Wallet providers are betting on crypto holders claiming control of their assets as retail and institutional interest in digital assets grows.
According to Charles Hamel, vice president of product at crypto hardware wallet maker Ledger, self-custodying digital assets is the “future.” He went on to say that ownership is “very unique and esoteric to what we’re developing.”
As opposed to web-based or software wallets, Ledger’s hardware wallets enable customers to store digital assets directly on a USB drive while securely managing their private keys.
According to Hamel, exchanges are also beginning to consider the role of self-custody and ownership in the current digital asset world.
According to him, cryptocurrency holders are increasingly trying to retain their assets privately, frequently out of fear of misplacing their private keys and losing their wealth forever. As a response, exchanges have started to provide self-custody services, often at a premium.
Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong said that he expects customers to take assets more seriously. Armstrong said in a recent blog post that the exchange now provides self-custody wallets and that customers will soon be able to do so directly via the app.
Concerns about ownership and security are growing more important as investors gain confidence in the technology, according to Hamel.
“The goods used by the most crypto-forward individuals today will be utilised by mainstream consumers in a year, and by institutions a few years later,” Armstrong wrote. “We must begin integrating them immediately.”
Ledger announced plans to provide a crypto wallet plugin to Safari called Ledger Link, which would let users connect hardware wallets to Web3 apps like Ethereum and Solana.
“We want to make it easier for ledger users to bring their keys to Web3,” Hamel said.
He also stressed the need for security when it comes to self-custody. According to Hamel, Ledger Connect hopes to implement a new security layer called “Web3 Check,” which will flag suspicious Web3 apps. Users will be told if an app is linked to scams, hacked websites, or fake smart contracts, which are becoming more common as decentralised financial protocols become more popular.
