MetaMask is off the IOS Appstore.
This came unannounced to the users, much like everything else Apple does that doesn't have to do with new products and Hype. This decision was unilateral and authoritarian, much like everything else centralized Big Tech does.
This is going to hinder the growth of Crypto because MetaMask is the most known wallet among normies. It is user friendly and intuitive. Being off the Appstore will definitely hurt their adoption and in turn, will slow down crypto adoption to a degree.
But this is all MetaMask's own fault.
I don't care about IOS's reasons, this has been boiling up for months now. The more crypto grows and the normal people get more access to assets that allows them to stop depending on the system, the more moves like this one we are going to see.
But I mean, what did you expect from a centralized, authoritarian Appstore that is known for making one side decisions that increase their profits?
Cryptocurrency came to stay and no matter how much they fight adoption, those who know what's going on with the traditional financial institutions, the monetary policies that wants us poor, and the system that wants us dependent, will continue to push crypto adoption to the masses.
We are going to find pushback on every step of the road, there's no doubt about it, but the crypto community is known for its resilience and drive to change the status quo and brake the shackles we've been chain to as a society for too long.
But if we continue to build on top of centralized entities that have full control over what gets to play in their field, we are going to continue to see things like this one that happened to MetaMask.
We want adoption and some want it fast, perhaps too fast. Some of the biggest crypto companies and most respected projects, and some of the OG bitcoin holders are willing to trade their sovereignty and relinquish control of how their users can access their Dapp, in exchange of adoption.
Sure, I want adoption as well, not only because it will change how society works, but also because I want to make money.
But is this really the path forward?
It reminds of the Bitcoin Spot ETF.
We want mainstream adoption and a Spot ETF allows trillions of dollars to be deployed into Bitcoin.
But at what cost?
Traditional Financial Institutions are known for manipulation and lobbying to increase their own profits, and these are no different than Big Tech - like the IOS Appstore.
You saw what happened with RobinHood, GameStop, Melvin Capital and the Chads at r/WallStreetBets.
The moment Melvin Capital was poised to be completely evaporated thanks to retail investors joining together to short squeeze the Hedge Fund, the market was halted in order to minimize the giant's losses.
This all boils down to us, web3, depending on centralized entities that can do whatever they want with us without any kind of consequences.
It's just like you, web3 brand builder, that spends hundreds of hours a month growing your audience, increasing your network, expanding your reach...
And once you are deemed unnecessary or a persona non-grata, you will be deplatformed.
You will lose everything you've done and worked for for years.
And there's nothing you can do it about.
But you had it coming.
You deserve it.
Because you actively worked to grow this centralized platform through your own engagement and growth.
There are other options to grow your brand in web3, and use X and other platforms to funnel your audience into these decentralized platforms where you own your brand, control your assets, decide anything related to your audience, and you own your content.
But you prefer to build where the audience is, instead of building where the web3 audience should be.
That's fine.
But you deserve if and when you get burnt and deplatformed.
Whenever anyone asks me why is @inleoio not on any appstore, the answer is simple:
We prefer to stay independent, and we want to remove power from any centralized entity from deciding how we get adopted, and when we get adopted.
It's better to grow slowly in your own terms, than to explode by being at the mercy of entities that are known for their shady practices.
If you are on web3, working to grow the crypto space and increase adoption...