Opera Allows U.K. Users to Buy Cryptocurrencies with Bank Accounts 

Internet browser manufacturer opera has announced a new update to its crypto-integrated browser, continuing in the firm’s move to embrace the industry. Earlier this week, the company confirmed in a press release that it had expanded its crypto wallet service for users in the United Kingdom. Now, the users will be able to top up their wallets from their bank accounts seamlessly.

Seamless Crypto Purchases for Brits

Opera explained that it partnered with Ramp Network, a crypto on-ramp service provider, to implement European Open Banking Application Program Interfaces (APIs). The integration now allows for low-fee crypto top-ups, which users can perform via their bank accounts or digital banking platform Revolut.

The company’s browser currently supports storage for Bitcoin, Ether, and TRON. However, U.K. users will only be able to use this new purchase feature for Ether and Bitcoin. Charles Hamel, Opera’s Head of Crypto, claimed that the launch would open the door for users in the U.K. to purchase even more assets in the future.

This development also marked the first time that Opera would be releasing metrics on its user base. In its release, the Norwegian company revealed that it now has over 170,000 people using its crypto wallets per month.

Opera is All-In on Crypto and Blockchain

Opera’s switch to crypto and blockchain has been quite notable. The company made a play to begin embracing Web 3.0 technologies back in 2018, and it has made some significant strides in the crypto space. Since then, the company launched its first crypto wallet in 2018 and has rolled out support for BTC, ETH, and TRX. The company’s wallets also support ERC-20 and ERC-721 tokens.

This year, however, Opera stepped up its growth in the crypto space. The company has highlighted convenience as a major block to crypto adoption, and it has worked to remove that obstacle.

In March, Opera launched a feature to allow U.S. users to buy Bitcoin and Ether directly from its wallet. The company’s move was in partnership with Wyre, a U.S.-licensed money transmitter in the cryptocurrency sector. Per the company’s press release, Android users will be able to purchase the sets with their debit cards, while iOS users will access the feature using Apple Pay.

As with most of its features, Opera launched this direct purchase feature for countries in its home region. Users in countries like Norway, Sweden, and Denmark have had access to the functionality for about a year now, with Opera committing to rolling it out to even more countries in the coming months.

Opera’s blockchain play is also gaining some attention. The company enabled its users to access decentralized web pages earlier this year, thanks to a partnership with Tim Draper-backed blockchain domain operator Unstoppable Domains.

Apart from allowing access to decentralized webpages and crypto payment enablement, the feature could also improve connection speed. Speaking with Cointelegraph, Unstoppable Domains claimed that distributed networks are more robust over time. Thus, the integration could improve uptime and reduce the risk of issues like Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks.