MetaMask Back on Google Play After 1 Week Ban
- Google originally suspended the browser extension for breaching its policy against apps that mine cryptocurrency on mobile devices.
- On 1 January the tech giant decided to reverse the ban and return the mobile app back on Google Play.
MetaMask logo illustration. The Block
Major Ethereum crypto wallet and dapp platform MetaMask has made a comeback in 2020, notifying its users that it is no longer banned on Google Play, the firm announced on Twitter on 1 January.
Being a browser extension for Google Chrome, MetaMask allows its users to run Ethereum-based dapps without the need to operate a full node. On 26 December the firm tweeted that its Android client was suspended from the Google Play App Store, and that its appeal to Google Play was rejected.
Google stated that the reason for the ban was its policy against apps that mine cryptocurrency on mobile devices, which according to them, MetaMask violated. The new announcement states that after a supposedly careful consideration, the mobile app was permitted back on Google Play.
MetaMask also mentioned its users in the new year tweet, thanking them for having suggested alternative distribution methods for its Android client. MetaMask also said that the “experience has made us more resilient, and as a community, we are stronger for enduring it”.
This is not the first time that Google has made a “mistake” when it comes to banning cryptocurrency content. Last month Google’s subsidiary, YouTube, also started a crypto crackdown of its own, removing crypto content from its video platform.
Apparently crypto content started getting removed from YouTube on 23 December, but later the firm admited to its mistake, and started reversing the banns on 26 December.
- MetaMask expanded its partnership with MoonPay to allow users in Nigeria to buy cryptocurrencies directly from its mobile wallet app and Portfolio dApp.
- MetaMask noted that the new crypto on-ramp feature will be expanded to other African countries in the coming month, including Kenya, Botswana, and South Africa.
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- The company noted that it will continue to operate, and that the 90% withdrawal limit will help it better navigate the prolonged bear market.
- Wyre CEO Yanni Giannaros has transitioned into a new role as executive chairman, while its CRO and CCO, Stephen Cheng, is taking the role of interim CEO.
- MetaMask Bridges was designed to aggregate multiple blockchain bridges in one place, making it easier and more secure for users to transfer their assets from one network to another.
- The new feature currently supports the Ethereum, Avalanche, BNB Chain, and Polygon blockchains, as well as the Connext, Hop, Celer cBridge, and Polygon Bridge.