Accounts Labs secures $7.7M, UniPass crypto wallet initial PH launch

Recently, the FTX empire experienced a significant fall from grace, causing a wave of disappointment throughout the crypto market. This was primarily due to FTX's questionable handling of customer funds, shedding light on the inherent risks associated with crypto wallets overseen by centralized trading platforms.

• Crisis Response: Self-custodial wallets emerged as the superheroes, handing back control of digital assets to the users. Though the FTX debacle and the troubles of its sister companies put a damper on the crypto market, several wallet solutions are making a comeback, rallying users to their cause.

• A New Player: One such contender is Account Labs, who recently celebrated a victory with a $7.7M Series Pre-A funding round. Account Labs was established as a result of a 2023 merger between Keystone and UniPass.

• Financers: The investors behind this venture are a blend of modern web3 enthusiasts and seasoned internet tech veterans, including Amber Group, MixMarvel DAO Ventures, and Qiming Ventures.

• State of the Industry: As the situation stabilizes, the crypto wallet landscape is witnessing a shift, with centralized exchanges and established wallet solutions pushing to meet evolving user needs. The current trend involves a combination of asset control and a user-friendly interface, facilitated by recent technological advancements within the blockchain community.

• Introduction to Smart Contracts: Legacy wallet entities are actively interested in teams skilled in the concept of "account abstraction". For those unfamiliar, this refers to the ability to incorporate smart contracts into self-hosted wallets, enabling features that we find commonplace in the web2 world, like Google login and account recovery via email.

• Major Progress: The new funding for Account Labs is set to propel the launch of the UniPass wallet app, facilitating the forthcoming widespread adoption of crypto through straightforward stablecoin transfers.

• Global Expansion: Starting with a pilot in the Philippines, the company plans to extend its services to other Southeast Asian countries, including Vietnam, Malaysia, and Indonesia.

Operating on the Polygon network, known for speed and low transaction fees, UniPass offers an efficient remittance option, devoid of bureaucracy and high costs.

Additionally, in comparison to PayPal's 8-10% fees, UniPass transactions cost merely about 1%.