self-management of Bitcoin, ethereumand other cryptocurrency assets are gaining a lot more attention Since then Sam Bankman-Friedof FTX trading is surprisingly blew up A few weeks ago in a whirlwind of drama.
Once the 3rd largest exchange, users don’t know if they’ll get their money back. With this in mind, many users FTX Also coin base with their funds.
“Putting your money on an exchange puts you at risk of hacking, withdrawal freezes due to business failure, and insider fraud,” said Nick Neuman, CEO and co-founder of self-custody platform Casa. Told. Decryptionpointing to FTX as an “obvious example” of this.
Self-custody allows users to move funds themselves wallet that only they can control.
“There are similarities private key and car keys. If you give someone else your only key, that person can access and drive your vehicle. If you have the keys, you are free to do whatever you want,” said Pascal Gauthier, CEO of Ledger.
If full control of your cryptocurrency appeals to you, follow these steps to move your funds from an exchange to your own wallet.
Create a wallet on a self-custody platform
Before we get started, it should be noted that self-control helps users protect themselves from money-stealing third parties, but it requires greater personal responsibility.
User should write down seed phrase, roughly equivalent to a password that can be used to back up all addresses associated with a wallet.if seed the phrase is lost, Bitcoin or the cipher associated with it is lost forever.
If you are willing to take on that responsibility, there are plenty of wallet options you can use to store your funds.
Let’s take a look at the popular desktop wallet Electrum.
Once downloaded, Electrum wallet softwareafter some initial setup, a new “seed This is the important “password”. Write down 12 words. This is the most important step. Because if you lose those words, you won’t have a help desk to turn to to get your money back. It is important to keep it.these words are safe off-line(That is, don’t save these words in files on your computer or phone.)
There are many other wallets to choose from, but the flow of the wallet you choose is pretty much the same. Download the wallet (on desktop or mobile) and write down important words that should never be lost or shared. (important: conduct Sharing this seed phrase gives the recipient of the phrase full access to the contents of the associated wallet. )
Other cryptocurrencies require different wallets. meta maskfor example, popular browsers and mobile wallets are used for self-management. ethereum and other compatible tokens. phantom is the most widely used wallet. Solana and Solana-based assets. And there are many more examples.
Another option to increase security is to use hardware walletStore your keys in an offline environment, such as Ledger or ColdCard, to protect them from potential hacks.
move funds from an exchange
Once you have chosen your wallet provider, move your funds from the exchange to your new wallet.—A wallet controlled by you (and only you).
First, you need to create a new address in your wallet to send Bitcoin (or any other cryptocurrency). In Electrum, click the “Receive” button to generate a Bitcoin “Address”. This is a chaotic string of numbers and letters that roughly resembles an email address. In MetaMask, Phantom, and other similar browser-based wallets, the address is already created and you need to copy it to your computer’s clipboard by clicking the “Account” or “Deposit” or similar button. I have.
Selected exchanges, such as Coinbase, have something like a “withdraw” button for each asset on your account page.To transfer funds to a wallet, the corresponding asset (“Bitcoin” for Bitcoin wallets, “Ethereum” for Ethereum wallets, etc.)[出金]Click the button, enter the address from the self-custody wallet you created, and click “Send”.
Exchanges often ask you to confirm that you are copying the correct wallet address or that you really want to withdraw funds. The mechanics are slightly different depending on which exchange you are using.
Self cast rabbit hole
I transferred cryptocurrency from an exchange to my custodial wallet. What next? “Do your own research” (DYOR) is the motto of the Bitcoin space. Because there is a lot of information you need to go through to get as much information about cryptocurrencies as possible.Self-management can be viewed as itself rabbit hole Worth exploring.
There are more complex options for self-custody beyond what we have discussed above.
For example, “multisig” wallet options such as Casa offer more flexibility. Wallets are protected not only by one private key, but by several private keys at once. That way, if the user loses one of her keys, the funds are safe. (But you’re out of luck if you lose two keys.)
some users have their seed Phrase to metal plate For added peace of mind.their place seed Saved phrases burn out. seed The phrase should still be readable.
As Neuman points out, the self-managing user experience is constantly improving. For example, the Casa user experience doesn’t need to be written down or remembered. seed step. “Anyone can do it. We believe we can continue to improve so that everyone in the world can keep their keys safe,” Neumann said.
Disclaimer
The views and opinions expressed by the authors are for informational purposes only and do not constitute financial, investment or other advice.
