What Does a Hardware Wallet Do?

If you're new to cryptocurrency, it's important to understand how to store and secure your digital coins. One of the most popular ways to do this is with a hardware wallet like the Ledger Nano Plus or the new Ledger Stax.

Ledger Stax makes your crypto journey infinitely more intuitive. It's a credit-card-sized device enabling you to manage over 500 digital assets, your NFT collections and to explore an ever-growing range of Web3 apps by connecting it to the Ledger Live mobile app.

With Ledger Stax, you can stack them up because of magnets. Ledger Stax is an elegant entry point into Web3, opening the doors of digital ownership to millions of new crypto adoptees and seasoned hodlers.

What I like about this one is the sophisticated look and style. As a woman in Web3, aesthetics matter to me. This is a very sleek design and eye-catching and fits into the palm of your hands.

Ledger Stax is the next digital chapter according to the CEO.

Your Keys, Your Wallet

We trust banks with our money because they have insurance against theft and loss. We trust central governments because they have the power to tax and enforce laws. The modern financial system runs on trust—but what happens when that trust starts to erode or implodes overnight?

Hardware wallets are necessary because they allow you to take complete control of your cryptocurrency holdings—something that is not possible with traditional fiat currency held in bank accounts. With a hardware wallet, only you have access to your private keys and nobody else can take control of your funds without your permission.

In the event of a global financial crisis, cryptocurrency stored in hardware wallets would be unaffected because it exists outside of the traditional financial system. Whereas fiat currency stored in bank accounts could be seized by governments or rendered worthless by hyperinflation, cryptocurrency would remain accessible and valuable. So, if you're serious about investing in cryptocurrency, hardware wallets are a necessity.

If you own Bitcoin, or any other cryptocurrency, it’s important that you understand the concept of "private keys." Private keys are essentially a string of numbers and letters that give you access to your money. If you don't control your own private keys, then you don't really own your Bitcoin. This is because if someone else has control of your private keys, they have control of your money.

Exchanges or Wallets

Most people store their Bitcoin on an exchange, such as the ill-fated FTX, Coinbase or Binance. However, this is actually a very bad idea. That’s because exchanges have an exhaustive history of being hacked or as in the case of FTX, go completely under overnight. In fact, it is estimated over $1 billion worth of Bitcoin has been stolen from exchanges in the past. So, if you store your Bitcoin on an exchange, you are at constant risk of losing your funds.

The best way to protect your Bitcoin is to store it on a hardware wallet. A hardware wallet is a physical device that stores your private keys and allows you to sign transactions offline. This means that even if your computer is hacked, your Bitcoin will still be safe. Hardware wallets are the only way to truly own your Bitcoin. In the cryptosphere, these wallets are the equivalent to banks you can trust.

There are three popular hardware wallets: Ledger Nano S, Trezor Model T, and KeepKey. All three wallets support a wide range of cryptocurrencies and are very user-friendly. The one I highly recommend is Ledger on Amazon or directly from the Retailer here.

Once you’ve purchased a hardware wallet, transferring your Bitcoin from an exchange to your wallet is relatively simple. Just remember to never store more Bitcoin on an exchange than you need to for trading purposes.

Lastly, it’s super important to remember your seed phrases to access your wallet. Most of us tend to forget things over time. I highly recommend using CryptoSteel, also by Ledger which are fireproof and waterproof.

While some may view cryptocurrency as a speculative investment, especially now, in light of the FTX scandal and all the other things that took place this year with crypto, those who take the time to understand its underlying technology know that it has the potential to revolutionize the financial system as we know it. And for that reason, anyone serious about investing in cryptocurrency should make security a top priority — which is why hardware wallets are a necessity.

A great way to get started is buying some DeSo from an exchange like Coinbase and then transferring it to your hardware wallet.

Learn more about DeSo on deso.com.