Bitcoin infrastructure architect Blockstream has acquired wallet provider GreenAddress in a move the startup says could impact the development of its signature, still in-development sidechains solution. Following the acquisition, GreenAddress Wallet’s team of three developers will continue to work on privacy and security bolstering features for the wallet as well as compatibility for sidechains, a bitcoin infrastructure component that Blockstream has raised $76m in two investment rounds to engineer.
In interview, former GreenAddress founder and CEO Lawrence Nahum, now senior architect at Blockstream, said that the goal is to shape the wallet into a something like a portal for sidechains, a technology meant to enable a new wave of interoperable blockchains that could be anchored to the bitcoin blockchain.
Nahum told CoinDesk: "Blockstream is not just going to need some node service that provides some functionality, but it’s also going to need an interface, a wallet. It will provide an integrated solution for Blockstream customers." The move is perhaps not surprising, as the two teams have been working closely for two years.
Launched in 2014, GreenAddress Wallet was early to support innovative wallet features, such as deterministic wallets that allow for improved key creation and multi-signature security. Sidechains compatibility
But, more than absorbing GreenAddress, the two companies plan to merge their technologies.
Nahum explained that GreenAddress already supports Blockstream’s sidechains alpha functionality, which doesn’t appear to be publicly supported by other wallets, and the plan is to further integrate the two.
One way for the wallet to integrate the technology is by supporting Sidechain Elements, the open-source tool that allows developers to mix and match features, such as Segregated Witness or new scripting opcodes expanding bitcoin’s functionality, to create customizable sidechains.
"Schnorr transactions and confidential transactions, these are all things we’re providing support for," Nahum said.Current sidechains in-progress include the alpha testnet and the first […]
