Coinbase Wallet, Coinbase’s digital wallet, adds a string to its bow by integrating Solana as well as its SOL and SPL tokens. In addition, it will now be possible for wallet users to purchase cryptocurrencies directly from the browser extension. With its growing number of users and multi-chain support beyond EVM-compatible blockchains, Coinbase may well overshadow the MetaMask wallet.
Coinbase Wallet now includes Solana
The Google Chrome extension for Coinbase Wallet, Coinbase’s digital wallet, is now compatible with the Solana (SOL) blockchain ecosystem. As such, it now allows for the storage of Solana’s own SOL and SPL tokens.
According to the release, this is the first phase of Solana implementation on Coinbase and more tools are expected to be added. For example, the wallet will in the future integrate the ability for users to interact with Solana’s dApps or even manage their collection of non-fungible tokens (NFTs) directly from the extension.
The addition of SPL tokens to Coinbase Wallet is the first integration of non Ethereum blockchain compatible tokens on the wallet, unlike those of networks that were already supported such as Avalanche, Polygon or the BNB Chain.
It should also be noted that for Solana users who already own wallets inherent to the Solana blockchain such as Solflare or Phantom, it will be possible to transfer them directly to Coinbase Wallet simply by importing their recovery phrase.
“Today’s update makes it easier to keep track of all your cryptocurrencies across a wider range of networks, without having to manage multiple wallet apps at once.” –
Coinbase press release
With its 13 million users and multi-chain compatibility, Coinbase Wallet is a direct competitor to the well-known MetaMask wallet, which itself exclusively supports EVM-compatible blockchains, thus excluding Solana.
Launch of Coinbase Pay in parallel
Second big announcement for Coinbase Wallet: it will now be possible to buy cryptocurrencies directly from the browser extension thanks to Coinbase Pay.
According to Coinbase, this new tool aims to simplify the life of users by avoiding them to go through multiple manipulations to feed their wallet with cryptocurrencies. Indeed, until now, it was necessary to buy a cryptocurrency from a dedicated purchase platform and then transfer the funds to the desired wallet address.
For new users, it will only be necessary to link their Coinbase Wallet to the Coinbase website (which requires registration beforehand). Once this step is done, they will then just have to choose the cryptocurrency they want to buy directly from the extension, its amount and finalize the transaction.
A measure that should be appreciated, since indeed, the many steps of buying and transferring a cryptocurrency to a wallet can be confusing for novices to the point of blocking greater adoption.
