MEW

MEW is a non-custodial interface for creating and managing Ethereum accounts entirely from the user's own device, meaning the platform itself never holds funds or private keys. It launched on August 11, 2015, just weeks after the Ethereum network went live, when founder Kosala Hemachandra built a simple "Ether Wallet Generator" so non-technical users could interact with the new chain without running command-line tools. That makes it one of the oldest wallet products still active in the Ethereum ecosystem.

In practice, MEW works as a client-side application: keys are generated and encrypted locally, and users can access an account via a keystore file, mnemonic phrase, or by pairing a hardware wallet such as Ledger or Trezor. Over the years the project grew from a single web page into a small suite of products, including a mobile app and the multi-chain browser extension Enkrypt.

Beyond simple storage, MEW supports ETH and ERC-20 tokens, lets users view and manage NFTs, register ENS domain names, swap assets through connected decentralized exchanges, stake ETH, and connect to third-party dApps.

Because MEW never custodies assets, losing a private key or recovery phrase means permanent loss of funds, with no support team able to restore access. The site has also been a phishing target: in April 2018, attackers hijacked an upstream DNS route to redirect visitors to a fake copy for roughly two hours, stealing around 215 ETH, a reminder to always verify the URL and certificate before connecting any wallet. MEW remains a common alternative or companion to browser wallets like Metamask for managing Ethereum assets.