Apple pulls Bitcoin wallet app Blockchain from iOS App Store

Image teasing Blockchain's redesigned website shows iPhone app. | Source: Blockchain via Twitter

Blockchain CEO Nicolas Cary told Wired that Apple did not offer a detailed explanation as to why the app was pulled, saying only that the title was "removed from the App Store due to an unresolved issue."

With over one million users worldwide using software on numerous operating systems, Blockchain is touted as the "world's most popular" wallet service for bitcoins.

Apple's move may not come as a surprise to some as the company has a history of denying app submissions that allow users to trade the world's most popular digital currency.

In November, an iOS Bitcoin wallet app from San Francisco startup Coinbase was removed, while another from Gliph was forced to disable transactions in order to stay in the App Store, reports Bloomberg.

Being a peer-to-peer "virtual currency" that exists only in the digital realm, Bitcoin has been met with resistance from governments loath to recognize it as a legitimate form of money. Most Bitcoin trading occurs online, but exchanges that convert bitcoins to traditional currencies like dollars and euros do exist.

While the U.S. does not have written laws against the trade of bitcoins, Apple's multinational App Store requires developers adhere to the laws of the territory in which their apps are offered. This does not explain, however, why the Blockchain app was yanked from all areas after being active in the App Store debut its debut in 2012.

The apparent demise of Blockchain for iOS leaves Bitcoin traders no recourse on Apple's mobile operating system, though price tracking apps like Coinbits and Bitcoin Tracker are still available.