Ethereum Mist wallet upgrade causes controversy

Rage Comment : Ethereum Mist is one of the main wallet services provided by the platform. Yesterday, Ethereum announced an upgrade, which made people suspect that this move was biased and provided unique benefits to Coinbase and others. However, Anthony Di Iorio, co-founder of the Ethereum Foundation, pointed out that the foundation has always remained neutral and its focus is on improving practical projects. Of course, the community's doubts about the new version's bias are controversial.

Translation: Annie_Xu

An upgrade to one of ethereum’s main wallets on the 25th of this month has attracted excessive attention amid speculation that it will give special treatment to startups in a certain industry.

The wallet is Mist, and the main feature of this upgrade is the integration of the startup Coinbase's gadget, which increases the limit for users to buy Ethereum to $5. Because this feature supports users to buy Ethereum directly with the wallet, many people in the community believe that this move can attract new Ethereum users.

But the Mist wallet is sponsored by the nonprofit Ethereum Foundation, so the upgrade has raised concerns that senior members of the project are intentionally giving Coinbase an unfair advantage.

The crux of the dispute, as Anthony Di Iorio tweeted, is that the foundation is “picking winners.” People continued to discuss the issue on the social media platform, and Di Iorio, who developed the Jaxx Ethereum wallet, also explained it in detail.

"The Ethereum Foundation will remain neutral and focus its efforts on education, protocols, security, performance, scalability, etc."

The current Beta version of Mist is a smart contract wallet that functions like a browser and allows users to manage customized tokens.

In-depth discussion

Other ethereum users see this as a selfish move, but rather a way to advance the project by making it easier to buy bitcoin, since ether is designed to support the platform's decentralized applications.

Reddit user cryptopascal argued that it was unfair to call the project private, as Coinbase is one of the few services that allows users to exchange traditional currencies for Ethereum.

Di Iorio's comments also draw attention to how to avoid favoring one company over another when adding new features.

Another user added, “I would not be against foundations working with commercial organizations, but only if it remains neutral and everyone has the same opportunities and right to know.”