Custody is a choice. Choose wisely.
There are three sensible ways to hold crypto: an exchange account, a hardware device, or a self-custodial wallet. They differ in exactly one important way — and everything else follows from it.
| Coinmidco | Custodial exchange | Hardware-only wallet | |
|---|---|---|---|
| You hold the private keys | ✔ Yes | ✖ No — the platform does | ✔ Yes |
| Works on any device, no extra hardware | ✔ Yes | ✔ Yes | ✖ Needs the device |
| Swap assets at live market rates | ✔ 0.3% flat | Spread + maker fees | Requires a dApp |
| Staking built in | ✔ Yes | Sometimes, with lock-ins | ✖ No |
| Web3 / dApp access | ✔ Built in | Often restricted | ✔ Via a dApp |
| Recovery without a company's permission | ✔ Recovery phrase | ✖ Account recovery only | ✔ Recovery phrase |
| Can be frozen or withheld | ✔ Never | Yes — by the platform | ✔ Never |
| Cost of holding | ✔ Free | Account fees / spreads | Device purchase |
What custody actually means
Crypto does not sit in an account the way cash sits in a bank. Ownership is a matter of who can produce a signature for a given address. Whoever holds the keys can move the funds — full stop. Everything else is an interface on top of that fact.
On an exchange
When you deposit crypto to a trading platform, the keys belong to the platform. Your balance is an entry in their database: a promise to send you coins if you ask. That system has real advantages — convenience, deep liquidity, card ramps — but it introduces a counterparty. If the platform freezes withdrawals, becomes insolvent, or decides your account is under review, your balance is affected even though the blockchain is not.
On a hardware device
A hardware wallet generates and stores your keys in a tamper-resistant chip. It is excellent for cold storage, but it is a signing device rather than a daily wallet: tracking balances, swapping, staking and using dApps all happen elsewhere, usually by pairing the device with separate software.
In a self-custodial wallet
A self-custodial wallet keeps the keys on hardware you already own — your phone, your laptop — with the phrase encrypted at rest and every signature produced locally. It combines the convenience of an app with the ownership model of a hardware device. The trade-off is responsibility: there is no support desk that can undo a mistake, which is precisely why nobody can stop you from using it.
Best when you want both
Daily use and real ownership: instant swaps, staking, Web3 and a wall explorer, with the phrase generated and used on your own device.
Exchange
Best when you are actively trading fiat pairs and want order books, fiat ramps and insurance-style protections from a regulated intermediary.
Hardware wallet
Best for long-term cold storage in a safe, where the extra step of plugging in a device is a feature rather than a friction.
What it costs to hold and move
No subscription and no custody fee. You pay for networks and swaps — nothing else.
| Action | What you pay | Set by |
|---|---|---|
| Creating a wallet | Free | — |
| Holding assets | Free | — |
| Internal swap | 0.3% flat | Coinmidco, shown before you confirm |
| Sending on-chain | Network fee only | The network, at the time you send |
| Receiving | Free | — |
| Staking | No platform fee | Product terms apply |
Keep the convenience. Keep the keys.
Import a phrase you already own and see how it feels to have the app and the ownership in the same place.