‹ CHAPTER 15, ALL LESSONS

MASTER · CHAPTER 15 · LESSON 1 OF 5

Advanced custody

Multisig

What if no single key could move your bitcoin? 6 min

A multisig wallet locks coins to several keys and a threshold. The most common setup is 2 of 3: three keys exist, any two can sign. One key lost is not a disaster; one key stolen is not enough.

Spread the keys

  • Keep each key on a different device, ideally from different makers.
  • Store them in different places: home, a safe deposit box, a trusted person.
  • No single fire, theft or mistake should reach two keys at once.

The part people forget

To rebuild a multisig wallet, two seed phrases are not enough on their own. You also need the wallet's description: the list of all three public keys and the threshold, often saved as an output descriptor or a wallet backup file. Keep a copy of it with each key. It cannot spend anything, but without it, recovery can become very hard.

What to remember

  • 2 of 3: any two keys sign, one lost key is survivable.
  • Spread keys across devices, makers and places.
  • Back up the descriptor with every key.

Quick check

In a 2 of 3 multisig, a thief steals one key. Can the thief spend?

Besides two seed phrases, what do you need to recover a 2 of 3 multisig?