Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice. BitPinas has no commercial relationship with any mentioned entity unless otherwise stated.
Bitget Wallet, a decentralized multi-chain crypto wallet developed by international crypto exchange Bitget, now supports national QR code payments in Vietnam and the Philippines.
This means that Filipino users can now scan QR Ph codes to pay for goods and services using stablecoins like $USDT and $USDC across multiple blockchains, including Ethereum, TRON, Solana, Base, TON, and BNB Chain.
Moreover, as part of the launch, users who use the feature at partner merchants will receive a 50% cashback on their first transaction until July 30, 2025, as announced by Bitget.
Game Changer? Crypto as Payment at Bitget Wallet
In a statement, Bitget shared the integration is part of its broader PayFi initiative aimed at bridging web3 technologies with real-world use cases. It is the first self-custody solution to enable QR-based crypto payments using national systems in both countries.
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In the Philippines, the crypto exchange clarified that purchases can be made at retail shops, restaurants, cafes, and food stalls, wherever QR Ph is accepted as a mode of payment.
It is because Bitget Wallet’s scan-to-pay function can automatically detect whether a QR code is blockchain-based, like Solana Pay; or a national QR, like QR Ph; and then process the transaction accordingly.
Crypto balances are used directly for payment in this feature.
Moreover, the team behind Bitget Wallet expressed that by enabling direct stablecoin payments via QR Ph, the feature eliminates the need for peer-to-peer conversions for small-value transactions and offers a faster, more seamless experience for crypto users.
However, as of this writing, token conversion and gas-free payments are not yet active.
“We’re helping crypto become something people actually use—to eat, shop, travel, and live.”
Bitget Wallet
How to Pay via QR Ph at Bitget Wallet
Users need to scan a QR code from a local merchant, input the payment amount, and complete the transaction through the Bitget Wallet app.
Open Bitget Wallet and tap the scan icon.
Scan a QR Ph code.
Enter the payment amount.
Confirm the transaction.
Receive cashback in $USDT to the same wallet (for the first transaction).
Promo: 50% Cashback at First Transaction
When a user uses the feature on Bitget Wallet for the first time, they will enjoy a 50% cashback of up to 2 $USDT. This is according to the announcement of Bitget.
Here are other reminders about the promo:
Cashback is credited within 1 business day.
Abuse or fraud leads to disqualification.
“We’re giving 50% cashback on your first crypto payment made via national QR codes in Vietnam or the Philippines.”
Bitget Wallet
Bitget in PH
Recently, Bitget Wallet highlighted its growing presence in Southeast Asia during Philippines Blockchain Week held at the SMX Convention Center Manila from June 10 to 11.
Will Wu, Head of Growth at Bitget Wallet, joined a panel on “Secrets of the Big Global Exchanges,” sharing insights on user trust and platform growth. At its booth, Bitget Wallet showcased its integration of Solana Pay and national QR code payments, reinforcing its push for accessible crypto transactions.
Bitget also partnered with crypto educator Cryptita Plays to launch the Young Learners’ Encyclopedia, an illustrated book that simplifies blockchain concepts for children in underserved areas of the Philippines.
Other Bitget News
Bitget Wallet was rebranded last month with a simpler interface and new features as part of its global “Crypto for Everyone Movement” and $1 million campaign to boost adoption, now supporting 130+ blockchains, real-world payments, tokenized assets, and a beginner-friendly “Simple Mode.”
SLIP-39 backups are supported by Trezor Model T, Trezor Safe 3, and Trezor Safe 5.
Can I upgrade my existing BIP-39 wallet to SLIP-39 directly?
No. SLIP-39 is a different backup standard. To switch, you’ll need to create a new SLIP-39 wallet and transfer your funds to it.
Can I upgrade a SLIP-39 backup later?
Yes. If you start with a 20-word Single-Share backup, you can upgrade to a Multi-Share setup anytime using Trezor Suite. Your original backup will still work unless you choose to retire it.
Can I use a passphrase with BIP-39 and SLIP-39?
