US payments giant Block, owner of Afterpay, has unveiled a new, multi-signature, self-custody Bitcoin wallet for Australian consumers.
Dubbed ‘Bitkey’, the service, which has been made available to 95 countries worldwide including Australia, promises Bitcoin holders easy access to their digital currency on a self-custody digital and hardware (or ‘hot and cold’) wallet.
This, Block said, effectively enables users to “truly own the keys to their Bitcoin”.
The Bitkey service includes a mobile app, a hardware device, and a set of recovery tools (in case of the loss of the user’s phone, their hardware, or both) to access their Bitcoin currency.
Block notes that the vast majority of bitcoin owners today, numbering upwards of 219 million according to some estimates, keep their bitcoin in the custodial platforms or exchanges where they bought it. This, inevitably, leaves them “under the control of the custodian”.
The system seeks to address a major concern among Bitcoin holders – the burdensomely long passwords, or “seed phrases” mandated by Bitcoin exchanges for users to access their cryptocurrency accounts.
Lindsey Grossman, business lead for Bitkey, noted that bitcoin holders have “often felt stuck: worried about the lack of control they might experience on a custodial platform or exchange, yet also anxious about the unforgiving product experiences that exist in other self-custody wallets historically available”.
“With Bitkey, we wanted to build a product that helps bring everyone to self-custody, combining robust security and recovery options, with a simple customer experience that puts them in control of their money.”
The Bitkey mobile app enables customers to make Bitcoin transactions, track their balance, and manage security preferences. The customer-held hardware key serves two main purposes: an extra layer of security to co-sign money movements (based on a customer-set limit) and quick recovery if a customer should lose their phone.
A third key is also placed on Bitkey’s server, and is used to either help customers move Bitcoin with their phone, or to help customers recover their wallet if they lose their phone or hardware.
Bitkey can be purchased at AU$250 and is available for pre-order at bitkey.world.
