Self-Custody
Holding your own private keys and digital assets directly
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.
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.
