Self-Custody

Definition

Self-custody means that the owner of Bitcoin directly controls their private keys, without delegating custody to an exchange, bank, or other third party. 'Not your keys, not your coins' is the principle that sums up the concept. For individuals, self-custody means using hardware wallets or multi-sig setups. For institutions, it means in-house or shared custody solutions. The collapse of FTX in 2022 massively accelerated self-custody adoption among institutional investors.