Coinbase Wallet Adds Chat and USDC Payment Features

Coinbase Wallet, the self-custodial wallet from the leading U.S. crypto exchange, has launched an encrypted messaging feature that lets users send messages directly to and from wallet addresses on the platform.

The new feature also enables users to send USDC stablecoins to any recipient across the app via the Polygon network without paying any transaction fees.

Matt Galligan, co-founder of XMTP, said that in a space rife with phishing scams, the messaging protocol on Coinbase Wallet adds a layer of security to communications by allowing anyone to verify the authenticity of senders.

“For example, hi.xmtp.eth can be sent a message and interacted with. At any time, someone communicating with that name can see it's a subdomain of xmtp.eth, and that ENS domain can be independently verified,“ Galligan told The Defiant.

Coinbase stock has been on a tear recently, rallying 80% in the past month after major TradFi players named the exchange as their market surveillance partner in their Bitcoin ETF applications.

Lens Integration

Coinbase Wallet messaging is facilitated by web3 communications firm XMPT, in collaboration with decentralized social graph Lens Protocol. The feature enables direct encrypted messages between wallet users and is compatible with Ethereum addresses associated with short form handles via Ethereum Name Service (ENS), Lens Protocol, and Coinbase’s cb.id.

Coinbase Wallet’s messaging system differs from traditional messaging applications, where communications and contacts remain locked in walled gardens, according to Galligan.

“With XMTP, users are free to take their inbox to any other app that supports XMTP—or use multiple apps at once because they might have different user experiences,” said Galligan.

The feature lets users import chats across compatible decentralized social apps, such as Orb, Lenster and Buttrfly.

Combining Secure Communications and Transactions

Crypto users sending payments via web3 apps but communicating across traditional web2 apps that lack verifiable on-chain identity authenticators are left “straddling two worlds,” according to Coinbase Director of Product Management Siddharth Coelho-Prabhu.

“This has resulted in millions of dollars in lost funds through social engineering and imposters,” Coelho-Prabhu told The Defiant, adding, “Now, crypto users can communicate and transact seamlessly on one platform, with verified on-chain identities and end-to-end encrypted, private messages.”

Coinbase is looking into taking measures to prevent scammers and spam with a mechanism to preview messages and approve or block any wallet that reaches out, said Coelho-Prabhu.

“Bringing messaging consent to the protocol level is something that is of near-term interest to the community and devs working on XMTP,” echoed Galligan.