Wallet as a Service (WaaS)

What is Wallet as a Service?

Wallet as a Service (WaaS) is a cloud-based approach to providing blockchain-agnostic platforms for creating digital wallets to store and transact digital assets including cryptocurrencies.

This allows developers to incorporate digital wallets into the applications using application programming interfaces (APIs) without having to build them from scratch and offers a convenient way for individuals and businesses to manage their digital assets without having to set up and manage their own wallets.

Blockchain wallets can be difficult for non-tech-savvy users to create and manage, and they carry the risk that users’ assets may be lost if they lose access to their cryptographic keys.

WaaS solutions aim to balance ease of use with security, providing fast integration with multiple blockchains, key recovery systems, and low transaction fees.

How Does Wallet as a Service Work?

Wallet as a Service allows developers to create digital wallets or add native wallet functionality to their apps with less coding. The wallets can be used across multiple blockchains without blockchain-specific code.

Developers can tailor wallets to their branding or design preferences and create cohesive, intuitive interfaces to improve the user experience and reduce the complexity of blockchain apps.

Developers can provide their users with easy, safe, and secure access to Web3 wallets. Users can create and manage their digital wallets with basic authorization methods such as PIN codes, passwords, or biometrics, and access account recovery with security questions so they do not have to memorize or store lengthy private keys and seed phrases. Users can own and store digital assets or buy, sell, and trade cryptocurrencies while maintaining self-custody of those assets.

Developers can make it easier for users to complete transactions by sponsoring blockchain gas (processing) fees so that they can use their app without the added complexity of holding native tokens to pay the fees.

WaaS providers typically ensure the security of users’ assets through advanced encryption techniques and robust authentication mechanisms. The service allows users to access their digital wallets from multiple devices, enhancing flexibility and convenience.

Each user has their own address to receive deposits of digital assets in the provider’s Internet-connected hot wallet. The cloud-based service facilitates the management of the various end users’ assets.

Wallet services streamline wallet management by automatically identifying and tracking users’ cryptocurrency deposits. They can support multiple accounts for any number of users, while the APIs automatically create secure Multi-Party Computation (MPC) wallets and generate signatures and other security features to protect users from theft and unauthorized access.

This saves developers from having to work on security functions themselves while allowing them to create, manage, and secure deposits for users in a compliant and reliable way.

Coinbase Wallet as a Service

US-based cryptocurrency Coinbase has ventured into offering Wallet as a Service, meaning it launched its own solution in March 2023.

Its enterprise-grade solution for developers provides a scalable and secure set of wallet infrastructure APIs to easily create white-label, non-custodial crypto wallets that are simple to use. Companies can deploy fully customizable on-chain wallets to users with onboarding and authorization as simple as a username and password.

Coinbase Wallet as a Service is powered by MPC cryptographic technology that allows a user’s wallet key to be split between them and Coinbase. This keeps self-custody keys safe even if the user’s device is compromised. Advanced and automatic backup with MPC stores the key safely so that the user retains access if they lose access to the device.

Companies such as Floor, Moonray, thirdweb, and tokenproof have built apps using Coinbase WaaS to onboard users to Web3 experiences in gaming, token-gated events, and digital marketplaces.

Coinbase Wallet as a Service Pricing

Coinbase provides a pay-as-you-go pricing plan for its WaaS offering, which scales up with the number of wallets created. Its pricing starts at $0.12 per month per wallet and decreases on a per-wallet basis as the volume increases.

The Bottom Line

Wallet as a Service (WaaS) is a cloud-based digital asset management solution that allows companies to integrate crypto wallets into their applications, providing users with a simple and secure alternative to having to create and manage their own wallet keys.

This aims to increase adoption by ensuring users can access their accounts through basic authorization methods and account recovery, rather than long private keys and seed phrases, which can be confusing and cannot be recovered once lost.

Developers can issue multiple secure digital wallets with less coding than building the functionality from scratch and streamline transaction management.

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