The Sunnyvale, California based bitcoin wallet and remittance startup – 37coins has decided to shut shop. The company has been in the forefront when it came to SMS-based bitcoin transactions.
The company which was working on expanding its SMS based wallet service across the world has decided to pull the plug. According to the announcement posted on 37coin’s website, users will not be able to use the SMS wallet facilities anymore. However, users who still have funds available in their SMS wallets will get rest of the year to withdraw the remaining funds from 37coins SMS Wallet. In the same announcement, the company goes on to explain the reasons behind their initial success and why they are now forced to discontinue their service.
Started in early 2014, the company was among the very few companies offering convenient bitcoin services targeted towards the unbanked and the underbanked population of the world. The SMS wallet concept made it even more popular as 37coins SMS wallet can be used with both smartphones and feature phones alike. Now the bitcoin industry has matured and there are many players like coins.ph, ChangeTip and BitGive foundation who are providing remittance and bitcoin services across the world, including unbanked and underbanked population.
37coins attributes it decision to shut down its services to the difficulties associated with the deliverance of a quality product. The company also makes a mention of the lack of reliable SMS delivery mechanism between carriers outside the United States.
37coins was founded by Johann Barbie, Songyi Lee and Jonathan Zobro. It was part of Plug and Play Tech Center’s bitcoin accelerator program and it had built strategic partnerships in Singapore and Philippines to offer money transfer and remittance service for local population.
The remaining balance from 37coins SMS wallet can be withdrawn by entering relevant details on the company’s website before December 30, 2015.