What is a non-custodial wallet?
The core trade-off
| Question | Custodial wallet | Non-custodial wallet |
|---|---|---|
| Who holds the keys? | The service. | You. |
| Lost password recovery | Through the service (email, ID, support). | Only via your recovery phrase. No support reset exists. |
| If the company fails | Access may depend on the company. | Your keys still work if you have the phrase. |
| Responsibility | The service secures your keys. | You alone secure and back up the phrase. |
The recovery phrase is everything
A non-custodial wallet generates a recovery phrase (seed phrase), usually 12 or 24 words. Anyone with the phrase can move the funds. Write it down offline, never type it into a website or chat, never photograph it to cloud storage, and never share it — including with "support." A lost phrase means permanently lost funds; no company can restore it.
Protections and insurance
Digital assets in any wallet — custodial or non-custodial — are not bank deposits, can lose value, and are not FDIC insured. The FDIC's fact sheet is explicit. There is no government deposit insurance for crypto.
Where Kronos fits
Kronos includes a non-custodial wallet for supported digital-asset sends and receives where enabled. That means you control the keys and the recovery phrase for wallet activity. Supported assets, networks, locations, fees, and availability are shown in the current app flow before any action. KronosPay LLC is a financial technology company, not a bank. Read the bank-status page. For the glossary entry, see non-custodial wallet.
Primary sources
Is a non-custodial wallet safer than an exchange?
"Safer" depends on the threat. Non-custodial removes the risk of an exchange failing or freezing your account, but makes a lost recovery phrase unrecoverable. Choose based on which risk you can manage better.
Can support recover my non-custodial wallet?
No. If you lose the recovery phrase, no one — including Kronos support — can restore the wallet.
General educational information only; not financial, investment, tax, or legal advice. Digital assets can lose value.