GlossaryBeginner
Non-Custodial Wallet
A wallet where the user alone holds and controls the private keys.
A non-custodial wallet gives the user sole control over their private keys, with no third party able to access or move the funds on the user's behalf.
This is often summarized by the phrase "not your keys, not your coins": with a non-custodial wallet, responsibility for securely storing the keys and any backup, such as a seed phrase, falls entirely on the user. See Kaavon's "Custodial Wallet" glossary definition for the opposite approach, and "Private Key" and "Seed Phrase" for exactly what that responsibility actually involves.
Examples
- Most standalone mobile and hardware wallets are non-custodial by design.
- If a non-custodial wallet's seed phrase is lost with no backup, the funds are typically unrecoverable.