Coinbase took to Twitter to reveal that Apple has blocked non-fungible tokens [NFT] transfers on Coinbase Wallet iOS.
“You might have noticed you can’t send NFTs on Coinbase Wallet iOS anymore. This is because Apple blocked our last app release until we disabled the feature,” the tweet read.
Apple in its defense claimed that the gas fees required to send NFTs need to be paid through their In-App Purchase system so that they can collect 30% of the gas fee.
Slamming the tech giant’s policy, the exchange stated that this is not how NFTs and blockchains work. “Apple’s proprietary In-App Purchase system does not support crypto so we couldn’t comply even if we tried”.
Coinbase said Apple’s claim of collecting the tax is similar to paying fees for every email sent over open Internet protocols.
Further, the exchange said that the biggest impact of this policy change would be on iPhone users that own NFTs on an iPhone as it would be difficult to transfer to other wallets.
Therefore, it continued, Apple should introduce new policies to drive consumer investment in NFTs and developer innovation across the crypto ecosystem rather than focus only on their profits.
The California-based tech behemoth firm has earlier rejected calls to exempt NFTs from its 30% “Apple Tax” on in-app purchases.
Its list of critics also included current Twitter CEO Elon Musk who recently called it a “hidden 30% tax”, which ironically wasn’t any secret. Apple’s App Store tax was announced back in 2008, rather openly by then-CEO Steve Jobs.
With regard to the latest development, Apple made no comments at the time of writing this article.
That said, Coinbase, the largest cryptocurrency exchange in the United States by trading volume and the first exchange to list on a U.S. stock market, raised awareness of its bug bounty program after a recent extortion attempt.
Coinbase Debunks Extortionist Claims
Coinbase received a mail from an anonymous sender claiming to have “dehashed” and “decrypted” sensitive data from 306 million Coinbase user accounts. The exchange disclosed that it was practically impossible to “dehash” or “decrypt” data.
The individual threatened the trading platform to pay $450,000, or else the data would be leaked.
After speaking with the extortionist, Coinbase’s security staff determined that the claims of a breach were untrue.