Key Takeaways
- GameStop will remove its iOS and Chrome Extension wallets from the market on November 1, 2023, leaving customers with access until October 1.
- The decision comes just one year after the company introduced the
In a surprising move, popular video game retailer GameStop (GME) has announced that it will withdraw its support for crypto wallets, citing regulatory uncertainty in the United States. The decision comes just one year after the company introduced the service to its customers.
According to a statement on its website, GameStop will remove its iOS and Chrome Extension wallets from the market on November 1, 2023, leaving customers with access until October 1.
“Due to the regulatory uncertainty of the crypto space, GameStop has decided to remove its iOS and Chrome Extension wallets from the market on November 1, 2023,” the announcement reads. The wallets launched approximately a year ago allowed users to manage cryptocurrencies and non-fungible tokens (NFTs) across decentralized applications, facilitating transactions on GameStop’s own NFT marketplace.
The company’s foray into the crypto and NFT space was a gradual process that culminated in the official launch of its NFT marketplace in 2022 in partnership with Immutable X, a layer two blockchain built on top of Ethereum. This move had been in the works since May 2020, when GameStop began seeking software engineers with expertise in Solidity, React, and Python to join their team.
The beta version of the Loopring-powered GameStop NFT marketplace was subsequently unveiled in March 2022, generating excitement among gamers and crypto enthusiasts. However, GameStop’s ambitious venture into the crypto space has faced challenges, and the recent decision to discontinue its crypto wallet support adds another twist to the story.
The company’s financial struggles in recent years and its attempt to pivot into the digital asset world have not been without obstacles. In December last year, citing a financial crunch, the company decided to lay off some of its staff.
The move by GameStop also comes amid the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) intensifying its regulatory oversight over the crypto and Web3 space, filing lawsuits against major industry players like Binance and Coinbase, among others, in the past few months.
