Decentralized exchange (DEX) aggregator 1inch Network is the latest cryptocurrency platform to enter the hardware wallet industry amid the rise of self-custody.
On January 19, 1inch officially launched the 1inch Hardware Wallet, a proprietary hardware wallet developed by an independent team within the 1inch Network.
In order to provide maximum security, the 1inch hardware wallet is "fully air-gapped", meaning it is not directly connected to the internet and does not require any wired connections.
1inch detailed that the wallet was developed by an independent team in partnership with the 1inch Foundation. The development team received funding from the 1inch Foundation to complete the project. According to 1inch, the hardware wallet is "completely air-gapped" in that it has no buttons and does not require any wired connection. Data is exchanged via QR code or optional NFC. The 1-inch hardware wallet is about the size of a credit card, weighs 70 grams, and is 4mm thin.
Additionally, 1inch says the "water-resistant" wallet will have a "Gorilla Glass 6 finish and a stainless steel frame." The wallet will also come in five different colors, feature wireless charging, and the team insists the battery will last for two weeks. 1inch has launched a waiting list program and plans to notify users when the device is ready for the public. 1inch details that the architecture of the hardware wallet supports the Hierarchical Deterministic (HD) wallet algorithm.
“The 1inch hardware wallet enables users to create and control multiple sets of wallets with different seed phrases,” the 1inch team revealed on Thursday. "Each wallet uses the BIP44-compliant Hierarchical Deterministic (HD) wallet algorithm to create a new set of wallets. On first use, the maximum number of wallets is randomly generated and known to no one except the device owner How many. At the same time, different pin codes can access different sets of wallets, thus narrowing the market security gap.”
1inch’s entry into the hardware wallet industry comes at a time when self-custody is on the rise due to distrust of centralized cryptocurrency exchanges (CEXs). During the November 2022 FTX crash, major hardware wallet providers such as Ledger and Trezor saw massive spikes in traffic and sales as cryptocurrency investors were triggered to offload their holdings from CEXs.
