What is Self-Custody?
The practice of holding and managing your own private keys rather than trusting an exchange or third party with your assets. Self-custody means you alone control your funds — no one can freeze, confiscate, or lose them through someone else's negligence. It's the difference between owning your money and having an IOU. The trade-off: you are solely responsible for security. Lose your keys, lose your assets. No help desk to call.
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In plain words
"Keeping cash under your mattress — except the mattress is unhackable and you hold the only key. Lose the key, lose the cash."
How it works
Key takeaways
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You hold the private keys — no one else
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No exchange can freeze or seize funds
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Full responsibility — lose keys, lose funds
Real-world example
You hold BTC on a hardware wallet. No exchange can freeze your funds. But if you lose your seed phrase, no one can recover it. You are the bank.
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