Be Implemented Immediately, According to New Whitepaper

Bitcoin maximalists continue to argue that the relative dominance of Bitcoin in the crypto marketcap makes it not only the best choice for commerce, but literally the only choice.

However, perhaps ironically, when it comes to privacy even the most die-hard of Bitcoin advocates will tip his/her hat to Monero for the excellent implementation of fully private-by-default features- as Monero's marketcap proves that over time it has become the preferred cash replacement within crypto.

Bitcoin has market dominance. Great for storing/transferring value in the real world (or at least settlements at large scale).

Monero has privacy by default. Great for cash-like transactions in the real world (or least cash settlements at scale).

How best to reconcile the two?

You could always use an exchange to send BTC, trade for XMR, then move to another place.

Or sell one asset for the other confidentially to a 3rd party.

But in both cases, the blockchain will keep a specific record, tainting the reputation of innocent parties if one or more of the other associated parties has ever done anything on the fringe of legality.

So, then, why not atomic swaps?

Atomic Swaps are a solution within blockchain that allow users to trade the "atomic unit" of one cryptocurrency for that of another. One Satoshi for the market equivalent number of mXMR, and vice versa.

However, for many years there have been technical limitations, and simply not enough work put in by qualified developers to solve the problem of direct transfers.

Enter h4sh3d, with a Monero Community sponsorship:

What follows is the complete whitepaper by h4sh3d, hosted on mineyour.biz for your reading convenience (re-posted from here on GitHub).