Wallet
wallet · security
An app or device that helps you receive cryptocurrency, check your balance, and authorize payments.
1.general
A wallet is the tool you use to receive cryptocurrency and approve payments. It manages addresses and the keys needed to spend. The coins themselves remain recorded on the blockchain, rather than being stored inside the app or device.
2.custody
A custodial service signs or controls withdrawals for the user. A non-custodial wallet gives the user the signing keys or recovery material. Multisignature and contract wallets can divide authority across several keys or rules.
3.trust
Wallets can use a full node, SPV protocol, compact filters, or a provider API to learn balances and history. Those choices affect privacy and verification. Recovery can also depend on a passphrase, derivation path, script type, or wallet metadata in addition to the seed phrase.
Start with wallets, keys, and custody, then follow the first-wallet walkthrough.
Technical reference: Bitcoin developer guide to wallets.
Related terms
Private Key
→A secret number used to sign transactions and prove permission to spend.
cryptography · security · wallet
Seed Phrase
→A sequence of backup words that a compatible wallet can use to recover its keys.
wallet · security
Custodial Wallet
→A wallet where a third party controls the private keys on your behalf.
wallet · security
Non-Custodial Wallet
→A wallet in which the user controls the signing keys or authorization needed to move funds.
wallet · custody
Hardware wallet
→A physical signing device that keeps private keys isolated while approving cryptocurrency transactions.
wallet · security
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