It’s Your Keys, Your Coins

A fundamental rule in crypto:

“Your Keys, Your Coins”

That basically means if you possess your private key and have custody of your personal digital wallet, your crypto (i.e. coins or tokens) are safe and secure.

While it is convenient to have a third party take custody of your crypto (e.g. exchanges like Binance and Coinbase), you don’t have full control of it. Wallets on exchanges or third party financial providers have custody of your crypto and possession of your private key.

The threat of financial censorship looms if governments are able to force exchanges and crypto providers to turn over private keys to seize digital assets.

To be fully independent of your digital finances, keep your crypto in a personal wallet that only you have access to. This becomes important if you don’t want your digital assets frozen or confiscated.

When you have control of your crypto, it cannot be taken by any authoritarian state or financial institution. Your transactions are also not censorable, so you can spend money however way you want.

Having custody of your crypto prevents financial censorship, but it comes with more responsibility.

Keep your private key safe and never share or reveal it to people you don’t trust. This guarantees your digital assets will remain in your hands.

Disclaimer: This is not financial advice. Opinions are provided for reference and education purpose only. Please DYOR always.

(Cover Photo Credit: Daniel Xavier )

First Published on the MetaQuad Blog 2/23/22