Non-custodial Wallet
A wallet where you control the private keys, without relying on a third party to hold your funds.
- Also known as
- self-custody walletself-hosted wallet
A non-custodial wallet is software or hardware that lets you control your funds directly because you hold the private keys. No exchange or third party can freeze, spend, or require permission for your coins.
Security in non-custodial wallets depends on how well you protect your keys or mnemonic. Good practices include offline backups, hardware wallets for larger balances, and avoiding screenshots or cloud storage of seed phrases.
The trade-off is responsibility: if you lose your keys, there’s no password reset. Many users accept this for the sovereignty and reduced counterparty risk compared to custodial services.
Related terms
5 linkedExplore connected entries beyond the alphabetical index.
Custodial Wallet
→A wallet where a third party controls the private keys on your behalf.
Hardware wallet
→A physical signing device that keeps private keys isolated while approving cryptocurrency transactions.
Mnemonic
→A sequence of words used to generate and recover a private key, typically 12 or 24 words long.
Key pair
→A matched private key and public key used to prove control, verify signatures, and derive cryptocurrency addresses.
Wallet
→Software or hardware that manages crypto keys, creates addresses, signs transactions, and shows blockchain activity.
All terms and definitions may update as the Cryptionary improves.