Yes, but it introduces a new single point of failure. If you lose or forget the passphrase, your wallet can’t be recovered, even with the correct backup. Make sure you write it down and don’t lose it.
What if Trezor stops making hardware wallets?
BIP-39 and SLIP-39 are open standards supported by multiple wallets. Even if Trezor were unavailable, you could recover your wallet using other compatible devices or software.
Is SLIP-39 compatible with multisig?
Yes. SLIP-39 can be used to securely back up one of the keys in a multisig wallet. If the original device is lost or unavailable, the key can be restored using the SLIP-39 shares and imported to a new device.
How many shares can I create with SLIP-39?
Up to 16 shares. More shares can offer more flexibility, but they’re also harder to keep track of.
What happens if I lose a SLIP-39 share?
As long as you still have the required number of shares (the threshold), you can recover your wallet. With fewer than the threshold, recovery is not possible — and no usable information about the wallet or keys can be extracted. If you believe one or more shares may have been compromised, it’s safest to create a new wallet and move your funds.
Why use Multi-Share instead of just splitting a regular backup myself?
SLIP-39 uses cryptography to split your backup securely. Any number of shares fewer than the threshold reveal nothing on their own. Manually splitting a BIP-39 phrase (e.g. writing half in one place, half in another) doesn’t offer the same protection and increases the risk of accidental loss or compromise.
What is the difference between a 12-word and a 24-word BIP-39 backup? Is 24 words safer?
A 24-word backup has more entropy, but a 12-word backup is already unguessable in practice. Even with billions of supercomputers, it would take longer than the age of the universe to brute-force.
What matters most isn’t the number of words — it’s keeping your backup safe, private, and offline.
Why does SLIP-39 use 20 words?
SLIP-39 uses 20 words because each share includes extra information — like group and threshold data — and a stronger checksum to detect errors. The longer format helps ensure each share is unique, verifiable, and secure.
Should I upgrade to SLIP-39?
If your BIP-39 backup is secure and works well for you, there’s no urgent need to switch. However, if you’re looking for enhanced security, flexibility, or worry about a single point of failure, SLIP-39 might be a better option.
Cryptocurrency exchange OKX has officially launched operations in the United States, introducing both its centralized exchange platform and the OKX Wallet to American users, the company announced Wednesday.
Key Details:
The move marks the firm’s formal entry into the world’s largest financial markets, with its U.S. headquarters established in San Jose, California.
The company previously settled with the US regulators for operating before getting a license to do so.
The rollout will begin in phases to ensure a smooth onboarding process, with a full nationwide launch expected later this year.
🇺🇸 Bringing a New Alternative to America 🇺🇸
We’re officially launching in the US with our centralized exchange & powerful multi-chain Web3 Wallet.
Roshan Robert will lead our expansion as US CEO, and our headquarters will be in San Jose, California.
Roshan Robert, newly appointed CEO of OKX US, said the expansion will provide American users with access to OKX’s trading platform.
Apart from support for major cryptocurrencies like BTC, ETH, USDT, and USDC, there will be local bank account integrations for fiat on and off-ramps as well.
The launch includes the migration of existing OKCoin customers to the OKX platform.
The OKX Wallet, also now available in the U.S., supports over 130 blockchains and includes features such as decentralized exchange (DEX) aggregation, cross-chain bridging, and dApp access across DeFi, NFTs, gaming, and social applications. The wallet also integrates AI-powered navigation for token discovery and portfolio management.
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Robert said OKX’s expansion to the U.S. is a commitment to responsible growth:
“As regulations evolve, OKX is working closely with US regulators and policymakers to ensure we operate transparently and compliantly. We’ve built a comprehensive, risk-based global compliance program that includes enhanced due diligence, a robust KYC process, customer risk rating systems, advanced fraud detection, AML tools, geo-blocking, and market surveillance technologies. These are all part of our commitment to a secure, compliant trading environment.”
Previously, OKX announced a partnership with Standard Chartered to launch a joint collateral mirroring program that will allow clients to utilize crypto as off-exchange collateral for trading.
