Is the currency circle too difficult to understand? Coinbase executive: Barriers need to be removed
Cryptocurrency is trying to become popular, but how to attract the first billion mainstream users to "get on the chain"? The first priority may be to develop more newbie-friendly apps.
According to "Cointelegraph", at the recent Ethereum Community Conference (EthCC), Coinbase Senior Director of Engineering Chintan Turakhia pointed out that the current user entry process is complicated and the learning cost is high, which is the main problem that makes it difficult to popularize cryptocurrency. :
"If our goal is to attract the next billion users, or start by attracting 100 million people, then we have to remove all these barriers."
For newcomers, complex puzzles include setting up a crypto wallet with a complex mnemonic phrase, paying transaction fees (gas), and purchasing the blockchain’s native tokens to transact on-chain.
Consumer apps could be the path to mass adoption
According to data from the cryptocurrency ranking website CoinMarketCap, Coinbase has the second largest spot trading volume in the world and is currently the only exchange listed in the United States.
To drive mass adoption, Coinbase recently launched Smart Wallet, designed with many newbie-friendly features. Not only can users log in with an account and password without having to remember complicated mnemonics, but they also don’t have to pay gas fees when making transactions. It also supports the Ethereum mainnet and blockchains compatible with the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM).
Image source: Coinbase
Coinbase exchange recently launched Smart Wallet
Turakhia said that many people who have been in the currency circle for a long time have become accustomed to paying gas fees and holding native tokens, but this is not the payment logic for ordinary consumers when buying a cup of coffee.
Turakhia believes that consumer apps with the potential for daily use will be another path to mass adoption of cryptocurrencies:
“The path to mass adoption is consumer apps, something interesting that doesn’t feel technical or geeky, but is actually an interesting product.”
Currently, Telegram’s hamster game “Hamster Kombat”, which has more than 200 million users in 81 days, seems to have the potential to become the next product to break out of the industry. Telegram founder Pavel Durov also noticed the game and said that 4 million to 5 million new users join every day, making it one of the fastest growing digital services in the world.
200 million players are playing! How to play the TON hamster game "Hamster Kombat"? Why is it so popular?
Mastercard is also working hard to lower the threshold, and MetaMask is strengthening security
In addition to companies in the currency circle, some non-currency companies also give priority to lowering the user threshold when expanding their cryptocurrency business. "CryptoCity" previously reported that Mastercard has launched a pilot program for encrypted certificates, which allows users to easily transfer money without posting lengthy blockchain addresses. It is currently being tested on exchanges in 13 countries.
In addition, MetaMask, which claims to have 30 million monthly active users, is also improving the user experience. In addition to integrating the security alert function of the security platform Blockaid, it recently announced the acquisition of the security application Wallet Guard to provide users with more powerful security protection.
In addition to simplifying the threshold for use, how to strengthen information security and add anti-fraud reminders may also be another key to popularizing cryptocurrency.
A survey report by blockchain analysis company Chainalysis shows that cryptocurrency hacking incidents occurred frequently around the world in 2023, with users losing a total of US$1.7 billion. Most of these hacking incidents are related to wallet security vulnerabilities, so improving wallet security has become a top priority.
