Opera pushes further into crypto with new Web3 integrated browser

The mania around Web3 is intensifying by the day, especially as the digital infrastructure surrounding it continues to take a definitive structure. This has caused many players from the current internet epoch to allocate their resources to the same in a bid to stay relevant during this transformative period.

The most recent move in this direction has been made by Opera, the company behind the eponymous Internet browser. It unveiled plans to release a “Crypto Browser Project” in a press statement earlier today. The browser’s beta version for Microsoft, Android, and Mac users has already been launched for immediate use, it added.

The browser is focused on integrating Web3 into the Opera ecosystem by providing support for decentralized applications (dApps), blockchain gaming, and the metaverse. The statement added that while the browser will maintain the focus on security given by the current browser, it will also integrate direct access to decentralized exchanges, (NFT) and gaming DApps, as well as Telegram and Twitter support.

The browser is meant to accelerate the mainstream adoption of the blockchain ecosystem by targeting both “the crypto-native and the crypto-curious,” according to the statement which quoted Opera’s EVP Mobile, Jorgen Arnesen. It added,

“Opera’s Crypto Browser Project promises a simpler, faster, more private Web3 experience for users. It simplifies Web3 user experience that is often bewildering for mainstream users. Opera believes Web3 has to be easy to use for the decentralized web to reach its full potential.”

Opera’s own evolving crypto-wallet is the central focus of this browser. It currently offers support for both fungible ERC-20 standards as well as non-fungible ERC-721 standards, with ERC-1155 in the pipeline for Q1. Users of the wallet can purchase cryptocurrencies through its built-in fiat-to-crypto on-ramp, swap cryptos, and even check wallet balance and gas fee.

The built-in wallet will provide support for Ethereum in its beta version, later integrating Polygon, Solana, Nervos Network, Celo, and naming systems such as Unstoppable Domains, Handshake, and Ethereum Name Service. The company has entered into various partnerships regarding the same in the recent past.

Its much-awaited integration with Polygon is set to take place in the first quarter of 2022 as the browser expects scalability issues to eventually creep in. This is expected to provide dApp access to Opera’s over 80 million users worldwide.

The popular browser is not alone in revamping its outlook to fit in the current web trends. Social media mogul Facebook went as far ahead as renaming its company to Meta last year, highlighting the company’s growing ambitions beyond social media.