Bitcoin Wallet: Overview
This product line provides businesses and developers with integrated Bitcoin wallet functionality. By default, each new Bitnob account receives a custodial Bitcoin wallet that can manage on-chain and Lightning transactions with minimal friction. For those who need more control, Bitnob also offers flows to create non-custodial wallets.
Key Features
Custodial Wallets on Account Creation
whenever a user or business signs up, they automatically have a custodial Bitcoin wallet. Bitnob manages the private keys, so you can focus on integrating the API without wrestling with low-level blockchain operations. This works for:
Storing Bitcoin
Sending on-chain
Sending Lightning
Receiving to any supported address format
Non-Custodial Wallet Flows
If you or your customers want direct control of their keys, you can create non-custodial wallets through Bitnob’s API. This offloads address management while ensuring users retain sovereignty over their funds. You can still leverage Bitnob’s infrastructure for transaction processing or notifications.
On-Chain and Lightning Support
Your wallet can send and receive:
On-chain Bitcoin transactions (Taproot, SegWit)
Lightning payments (Bolt11 addresses, LNURL, Lightning addresses)
Bitnob currently does not support Bolt12, but it handles all main LN use cases.
Low Fees for Transactions
Lightning transactions cost 10 satoshis per send
On-chain sends to a custodial address cost 3000 satoshis
For external non-custodial addresses, the fee may vary (e.g. dynamic miner fees), but Bitnob’s custodial addresses are fixed at 3000 sats for on-chain transactions.
Address Management and Reuse Policy
You can issue multiple Bitcoin addresses to your customers. Bitnob supports all major address formats (e.g. bech32, Taproot). We strongly recommend avoiding address reuse to preserve user privacy. If a customer wants to receive BTC again, generate a fresh address. Payments to older addresses still work, and you receive a webhook upon confirmation.
Webhook-Driven Notifications
Whenever funds arrive at a generated address (even older ones), Bitnob sends your server a webhook confirming the payment. This asynchronous flow ensures you can update user balances or trigger business logic without manually polling the blockchain.
Built-In Privacy and Security Considerations
Because addresses can be generated on demand:
You reduce the risk of chain analysis linking multiple payments to the same address
You allow customers to keep their transaction history separate
Additionally, for non-custodial flows, you retain user self-custody while still leveraging Bitnob’s broader infrastructure.
Future Enhancements
Bolt12 is not yet supported
Additional advanced Lightning features may be added (e.g. channel management, inbound liquidity assistance)
Next Steps
From here, we can break down each Bitcoin Wallet subsection to cover:
Creating and Managing Custodial vs Non-Custodial Wallets
Sending Bitcoin (On-Chain and Lightning)
Receiving Bitcoin (Address Formats, LNURL, etc.)
Security Checks and Recommendations
Fee Details and Configurations
API Tutorials (end-to-end flows)
Wallet-Specific FAQ
These deeper sections will provide code snippets, best practices, edge-case handling, and advanced workflows for businesses that need more than a simple “send and receive” integration.
