Here’s Why Coinbase’s Web3 Browser Is Important for DeFi: Head of Engineering

Mr. Kim explains how his team managed to find a perfect balance between the security and usability of cryptocurrency wallets and built-in Web3 browsing tools.

Coinbase unveils MPC-powered wallet, a one-stop tool for DeFi era

Coinbase Wallet’s head of engineering has taken to Twitter to share a thread about the milestones his team accomplished with the release of an in-wallet Web3 browser.

1/ Earlier this week, @Coinbase launched a web3 browser built directly into its main mobile app, powered by MPC tech that eliminates the need for you to manage your own keys.

🧵🧵🧵Here’s why it’s a big deal. ⬇️⬇️⬇️

— Pete Kim (@petejkim) May 18, 2022

The new product supports EVM-compatible networks Polygon (MATIC), Optimism (OP) and Arbitrum and other types of blockchains like Bitcoin (BTC), Dogecoin (DOGE) and Stellar (XLM).

While self-custodial wallets remain the safest option for retail and institutional holders, the problem of key loss is among the most frequent for crypto enthusiasts.

As such, Coinbase created a “semi-custodial” system based on multi-party computation (MPC). It allows Coinbase and its users to hold the parts of data required to authorize the transactions; if one party is under attack, the funds remain safe.

At the same time, this design is suitable for the entire stack of operations in DeFi and NFTs, including dApps browsing, staking, lending, farming and so on.

Hiring strategy reconsidered for resource optimization

Blockchains recognize such wallets as “Externally Owned Accounts”: the contract-based design was abandoned due to low resource efficiency.

All operations of the new browser-wallet system can be authorized by password and 2FA; this solution meets the strictest security requirements.

As covered by U.Today previously, Coinbase’s director announced that the platform will reduce its hiring activity to make its operations more efficient.