OKX also previously launched its 29th Proof-of-Reserves report which confirmed $24.6 billion in assets in the company’s custody.
Imagine this: you’ve started your journey into cryptocurrency, excited about financial independence and the promise of security beyond traditional banking. You’ve worked hard to build up your assets, watching your balance grow and feeling confident that your funds are safe in your hands — far from third-party control. But there’s one crucial detail that might be slipping through the cracks — your wallet backup.
Now, picture this: one day, you go to access your wallet, but your device is unresponsive or, worse, missing. At that moment, all your wealth hangs on a single factor: your wallet backup. Whether your funds remain secure or are lost forever depends entirely on how carefully you look after your backup.
This scenario isn’t just theoretical; countless individuals have discovered the hard way that without a reliable wallet backup, assets can disappear with no way to retrieve them. The good news? With a proper backup, stored carefully, you can prevent this entirely. Follow these steps, and you’ll ensure your funds remain secure and accessible — no matter what happens to your device.
Important Reminder: Never reveal your wallet backup to anyone, and never type it on a computer, phone, or in any app. Your backup allows direct access to your funds, and exposing it to others or to a connected device puts your assets at risk.
You’ve heard this before, Not Your Keys, Not Your Coins. When it comes to your digital assets, security takes the front seat. Whether you’re a seasoned investor or just getting started, understanding how to properly store your wallet backup (also known as recovery seed) is essential for safeguarding your digital assets.
A compromised or lost wallet backup can lead to the permanent loss of your funds, so taking the necessary precautions is critical.
This guide will explore the best practices for securing your crypto wallet backup, highlight common mistakes to avoid, and suggest ways you can keep it safe.
A wallet backup (also known as a backup, recovery seed, seed, seed phrase, BIP-39 seed phrase, mnemonic, recovery phrase) is an ordered list of English words that contain all information necessary for recovering your wallet (i.e., accessing bitcoin or other cryptocurrency funds on-chain). A wallet backup provides full access to the associated wallet (the private key is mathematically derived from the wallet backup) — this is why you must keep it safe.
Think of it as the password to your crypto holdings — it enables you to access, transfer, and manage your funds. Without it, your assets are permanently lost.
You’re given a wallet backup when you set up a hardware wallet like Trezor. This unique phrase is generated during the wallet initialization process.
Losing or exposing your wallet backup means:
You lose access to your funds forever.
No third party, not even Trezor, can help you recover it.
Hence, properly storing your wallet backup is one of the most critical aspects of cryptocurrency security.
Important to know: Your wallet backup is a ‘plain English’ representation of a random number, from which all of your keys and addresses are mathematically derived.
It is an ordered sequence of 12 or 24 words for wallets using the BIP39 protocol, chosen from this list of 2048 words. In the case of the newer SLIP39 protocol, it is a sequence of 20 words chosen from this list of 1024 words
When you write down your wallet backup, the words must be copied down in the same order they appear
You must keep your wallet backup private and safe so that your cryptocurrency is never at risk. Having a safe wallet backup means you can recover your Bitcoin or other digital assets in case of hardware failure or the loss of your device
To keep your crypto assets secure, avoid these common mistakes:
1. Relying on Digital Devices
Storing your wallet backup on a computer, phone, or cloud service is highly risky. If your device gets hacked or compromised, attackers can easily steal your wallet backup, and gain access to your cryptocurrencies.
Rule of thumb: Do not keep digital copies of your wallet backup (this includes screenshots, photographs, emails, Dropbox wallet backup, etc).
2. Sharing Your Wallet Backup
Be careful who you share your wallet backup with. Sharing your wallet backup is equivalent to handing over your crypto assets to someone else.
3. Using Unsecure Physical Locations
While writing your wallet backup down on paper is a common practice, understand the risks that come with it. It is paper, after all! Storing it carelessly exposes it to risks like theft, fire, or water damage.
Here are some of the most effective solutions for securely storing your wallet backup:
1. Pen and Paper Method
Write your wallet backup down on paper in clear, legible handwriting. We recommend using capital letters. Your Trezor hardware wallet ships with a pair of wallet backup cards that you should use for writing down the words when you backup your device — this is a strongly recommended step when setting up your Trezor.
