According to Cointelegraph, Telegram Wallet, a major bot integrated into the Telegram messenger, has chosen a custodial solution over self-custody to pursue easier onboarding goals. In July 2023, the crypto-friendly messenger announced the integration of Telegram Wallet, allowing users to access the wallet directly from the messenger's settings. The full Wallet rollout is expected to begin in November 2023, starting with several African and Latin American countries, and continuing throughout MENA, South East Asia, Central Asia, and Eastern Europe.
Telegram Wallet's chief operating officer, Halil Mirakhmed, explained that the platform opted for a custodial solution instead of a self-custodial one for several reasons, including easy onboarding of new users. Unlike major self-custodial wallets like MetaMask, the Telegram Wallet bot operates a custodial wallet, meaning users entrust their coins to a third party and do not own their assets directly. Mirakhmed believes that self-custody becomes exceedingly difficult when trying to introduce as many people as possible to crypto. In contrast, Telegram Wallet aims to help users start using crypto the moment they click on Wallet in their Telegram settings.