Near the end of 2013, Apple decided it was going to have nothing to do with Bitcoin, and immediately yanked various Bitcoin-related apps from its App Store. Because of this, many apps were stripped of their Bitcoin functionality so they could get back in Apple’s good books.

One of the affected apps was Gliph, an encrypted messaging service that then offered a way to easily send or receive Bitcoins. It removed this feature, but that functionality is making a comeback as Apple has now apparently decided to ease up on apps that deal with digital currencies.

In June, Apple released its revised App Store Review Guidelines, which previously explained why Bitcoin-related apps were not allowed. In the Subsection 11.7 under Purchasing and currencies, the revised policy now states that “Apps may facilitate transmission of approved virtual currencies provided that they do so in compliance with all state and federal laws for the territories in which the app functions.”

Though the provision does not name any specific virtual currency, the Cupertino giant seems to be pertaining to Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies that are gaining wide adoption.

With this change, Gliph claims that it will be one of the easiest ways to obtain and use Bitcoin, as it integrates two of the most popular wallets: Coinbase and Blockchain.

The perfect combination

Gliph, first and foremost, is a private messaging app. If you’re paranoid that the government is reading all your emails, Facebook messages, or instant messages, Gliph may be the app that you’ve been searching for as it offers data impermanence – it stores data only for a short period of time before it gets deleted.

As for its Bitcoin functionality, Gliph CEO and co-founder Rob Banagale states that it’s great for beginners as it uses technology pulled from Coinbase or Blockchain API, making it easy to perform Bitcoin transactions.

Many people are attracted to Bitcoin because it’s easy to send and receive money, and because it offers anonymity. The combination of Bitcoin and Gliph makes it perfect for people who really don’t want anything to be traced back to them. You can even use symbols akin to hieroglyphs if they don’t want to reveal your identity. However, the new version of the app does introduce ‘profiles’, which allows users to input more identifying information such as their name, email address, phone number, bitcoin address, etc., if they really want to. The good news is you don’t have to share this information, as you can switch ‘profiles’ off with a tap of a button.

Banagale believes that the combination of Apple, Coinbase, and Blockchain makes Gliph a powerful app that will help in increasing Bitcoin transactions and adaptation.

photo credit: zcopley via photopin cc