Keep your wallet backup cards safe from theft and damage
Consider making multiple copies and storing them in separate secure locations.
Drawback: Paper is vulnerable to fire, water, and physical damage over time.
2. Metal Backup Tools
We recommend this strongly. Metal backup tools, such as Trezor Keep Metal, are designed to protect your wallet backup from:
Storing your wallet backup in a hidden safe at your house is a great way to control access to it. However, the knowledge of a safe alone is enough to raise the interest of a potential thief, so if you choose to use this storage method, you should keep it in a discreet location, away from the eyes of guests, housemates, or anyone that might spend time inside your home.
Some may consider a safety deposit box at a bank. However, be mindful of bank policies that may allow access to your box under certain conditions.
Here’s a video to learn more,
4. Multi-share Backup
Trezor offers a unique feature called Multi-share Backup. This, essentially, allows you to split your wallet backup into multiple parts and store them separately.
For example, in a 3-of-5 Multi-share Backup scheme, the total number of shares is equal to 5, and the threshold is 3. This means any three of these shares can be used to recover your wallet. This is beneficial as even if one or two of your shares are somehow compromised, the entire wallet backup (recovery seed) is not exposed. This redundancy means you no longer have a single point of failure, as with the regular BIP39 backup standard (i.e., the 12-word recovery seeds used by default on most hardware wallets).
Even if one part is lost or compromised, you can still recover your wallet using the remaining parts. This greatly reduces the risk of losing all backup copies at once.
Learn more here,
5. Multisignature (Multisig) Wallets
For advanced users, multisignature wallets add an extra layer of security. A multisig wallet requires multiple keys to authorize transactions, reducing reliance on a single wallet backup.
Multisig is a method of securing a wallet by requiring approval from multiple private keys stored on separate devices when sending transactions. While Trezor recommends SLIP39 wallets as a simpler yet equally robust alternative in terms of backups, Trezor devices are fully compatible with multisig setups, allowing you to choose the option that best fits your needs.
Here’s more on this,
We founded the hardware wallet industry. Our founders, Marek Palatinus and Pavol Rusnak, were part of a team that introduced Bitcoin Improvement Proposal 39, or BIP39. This is a protocol that was introduced as a means to generate deterministic wallets. It’s a method for creating a human-readable mnemonic sentence — easy to read and write — from random data that serves as a backup to recover your wallet. In summary, the wallet backup (aka recovery seed).
This is now widely adopted in the cryptocurrency industry. Learn more here.
Trezor wallets began with employing BIP39 for the wallet backup (recovery seed phrases). When you initialize your Trezor device, it generates a unique 12, 18, or 24-word wallet backup (recovery seed). This seed is a representation of your private keys and is essential for restoring your wallet’s information in case your device is lost, stolen, or damaged. BIP39 has become a crucial part of Trezor’s security protocol, and it is used alongside other BIPs like BIP32 (Hierarchical Deterministic Wallets) and BIP44 (Multi-Account Hierarchy for Deterministic Wallets) to provide an optimal security model for cryptocurrency users.
Our recently introduced enhanced 20-word backup standard (SLIP39) ensures a more robust process for backing up and recovering your wallet compared to the legacy standard. With an upgraded, user-friendly wordlist and seamless transition to Multi-share Backup, SLIP39 offers superior security with no single point of failure.
Once your wallet backup is securely stored, it’s essential to protect it over time. What we do recommend is taking a moment to assess the most probable threats you face. It is important to understand that everyone has a different threat model, and this can change over time. Consider environmental risks, physical attacks, and remote attacks, while doing more. Read more on this here: https://trezor.io/learn/a/keeping-your-wallet-backup-safe
As such,
1. Regularly check for wear and tear or damage. For an example, if the wallet backup is is stored on paper, periodically check for fading or physical damage.
2. Protect against natural disasters. A case in point is ensuring your wallet backup is safeguarded from house fires, floods, or leaks.
