Proton Wallet Enters the iOS App Store as the MetalPay Ecosystem Expands

Proton has announced that its mobile wallet has been added to the iOS store, enabling Apple users to interact with the high throughput payment network. The Proton ecosystem, developed by MetalPay, straddles the worlds of crypto and fiat, mimicking the payment rails of traditional finance with the advantages of a blockchain framework for efficient routing.

Proton Wallet enables users to interact directly with the Proton ecosystem, using it to stake the native XPR token and to vote for block producers. Naturally, it also functions as a regular wallet for sending, receiving, and storing Proton assets. Subsequent iterations of the wallet are expected to add further functionality.

A Simple Way to Earn APY

For retail users, the main sell of the iOS wallet is that it can be used to earn yield on staked assets. When XPR is staked, holders receive an APY, further boosting their total assets. Moreover, users are free to stake as little or as many tokens as they like. Another feature of the Apple mobile wallet is that it provides a means of interacting with games and other platforms built on Proton. As the ecosystem expands, this should become the primary use case for the wallet.

The Proton blockchain has been designed with scalability in mind, and is capable of processing 4,000 transactions per second. The iOS wallet does not require gas fees either, meaning users can get up and running instantly. The requirement to hold ETH in order to send ETH is seen as one of the biggest obstacles to onboarding new Ethereum users. Proton Wallet has been designed with this consideration in mind, with the goal of lowering the barriers to entry.

Human readable account names are also provided, making it easier to store wallet addresses and mitigating the risk of sending funds to the wrong, non-memorable address. As a non-custodial wallet, users retain control of their private keys, which are securely stored on Apple’s Keychain.

Proton Welcomes App Developers

While the release of its iOS wallet is a major step forward, Proton isn’t stopping there. Its app aspirations extend to an array of third party applications that connect to the Proton blockchain. In October, Proton released its web SDK and accompanying documentation. The idea is to make it easier for developers to create Proton applications, and to simplify the process of app creation and deployment.

Proton sees a future in which dozens and eventually hundreds of apps are utilizing its infrastructure for payments, enabling crypto assets, stablecoins, and other tokens to be transferred quickly and cheaply. Its blockchain has been engineered to provide a comparable experience to using a financial network such as Visa or Mastercard.

Upon installing the new iOS wallet, users can verify their identity in just a few clicks and then begin using it to send, receive, and stake cryptocurrency. It also provides a means of choosing block producers through onchain voting and earning a portion of the block rewards that are disbursed every day.