The Namebase project is officially launching today, with the mainnet for its Handshake blockchainblockchain going live at 17:00 UTC, in a bid to make it easier to send and receive Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.

Much like the Ethereum Name Service (ENS), Namebase wants to simplify the crypto experience by enabling transfers via legible domain names—such as “Satoshi/”—in order to replace the complex alphanumeric addresses associated with Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.

With Handshake, when you want to send Bitcoin to someone, you just type in their Handshake name. This is intended to replace the current system of copying and pasting Bitcoin addresses—which can be a security risk.

However, Namebase will not be using a centralized registry for the Handshake system. All the domain names will be registered on its own blockchain and purchases will be made in the Handshake cryptocurrency—which will be available for trading today. However, the bidding process for the domain names will not be immediately available.

On February 17, transactions will be enabled on the Handshake blockchain and the bidding process will begin. All auctions in this round will close on May 1.

Currently there is a waitlist to sign up to the Namebase project but everyone on the waitlist will receive an invitation to join the project when it goes live later today.

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