10 January 2019 – The bComm Association announces the ElectrumSV wallet for Bitcoin SV (BSV), the rebirth of the original Bitcoin. ElectrumSV is a conversion – for the Bitcoin SV blockchain – of the popular Electrum wallet for Bitcoin. ElectrumSV version 1.0.0 is available at electrumsv.io and is provided for free usage under the open source MIT license.

The original Electrum wallet was created for the Bitcoin Core (BTC) chain, and is considered one of the top Bitcoin wallets because of its strong technical feature set. After the August 2017 hard fork which created Bitcoin Cash (BCH), a BCH version of Electrum was created under the name “Electron Cash.”

More recently, the November 15, 2018 hard fork of BCH led to BSV emerging as its own chain and token, dedicated to preserve Bitcoin’s original design. Named for the “Satoshi Vision” of Bitcoin’s creator Satoshi Nakamoto, Bitcoin SV’s mission is focused: restore the original Bitcoin protocol, keep it stable, and allow it to massively scale.

This led developers Roger Taylor and Neil Booth to create a new version of the Electrum wallet dedicated to BSV. Roger and Neil were two productive developers of the Electron Cash version of Electrum. Neil also created the ElectrumX server software which is used almost exclusively by all Electrum-based wallets. However, finding no future on the Bitcoin Cash ABC (BCH/BAB) chain, they decided to create and release the ElectrumSV wallet for the BSV chain. As they explain on the ElectrumSV.io website: “. . . Bitcoin SV is the only Bitcoin that follows the whitepaper and values being stable and non-experimental, ElectrumSV naturally builds on it. “

ElectrumSV will focus on being a desktop wallet, leaving mobile wallet development to other BSV ventures such as Centbee, HandCash and Cashpay. Because it is based on both the Electrum and Electron Cash wallets, the ElectrumSV feature set includes:

• an advanced interface allowing flexible importing of private keys from other wallets;

• integration with hardware wallets such as Bitbox, Ledger and Keepkey; and

• management of wallet keys and historical transactions.

Given their more advanced feature set, the Electrum family of wallets (including Electron Cash) are known to be more suited to developers than consumer users. The ElectrumSV team intends to keep and extend the advanced feature set and flexible functionality inherited from Electrum, but will improve functions to be more user-friendly for the ordinary Bitcoin consumer.

ElectrumSV’s user-friendly approach begins immediately with a key feature in the first release: a coin splitting tool to allow users to easily and safely split their pre-fork BCH coins into BSV coins. This addresses a common request from users since the November 2018 BCH hard fork which led to Bitcoin SV’s emergence.

Roger Taylor and Neil Booth remark:

“We agree with the Bitcoin SV message that it’s time for Bitcoin to grow up, keep a stable protocol without constant developer experimentation, and move to its next phase for scaling and mass adoption. ElectrumSV is contributing to that effort by leaving behind the developer-focused experience, and making a wallet with easy-to-use features for everyone. We intend to continue making more improvements for the future.”

Work on the ElectrumSV project is supported by the bComm Association, the first-ever organization dedicated to bCommerce (Bitcoin commerce) which brings together developers, merchants, exchanges, miners and other Bitcoin network participants. The bComm Association supports Bitcoin SV as the only stable, scalable blockchain that can achieve a world of bCommerce.

nChain, the blockchain research & development firm, and its Bitcoin SV Node team also assisted the ElectrumSV developers. nChain’s Jimmy Nguyen, Founding President of the bComm Association, remarks:

“We are thrilled to help Roger and Neil bring the strong legacy of the Electrum wallet to Bitcoin SV. The ElectrumSV team understands that Bitcoin is for everyone, not just for developers. That is why their approach to upgrade Electrum into a more user-friendly wallet for BSV is critical to help achieve the Satoshi Vision – a world where billions of people globally use Bitcoin every day.”

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