Ambisafe Offers a New Standard for Cryptowallet API’s

19.11.2015

Ukrainian blockchain startup Ambisafe offered a new standard for cryptowallet API’s, which is said to accelerate integration of new currencies by exchange operators, as well as exclude the necessity for own wallet service development.

Cryptospace develops intensively enough, so exchange operators face troubles regarding provision of up-to-date wallet services. Major companies having complex safety models have to develop and integrate new consensus models no one had ever dealt with before.

Things are hardly better for small companies as well. Therefore, there is a barrier which hinders implementation and integration of new blockchain protocols and assets.

Notwithstanding the fact that developers of the new protocols often try to help in the course of integration, companies cannot use their assistance. Mostly it occurs due to internal safety policies and other risk management issues related to involvement of third-party developers.

For those reasons, Ambisafe offered two new approaches for cryptowallet development: 1) A classes for API providers dubbed supernodes; 2) SaaP model of distribution. Supernode means a public block browser like blockchain.info or etherscan.io.

bad-scenario

The service’s software allows any cryptocurrency company to determine configuration of their servers and supported assets (cryptocurrencies) at its own discretion. Developers also may integrate Ambisafe-compatible plug-ins in their cryptocurrency without any additional activities required from a company. Technical details of the offered solutions are available in Ambisafe Whitepaper.

The offered standard is employed in several Omnilayer-based commercial projects. However, the only project mentioned by Ambisafe by the press time is Tether. The company uses Omnichest and Coinalytics as supernode providers.

According to Ambisafe’s recent blog post:

“Nowadays there are more and more new blockchain-based apps, there are new consensus algorithms, and the market players find themselves choosing between a single kit and API methods, which puts limits on the service’s flexibility and makes the market players vulnerable. Our first offer is to adapt supernode’s definition as a final point of cryptocurrency API functioning without a wallet.”

Apart from evident use for service owners and developers, Ambisafe’s solution might allow for additional revenue source for block browsers whose services are usually free of charge for most users. Supernode operators may earn from API request fees.

The offered approach implies multisignature scheme control and distribution of private keys by financial companies. Blockchain API providers, in their turn, may then focus on reliability and scalability issues without taking regulation-related risks, as they would not have to store any keys anymore.

good-future

Ambisafe architecture allows companies to avoid dealing with a single API provider. This excludes dependence on a single service and further centralization of the ecosystem. Every now and then bitcoin users face problems caused by blockchain.info’s failures like transaction delays or unavailability, which make their own money inaccessible. Blockchain.info is not only an online wallet service, but also a major API supplier, and the service’s problems impact everyone using their API.

If we assume that a particular API supplier might dominate the market, it would inevitably result in disappearance of any need for a public blockchain, as all transactions would go through the same point controlled by the monopolist. For that reason, methods and architecture as offered by Ambisafe may not only make developers’ and operators’ lives easier, but also mitigate centralization effects in the industry.

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Tags: Ambisafe, API, technologies, wallets