Shapeshift Closes Prism Portfolio Wallet Before Beta Release

Shapeshift overhauls its products before switching to a system of accounts and disclosures.

Decentralized cryptocurrency conversion platform Shapeshift once again surprised the crypto community by announcing the closure of the Prism portfolio service. The Prism website announced the service would be open for withdrawals until October 10. During the 30-day period, users need to withdraw balances and close their accounts. Otherwise, the service will close automatically and return the Ethereum from all deposits.

Shapeshift explained its decision in a recent blog, stating that the reason to close Prism while still in closed beta phase is to focus on other products. Prism is a product built using Ethereum’s smart contract technology, and Shapeshift has decided to redirect its efforts.

“With the work we’ve done over these past 18 months, it’s become clear to us that there is actually a different (and likely superior) product to be built with this underlying technology,” the team explained.

Users of the closed beta are advised to close all Prisms, or collateralized investment portfolios, as soon as possible.

The decision of Shapeshift comes just days after the exchange service announced it would discontinue anonymous exchanges, and require account creation and basic user details. The crypto community reacted to the news with negative comments, suggesting that Shapeshift was pressured by regulators to track users. More detailed know-your-client (KYC) procedures have been a staple in the crypto sector in the past months, breaking the anonymity of crypto ownership.

Shapeshift handled the equivalent of around 792 Bitcoin (BTC) over the past 24 hours. The most popular exchange was between Ethereum (ETH) and BTC, reflecting the drop in ETH prices, and the attempt to cut losses as some investors lost trust in the altcoin. Currently, Shapeshift only charges for mining fees, and carries crypto assets in its own wallets. Shapeshift also allows limited purchases of Bitcoin by credit card.

Alternative services for anonymous trustless exchanges include Changenow:

https://twitter.com/dobe4ever/status/1037608686259036160

Allegedly, the Exodus wallet will use an alternative to Shapeshift, as it would be unable to integrate the new account creation.