Collaborative custody
A multisig wallet in which a company holds one of the keys and you hold the others, so the company can't move the money on its own.
Collaborative custody is a multisig wallet with the keys split between you and a company. A common setup has three keys: you hold two, the company holds one, and any two can sign. You can move your money without the company; the company can’t move it without you.
It sits between two models. On an exchange, the company holds every key. In plain self-custody, you hold the only one. Here, the company holds a key that can help but can’t act alone.
What the company’s key is for
- Recovery. If you lose one of your keys, the company’s key and your other one can move the money to a new wallet.
- A second look. The company can refuse to sign a transaction that looks wrong, such as a large withdrawal to an address you’ve never used.
- Continuity. Some services use their key to help heirs reach the money, under terms agreed in advance.
What to ask before using one
- If the company disappears, can you move the money with your own keys, and do you have everything you need to do it without its app?
- Which keys do you hold, and where does each one live? If both of yours sit on the same phone, one loss takes both.
- What can the company see? A company that co-signs usually sees the wallet’s balance and every transaction.
- How does it check it’s you before it signs?
The name is used loosely, so it’s worth asking who holds which key, and how many are needed to sign.