Synonym launches mobile BTC wallet
Bitcoin and Lightning Network service provider Synonym has launched a new BTC-focused mobile wallet that it says can improve the user experience for holders of the flagship digital currency – and expand Web3 adoption without relying on convoluted blockchain applications.
Synonym unveiled its mobile Bitcoin (BTC) wallet, called Bitkit, at the PlanB Forum in Lugano, Switzerland on October 29. The wallet supports BTC and Lightning Network payments with a self-managed node and encrypted backup service, which users can use for free. Bitkit is launching as a limited public beta app for both Apple and Android devices.
The Bitkit app is powered by Slashtags, a Bitcoin cryptographic seed that generates keys while simultaneously giving users control over data and money. Through Slashtags, Synonym claims that Bitkit will power Web3 “without using a blockchain at all.”
Paolo Ardoino, who serves as Synonym’s chief strategy officer, said the new app would help promote “hyperbitcoinization,” a term describing a future state in which Bitcoin is more widely used as a standard value and payment system.
Super excited to have announced Pear Credit at #lugano Plan B.
Pear Credit is a P2P transport layer for credit, leveraging lighting-style channels from the collaboration between @Tether_to hole punch ( @keet_io ) and @Synonym_til ⚡️— Paolo Ardoino (@paoloardoino) 30 October 2022
The launch of Bitkit also coincided with the release of Blocktank Instant, a Synonym-led service that enables cryptocurrency exchange for users onboard the Lightning Network without having to run Lightning infrastructure or hire additional engineers.
Related: Asset management firm launches BTC Lightning Network startup accelerator
Speaking to Cointelegraph on the sidelines of the PlanB conference, Synonym CEO John Carvalho said his firm is advancing real-world use cases for Bitcoin without the “magic fairy dust” of blockchain technology:
“What we do at Synonym […] is to try to show how we position Bitcoin in the world without having to use blockchain as some magic fairy dust. […] You can do all the things with Web3, and in the future we will also show how you can do things with tokens without the blockchain at all.”
He went on to explain how Bitkit can benefit Bitcoin holders:
“With the latest release of our app Bitkit, we’re basically showing a Bitcoin wallet user experience where the user holds the key to everything – you hold the keys to your Bitcoin, to your Lightning wallet, to your public profile, to your contacts.”
