Apple Stopping People From Earning Money During Recession, Cryptocurrency Exchange Alleges

Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong criticized Apple Inc AAPL on Saturday, saying the latter was stymying its efforts to let its app users earn money using cryptocurrency.

What Happened: Armstrong said the Cupertino, California-based technology giant was restricting the cryptocurrency exchange desk from adding new types of services to its app.

Here is the issue. Apple has told us we cannot add the following functionality in our iOS apps: (1) the ability to earn money using cryptocurrency and (2) the ability to access decentralized finance apps (sometimes called DeFi apps or Dapps).

— Brian Armstrong (@brian_armstrong) September 11, 2020

“Why would Apple want to prevent people from earning money during a recession? They seem to not be ok with it, if it uses cryptocurrency. I'm not sure why,” Armstrong wrote, alluding to the functionality of their Coinbase Earn product.

“We sometimes end up in bizarre negotiations with them, modifying the product, and asking users to jump through hoops (do a task on mobile, then move to the web to claim your reward!) to comply with their guidelines,” the Coinbase CEO added.

Why It Matters: The San Francisco-based cryptocurrency exchange desk and Apple have a prior history of app-related issues. The exchange’s iOS app was removed from the App Store a month after its launch in 2013, according to Coindesk. 

Armstrong accused the Tim Cook-led company of coming in the way of decentralized apps and behaving like how Microsoft Corporation MSFT did when it bundled Internet Explorer with Windows “back in the day.”

Apple is also facing flak from other tech rivals such as Facebook Inc FB and Microsoft over its App Store policies.

The iPhone maker is also in litigation with Epic Games over removal of “Fortnite” from its marketplace after the game maker tried to offer an alternative in-app payments mechanism.

Price Action: Apple shares closed nearly 1.3% lower at $112 on Friday.