$8B
FTX — 2022
Customer funds misappropriated in one of the largest financial frauds in crypto history.
Self Custody LabsFree, open-source guidesTake Control of
Your Bitcoin
Learn self-custody the right way. Practical guides that teach you to hold your own keys with confidence — from your first hardware wallet to multisig vaults.
Privacy FirstStep-by-StepBe Your Own Bank
The cost of trust
When you don't hold the keys,
you don't own the coins.
~850,000 BTC
Mt. Gox — 2014
The largest Bitcoin exchange in the world, hacked and mismanaged over years.
$4.7B
Celsius — 2022
Froze customer withdrawals, then filed for bankruptcy. Customers became unsecured creditors.
None of them were holding their own keys. If they had been, none of those collapses would have touched their coins.
Read the full storyWhat you'll learn
From your first wallet
to advanced vaults.
True Ownership
Your keys, your coins.
Self-custody is the difference between holding Bitcoin and holding a promise. Learn how private keys actually authorize transactions, why exchange balances are IOUs, and how to move from renting your coins to owning them.
Explore
Hardware Wallets
Keep your keys offline on a device that signs transactions without ever exposing them.
ExploreSeed Phrases
Generate, back up, and verify a recovery phrase that actually works when you need it.
ExplorePrivacy
Understand UTXO management and coin control so your on-chain footprint stays yours.
ExploreRun a Node
Verify every Bitcoin rule yourself instead of trusting somebody else's server.
ExploreMultisig
Eliminate single points of failure.
Require multiple independent keys to spend, stored in separate places. The setup most serious Bitcoiners graduate into.
Explore
Your path to self-custody
Four stages, at your own pace.
You don't have to become a security engineer. Just take the next step when it fits, and upgrade your setup as your holdings and confidence grow.
01
Understand
Learn what Bitcoin is, why self-custody matters, and how private keys actually work.
Read more02
Set up
Pick a hardware wallet, generate a seed, and make your first secure backup.
Read more03
Secure
Add a passphrase, verify your backup, run your own node, and learn UTXO control.
Read more04
Advance
Graduate to multisig, air-gapped signing, and advanced privacy when you are ready.
Read moreFind us
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Ready to be
your own bank?
Start the path today. Work through each guide at your own pace, and graduate to the setup that fits the value you hold.
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