The Self-Custody Evolution | BTC Prague 2025 Panel

At BTC Prague, I joined a panel conversation about something I care deeply about: why self-custody still matters in 2025 — and maybe more than ever. With ETFs, treasuries, and paper Bitcoin dominating the conversation on social media, I think we need to talk honestly about where we are and where we need to go.

The Rise of Paper Bitcoin Is a Warning Sign

Open Twitter or Nostr today and you’ll see endless talk about treasuries and ETFs. Bitcoin is being abstracted away from its core promise. When you go back to basics — what Bitcoin was built to solve — it would be kind of sad if most people ended up holding a derivative of it rather than the real thing. Not your keys, not your coins still holds true. The problem is that paper Bitcoin is easy, convenient, and everywhere. And that’s exactly why self-custody becomes more critical, not less.

There’s a dangerous assumption running through the crypto space right now: that you can play the paper Bitcoin game, make more fiat, and then buy back real Bitcoin just in time. But there will always be more sophisticated players beating you to that exit. The history of previous Bitcoin cycles should be a lesson here. I would stay away from paper Bitcoin entirely.

Self-Custody Is a Journey, Not a Switch

I’ve been on this journey for eleven years and I still think about it constantly. Expecting someone to hold Bitcoin in full self-custody from day one isn’t realistic — and it isn’t always right either. If you’re managing a $5 million allocation and you lose your keys without understanding the setup, that’s gone. The question is always risk versus convenience, and that answer is deeply personal. It depends on the country you live in, your financial situation, and honestly — how much you’ve internalized why self-sovereignty matters.

Don’t do it just because someone told you to. Do it because you understand it. And then health-check your setup every three, six, or twelve months. Is it still working? Is it still resilient?

The Real Problem: One Mistake Can Cost Everything

One of the reasons paper Bitcoin feels so attractive is that it’s forgiving. You can’t accidentally lose your ETF by holding your seed phrase in front of a camera. With self-custody, one mistake can wipe everything. That fear is real and rational. And as long as that gap exists, people will choose custodial solutions.

Our job as builders is to close that gap. The definition of “your keys” needs to evolve from “I possess my keys” to “I can protect my keys” — against accidental loss, natural disaster, wrench attacks, inheritance failure, government confiscation, and more. That’s a much harder and more important standard.

From Tools to Solutions

The industry has come a long way. We went from losing hard drives full of Bitcoin to seed phrases, and now to miniscript, multisig, and collaborative custody models. Hardware wallets that used to feel intimidating are now genuinely easy to use. The whole space has leveled up.

But there’s still a big divide between solutions built for expert users who never make mistakes, and solutions that are resilient to the mistakes normal people inevitably make. That transition — from expert-only to truly accessible — is the next phase of self-custody.

Seed phrases are a tool, not the goal. They solve recovery and portability. But if you can solve those problems another way while keeping the user in full control of their private keys, you’ve built something better. Technical insurance through miniscript — where time-locked fallback paths let you recover even after losing keys — is one of the most exciting developments I see. The idea that you could never truly lose your Bitcoin, just be delayed in accessing it, is powerful enough to compete directly with the convenience argument of paper Bitcoin.

Privacy Is Non-Negotiable

Privacy isn’t just a preference — it’s a security layer. If you’re in full control of your Bitcoin, your first line of defense against physical attacks and coercion is not being known. The wrench attack problem is real