Bitcoin self-custody remains a core debate despite custodial solutions

Speaking with Roundtable host Rob Nelson, JAN3 CEO Samson Mow defended the importance of self-custody while acknowledging that many people prefer convenience over complete financial sovereignty.

Bitcoin's foundational principle of self-custody remains a core debate in the crypto industry. While many prefer convenience and a safety net for their assets, self-custody offers complete financial sovereignty, especially crucial in countries with unstable financial systems or potential government asset seizures, JAN3 CEO Samson Mow argued.

Speaking with Roundtable host Rob Nelson, Mow defended the importance of self-custody but acknowledged that many people choose joint custody or centralized services for its ease of use.

"I've always thought the problem with Bitcoin is that the best idea—that you hold your own coin and no one can get it. No one can touch it, everything's yours, and forget about traditional banking—that's not what most people want," Nelson said. "They want easy, fast, reliable, and they want some safety net because they just don't trust themselves. That's just human nature."

Mow agreed, adding that many people prefer to keep their coins in joint custody or use a service like Coinbase.

"If you're living in a first-world country and you can get a bank account or you can custody your coins with somebody else, that's a hundred percent in your right," Mow said. "But a lot of people do want to hold their own keys."

Citing historical precedents, Mow referenced Executive Order 6102, which led to the U.S. government seizing privately held gold in 1933.

"These things do happen," he noted. "And if you're in other parts of the world where the rule of law is even less prominent, you definitely want to keep your own keys to your own coins and your assets."

Mow highlighted that Bitcoin's base chain is renowned for its security, while Layer 2 technologies like Liquid and Lightning enable "fast, high-velocity spending." He described a hybrid approach using both as optimal.

"One of the problems people realize is that Lightning channels are connected to the Bitcoin main chain. So when the fees spike, it also causes the fees to open a Lightning channel to spike as well," Mow explained. "This is why when we connect to Liquid, there's a bit of a disconnect there."

Nelson pointed out that for most users, understanding these technical layers isn't necessary.

"Most people, they don't pay attention to any of these things, and they don't need to or want to," he said. "You're building the infrastructure in a way that I don't have to know about it, just like the internet."