Telegram, the popular messaging app, is introducing significant changes to its Wallet service, a third-party cryptocurrency wallet bot.
These changes include enforcing new Know Your Customer (KYC) rules and switching to a different service provider, WOT Global Solution.
TLDR
- Telegram Wallet is enforcing new Know Your Customer (KYC) rules, requiring users to provide personal information like name, phone number, and date of birth to use certain features.
- The wallet has introduced three tiers of KYC levels, with higher tiers allowing higher transaction limits but requiring more personal documentation.
- Telegram Wallet has switched its service provider to WOT Global Solution, and user data will be transferred to the new provider.
- Users who do not want their data transferred have to withdraw funds and delete their Wallet accounts before the change takes effect.
- The changes come amid increasing adoption of Telegram’s blockchain and crypto features, including the Open Network and platform games like Hamster Kombat.
Starting June 3, Telegram Wallet users will need to provide personal information, such as their name, phone number, and date of birth, to access most of the wallet’s features.
This is a significant shift from the previous system, where users could use the default version of the wallet without providing any personal information.
The new KYC system introduces three tiers of identification levels, each with different transaction limits and documentation requirements.
The “basic” level, which only requires a user’s name, phone number, and date of birth, limits incoming crypto transactions to 3,500 euros ($3,780) per day and 35,000 euros ($37,800) per month.
The official cryptocurrency wallet of Telegram system, Wallet, requires stricter KYC information, requiring name, date of birth and phone number. The announcement stated that from June 3, all functions except withdrawals will require updated account details. From May 30, 2024,…
— Wu Blockchain (@WuBlockchain) May 29, 2024
For higher limits, users will need to provide additional documentation. The “extended” level, which requires national identification, allows transactions up to 100,000 euros ($108,000) daily and 1 million euros ($1.08 million) monthly.
The “advanced” level, which requires a residential address, removes the upper limit on the sum of funds that can be transferred.
These changes do not apply to TON Space, Wallet’s self-custody sub-wallet, which allows users to perform decentralized swaps and transfer non-fungible tokens (NFTs) without KYC requirements.
In addition to the new KYC rules, Telegram Wallet has announced that its services will be provided by a different company, WOT Global Solution, starting from May 30, 2024.
All user data, including names, addresses, phone numbers, transaction data, and any other information Wallet has on its users, will be transferred to WOT Global Solution following the change.
Users who do not want their data transferred to WOT Global Solution have to delete their Wallet accounts by May 20. Telegram Wallet has stated that this change is part of their efforts to provide better quality services to users.
The changes come amid increasing adoption of Telegram’s blockchain and crypto features. The Open Network, a decentralized storage and proxy service created by Telegram, has seen over $319 million in deposits and an increased number of wallets.
Platform games like Hamster Kombat, which has over 8 million users, and Notcoin, which allows users to earn crypto by completing tasks, have also contributed to the surge in interest.
Analysts suggest that these initiatives could facilitate future crypto adoption, as users passively earn digital assets and become familiar with the technology.
While the new KYC rules and service provider change may be inconvenient for some users, they are likely part of Telegram’s effort to comply with regulatory requirements and improve the overall user experience of its Wallet service.
The changes also highlight the trade-off between privacy and convenience in the crypto space. Self-custodial wallets like MetaMask and hardware wallets like Trezor and Ledger allow users to hold their crypto directly without any limits or KYC requirements, but they may be more challenging for new users to set up and use.
