Opera browser adds support for NEAR protocol (NEAR)

The privacy-oriented web browser, which has a history of incorporating crypto features, said the collaboration opens its crypto capabilities up to a new audience that are part of NEAR’s community. Further, this alliance gives NEAR’s application developers access to Opera’s massive user base.

Opera users will benefit from the Ethereum competitor’s speed, scale and lower gas fees alongside a greater focus on user-friendliness. The result of the integration is that users will be able to transact NEAR assets directly within the Opera browser. They can also use its Proof-of-Stake (PoS) consensus mechanism, called Nightshade, to transfer ERC20 and ERC712 tokens with Ethereum.

The biggest takeaway of this collaboration for Opera is that it supports its mission to transform its non-custodial wallet into a truly multi-chain vault.

Integrating directly in the Opera browser’s crypto wallet also enables users to transact NEAR tokens via the browser’s interface without any third-party extensions or separate wallet applications.

NEAR Protocol was designed to make it easier to build and host decentralized applications. The dApp platform aims to compete with Ethereum and other emerging smart contract blockchains like EOS and Polkadot.

“Like Opera, NEAR’s easy user flow and reliable technology makes mainstream adoption of crypto frictionless. BTC is blockchain version 1, ETH is version 2, and NEAR is version 3,” says Susie Batt, Lead of Crypto Ecosystem at Opera.

“I’m excited about the mass market reach of Opera meeting NEAR’s rapidly expanding ecosystem of easy-to-use applications. NEAR is the first blockchain that’s ready for mainstream adoption. It’s important to continuously lower the barrier to adoption of the Open Web, and this is a significant step in that direction,” added Co-founder of NEAR Protocol, Illia Polosukhin.

Opera was the first ever full-fledged browser to adopt cryptocurrencies. In 2018, the Norwegian company launched the world’s first internet browser with a built-in cryptocurrency wallet with its Android mobile application.

Opera’s so-called ‘Web 3-Ready’ browser is an umbrella for its set of cryptocurrency and blockchain products, and it already has a built-in crypto wallet for Android and iOS which supports Ethereum and dApps interactions.

According to its own numbers, the Opera web browser currently holds nearly four percent of the global market share with over 350 million monthly active users.