Optimism Introduces New Wallet Enabling Crypto Receipt via Twitter Login

According to a developer announcement on July 27, a wallet named “Beam” has been introduced on Optimism. This wallet offers the unique feature of generating an address without the need for seed words and allows users to save their accounts using a regular Twitter login. The wallet operates directly in a browser window, eliminating the need for any downloads. Notably, Beam also enables users to send transactions on Optimism without requiring ownership of Ether.

Beam, was developed by Eco, a payments company supported by Web3 venture capital firms Andreessen Horowitz, Coinbase Ventures, Founders Fund, Lightspeed Venture Partners, and Pantera Capital.

To create a Beam wallet, users simply visit the application’s website, where they are provided with a unique QR code representing an Optimism address. This QR code can be shared with others to receive cryptocurrency, or it can be copied for sending through email or messaging apps. The web app is accessible from both desktop and mobile devices.

To back up their wallet, users need to click on “save access” and log in to Twitter via its API. They then proceed to click on “save access” once more and are prompted to create a new password. After submitting the password, the account backup is complete. In the event of a device crash, users can easily recover their accounts using their Twitter login and password.

In a discussion with Cointelegraph, Andy Bromberg, the CEO of Eco App and Beam, provided insights into the usage of Web3Auth in the application to back up accounts. Web3Auth is an innovative wallet technology that enables the creation of seedless wallets.

Bromberg clarified that the password functions as a backup shard for Web3Auth and is not stored as a hash on any centralized server. This ensures that neither Twitter nor Eco can carry out unauthorized transfers on behalf of the user.

Despite Ether being the native coin of Optimism, Beam does not require users to possess ETH for paying gas fees. Instead, gas fees can be paid using the specific coin involved in the transfer. For instance, if a user sends $100 in USD Coin, they can pay a mere $0.50 in USDC.

To facilitate this, the wallet broadcasts two separate transactions. The first transaction fulfills the user’s request, while the second transaction involves a commitment to pay the gas fees through a third-party “paymaster” account, subject to the paymaster’s agreement. In the aforementioned USDC example, the paymaster will pay $0.50 or less worth of ETH on the user’s behalf, while the user simultaneously transfers $0.50 of USDC to the paymaster. Bromberg explained that paymasters cannot charge additional fees beyond what the user has authorized since the fee amount is embedded in the transaction’s signature used for authorization.

Bromberg further mentioned that the utilization of paymasters only became feasible after the implementation of account abstraction in March. This implementation allowed user-controlled wallet accounts to contain executable code for the first time.

When Coinbase’s Base network officially launches in August, Beam will also be made available on this network. Andy Bromberg stated that once Base is launched, user balances on both Base and Optimism will be combined and displayed as a single total within the Beam app. During a transaction, the Base and Optimism components of the transaction will be broadcasted simultaneously on each network, creating the illusion of interacting on a unified network.

Due to this functionality, Bromberg referred to Beam as a “Superchain” wallet, indicating its seamless interaction within the OP Stack ecosystem.

Bromberg believes that Beam will alleviate the challenges faced by users with crypto wallets, enabling regular individuals to embrace this technology. He expressed his excitement, stating that after being in the crypto space for 10 years, Beam is the first noncustodial product that his parents have been able to use successfully, despite his previous attempts. This highlights the user-friendly nature of Beam.

Beam is not the only wallet app aiming to simplify the onboarding process for crypto. Kresus Wallet, launched on May 11, allows users to register with just an email address. Additionally, Worldcoin introduced a wallet on May 8 that enables gas-free transactions for users who verify their humanness through its protocol.