Software Researcher Finds Secret Crypto Wallet in Microsoft Edge Browser – What’s Going On?

Microsoft has quietly tested an integrated non-custodial cryptocurrency wallet for its Edge browser.

According to screenshots shared by software researcher Albacore, Microsoft is experimenting with an integrated noncustodial crypto wallet that can be used for crypto payments or as a gateway to DeFi and Web3 applications.

The screenshots further depict a user interface for a cryptocurrency wallet, a decentralized app explorer, a newsfeed, and the ability to buy cryptocurrency through Coinbase and MoonPay.

“This is a noncustodial wallet, which means you are in complete control of your funds. We won’t have access to your password and recovery key. It’s integrated with Edge, which makes it easy to use without installing an extension,” says Microsoft. during the integration process.

Although the wallet’s introductory pages do not indicate which cryptocurrencies are supported, a screenshot shows that users will have the option to manually add custom tokens.

The screenshots suggest that users could also buy and browse NFTs in major markets with the wallet. “Browse through different markets to find your first NFT, as you build your collection of NFTs, we’ll organize them here,” reads the NFT page.

Microsoft has not officially announced the wallet project.

Experiments with a crypto wallet come as Microsoft has been involved in the crypto space in many ways. Specifically, the tech giant has shown great interest in the Metaverse.

However, Microsoft recently ended its Industrial Metaverse Core team, a four-month-old project aimed at encouraging the use of the metaverse in industrial environments. The company has also laid off employees working on the project, which amounts to around 100 people.

More Browsers Offer Crypto Wallets as Adoption Grows

Microsoft Edge is not the first web browser to include a crypto wallet. A number of other major web browsers have recently added support for built-in crypto wallets as adoption grows.

Opera has supported cryptocurrency since 2018, initially adding the feature on mobile before expanding it to desktop in 2019. several new blockchain networks, including Bitcoin (BTC), Solana (SOL), Polygon (MATIC), and Ronin (RON).

Similarly, Brave has integrated its own crypto wallet known as Brave Wallet since November 2021. The wallet supports all Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) compatible blockchains and Ethereum Layer 2 chains with both ERC- 20 standard and NFTs on the ERC. -Standard 721.

In January last year, the browser said it had surpassed 50 million monthly active users, with over 8 million users actively earning rewards in the form of BAT tokens.

This puts Brave well behind Opera in terms of overall popularity, but given that the browser only launched in 2017, user growth has undeniably been strong in recent years.

Meanwhile, users of other browsers like Mozilla, Firefox, and Google Chrome can install third-party cryptocurrency wallets like Metamask to be able to use Web3 apps.