Opera launches new browser for Android with built-in crypto wallet

Opera, a web browser for Windows, macOS, and Linux operating systems, has announced the launch of its new blockchain-ready browser for Android with a built-in crypto wallet.

The public launch follows a private beta phase announced in July of 2018. The following month, Opera had announced plans to launch its desktop web browser with a built-in crypto wallet with Ethereum support.

In an online post dated December 13, Charles Hamel, Product Lead of Opera Crypto, said that the Opera browser for Android features crypto wallet integration and support for Web 3 – an umbrella term for a set of emerging technologies (cryptos, blockchain, distributed systems) which will extend the capabilities of the web.

“With a built-in crypto wallet, our browser has the potential to renew and extend its important role as a tool to access information, make transactions online and manage users’ online identity in a way that gives them more control,” Hamel explained.

According to the announcement, the new browser supports Ethereum and will access the Ethereum blockchain through Infura, an infrastructure platform that provides secure, reliable, and scalable access to Ethereum.

Hamel said that they decided to support Ethereum as it has the largest community of decentralized apps (Dapps).

“You can now use Opera to access these emerging Dapps,” he said. “Opera with Crypto Wallet supports the Ethereum Web3 API, making interaction with these Dapps seamless to the user.”

Users can now download Opera from the Play Store. In order to make Web 3 transactions, they would be required to purchase some ether and store it in their Opera Crypto Wallet. Once the cryptocurrency is stored, users would be able to access a selection of Web 3 apps in the Dapp store, accessible from within the browser’s built-in Crypto Wallet.

Joseph Lubin, Ethereum co-founder and founder of ConsenSys, welcomed the move, calling it a “significant step” by Opera to add an Ethereum-based crypto wallet and Dapp explorer.

“We see this as an important moment in improving Dapp accessibility, opening Web3 to mainstream audiences, and encouraging developers to build on Ethereum”, said Lubin.