By
Godfrey Benjamin
April 25th, 2024
For Coinbase Wallet users with no Solana wallets, the browser extension can auto-create one.
Cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase has added Solana to its list of blockchains supported by its wallet browser extension. As of Thursday, users can now send, receive and store Solana (SOL) and Solana Program Library (SPL) via the Coinbase Chrome browser extension. SPL tokens, Solana’s equivalent of Ethereum’s ERC-20 tokens, are the wallet’s first non-Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) compatible digital asset. The tokens, however, will not be visible in the mobile wallet.
Solana joins Ethereum, Polygon, Avalanche and other popular chains. This latest addition pits Coinbase against popular wallets Phantom and Solflare and Ethereum wallet Metamask.
Integration for Solana Wallets
Users with existing Solana self-custody wallets can integrate them into their Coinbase.
Senior Product Manager at Coinbase, Adam Zadikoff explains:
“If you already have a Solana wallet, such as Phantom or Solflare, it’s quick and easy to import your existing Solana self-custody wallet into Coinbase Wallet. All you’ll need is the latest Coinbase Wallet desktop extension and your Solana wallet’s recovery phrase.”
Coinbase provides a step-by-step guide.
For Coinbase Wallet users with no Solana wallets, the browser extension will auto-create one. This can be done by simply transferring SOL from the Coinbase account to the wallet or by buying using the payment methods attached to the account.
Solana and Coinbase Going Foward
There has been an increase in blockchain networks and projects in recent months. With this, comes scaling issues and the potential for high gas fees and slow transactions. Solana has been lauded as a network with cheap and fast transactions. It currently has a Total Locked Value (TLV) of $7.35 billion. Over 1,400 DeFi, NFT and web3 projects run on Solana including the Degenerate Apes NFT collection and the dEx Serum.
Before Coinbase adopted Solana, users who wanted to access any of these had to have a dedicated wallet and use another app or browser extension to track and manage their assets. The platform is set to add support for Solana NFTs and will enable users to connect to Solana dApps and the entire ecosystem.
“In the coming months, we’ll be adding support for Solana NFTs and the ability for you to connect your wallet to Solana dapps to interact with everything the Solana ecosystem has to offer,” Zadikoff said.