3. Plan for inheritance. If you intend to pass down your crypto holdings, ensure you have a secure and private inheritance plan in place. Use a trusted legal advisor or ensure your heirs understand how to access your wallet backup securely.
Avoid these risky practices to protect your wallet backup:
Do not share your wallet backup with anyone else.
Do not keep digital copies of your wallet backup (this includes screenshots, photographs, emails, Dropbox wallet backup, etc).
Never enter your wallet backup anywhere unless prompted by your Trezor device.
Also, remember, no Trezor employee will ever ask you to tell them your wallet backup, even if you’re speaking with one of our customer support agents.
Pros: Simple, inexpensive
Cons: Vulnerable to fire, water, and damage
Pros: Durable, disaster-resistant
Cons: Comes at a cost (even if it’s only $79)
Pros: High physical security, limits access
Cons: Needs proper storage
Pros: High physical security
Cons: Relies on bank access
Pros: Reduces single-point failure risk
Cons: More complex to set up
Pros: Advanced security
Cons: Requires technical expertise
Trezor combines ease of use with robust security features, making it a top choice for protecting your wallet backup:
Here’s what sets Trezor apart from other wallets,
Trezor has been audited by independent security researchers and verified by its track record throughout its years on the market.
Our software and hardware are open-source and public. By doing so, everyone benefits from the community-tested design of their wallet, providing robust protection against real-world threats.
Trezor devices and the tailor-made software interface Trezor Suite are easy to use, making them suitable both for beginners and advanced users of cryptocurrencies.
Securing your wallet backup (recovery seed) is crucial for protecting your digital assets. By following the best practices outlined in this guide, you can safeguard your digital assets from loss, theft, or damage.
Trezor’s hardware wallets, and metal backup solutions, combined with advanced practices like multi-share backup, come together to offer a reliable and user-friendly way to secure your wallet backup. Don’t leave your crypto to chance — take control of your security today.
We recommend the use of a metal backup like Trezor Keep Metal. We definitely recommend avoiding storing the wallet backup digitally.
This depends on several factors. It is important to define your threat model. Choose a secure, hidden location that accounts for these risks. This video can help.
You lose access to your funds permanently. There is no recovery mechanism for lost wallet backups.
No, storing wallet backups online exposes them to hacking risks. Always store them offline.
Yes. Anyone with your wallet backup can access and steal your funds. Keep it private and secure.
No. Trezor does not store your wallet backup. You are fully responsible for its storage and security.
The good news? They all mean the same thing! But for new users, this terminology can be confusing when securing their assets.
At Trezor, we previously used the term “recovery seed.” However, after seeing firsthand how it caused confusion, we decided to simplify it.
Because honestly, how many new people can understand what a “seed phrase” is? It’s not intuitive, especially when the device we use to secure your crypto is called a hardware wallet. It’s easy to get lost in jargon, which only delays taking control of your crypto!
It’s exactly what it sounds like. If you lose your device and need to recover your wallet, use your wallet backup.
Our wallet backup can look like this:
Or this:
Even this:
(We’ll explain this below!)
Think of your wallet backup as the key or master password to your crypto wallet.
If your Trezor hardware wallet is damaged, you’ll need this wallet backup to recover your funds. Without it, you cannot access, transfer, or manage your funds.
It should be kept in a safe place because without it, you could be permanently locked out of your crypto.
When setting up a new wallet, you’ll be asked to write down a list of 12, 20, or 24-word words.
This list of words, generated by your hardware wallet, is your wallet backup. It represents a private key that grants access to your wallet, which holds your assets securely on the blockchain.
“But what about that crazy list of numbers above? Is that also my wallet backup?”
Here’s a fun fact… your wallet backup doesn’t actually start as a list of words!
It originates as a long, random string of mathematically derived characters, which is then converted into words to make it human-readable… crazy, huh?
Another fun fact:Trezor’s founders pioneered this approach!
Once we found a way to translate private key data into simple words, it became the industry standard.
(Just another reason to choose Trezor… humble brag 😉)
