I’ve been testing Core staking on Testnet using the staking interface. My understanding was that Core staking was 100% non-custodial, however my staked bitcoin is in an address that I don’t have the private keys to. So who does hold the private keys and how is this non-custodial? Apologies if this is basic but this is a real concern.
This is a common point of confusion with Core’s Self-Custodial Bitcoin Staking.
When you stake BTC via Core’s self-custodial staking, the BTC staking address is derived from your wallet’s master private key. This means:
- The staking address may look different from your original Bitcoin address.
- You retain full control: Only you (the wallet owner) have the private keys to this staking address, because it is generated deterministically from your wallet’s master key.
- No one at Core, no validator, and no third party has access to your private keys.
- No third party or smart contract ever takes custody of your BTC.
- Your BTC is locked on the Bitcoin network using a CLTV (CheckLockTimeVerify) timelock, which means it cannot be spent until the lock period expires.
- The only way to unlock and spend the BTC after the timelock is with the private key that you control.