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What is a Stacks Wallet?
Shailee Adinolfi
&
Annie Pei
General Wallet Use
A Stacks (STX) wallet is a digital wallet where users can use, store, send, and receive STX tokens. STX wallets are natively integrated into the Stacks Layer 2 (L2) blockchain and provide features like support for non-fungible tokens (NFTs), smart contracts based in Stacks, and decentralized applications (dApps).
STX Wallets Explained
STX wallets are a type of cryptocurrency wallet in which users send, receive, store, and use STX tokens and other Stacks-based digital assets. What separates STX wallets from other Bitcoin wallets is that they are built specifically to interact with the Stacks network. This native, seamless integration with the Stacks L2 blockchain allows users that link their wallets to interact with dApps and Stacks-based smart contractors and provides features like support for NFTs and decentralized identity (DID) management.
Leather - The Best Stacks Wallet
Leather is a Stacks-compatible wallet that lets users can move seamlessly between Bitcoin and Stacks; buy STX in L2 apps for usage on the Stacks network; purchase, store, mint, and/or trade Stacks NFTs, Inscriptions, and STX-20 tokens; and stack Stacks, which is a reward system in which users lock away STX tokens for a certain period in exchange for passive BTC rewards and income. All of this can be done within the Leather wallet.
How to get a Stacks wallet
The process of getting a Stacks wallet depends on each wallet. In the case of Leather, users can get an STX wallet by installing either the browser extension (compatible with Chrome, Edge, Opera, and Brave) or the desktop app (compatible with Linux, Windows, and macOS).
Once Leather has been installed, users will click the “Create new wallet” button. Next, users will click the “Show key” button. From there, a 24-word seed phrase will appear, and the users are expected to save and store it in a secure place before proceeding. Once the user clicks the “I’ve backed it up” button and creates a password, they will have acquired a Leather Stacks wallet.
What is Stacks?
Formerly known as Blockstack, Stacks is an open-source L2 blockchain built on top of the Bitcoin blockchain and introduces smart contracts and dApps to the Bitcoin network. Stacks is unique because not only is it one of the few Bitcoin layers, but also the reason it can be built on the Bitcoin blockchain thanks to a consensus mechanism called the Proof-of-Transfer.
The Proof-of-Transfer is a process in which miners must transfer their Bitcoin to other participants within the Stacks network. Then, when a Stacks transactions block gets validated, a miner from that block gets selected and wins STX tokens as a reward.
What is STX?
STX is the native token of Stacks used to pay for transactions and smart contract operations within the Stacks network. Users can also stack STX tokens (locking them away for some time) to receive passive BTC income and rewards. According to Reuters, STX became tradeable in the US in 2020 after having “raised $23 million last year by issuing Stacks tokens in a public offering under the SEC's Regulation A+ exemption.”
How Do Stacks Wallets Work?
Stack wallets work similarly to other Bitcoin wallets in that they allow users to store, send, receive, or use STX tokens (the token native to Stacks). People can use the STX tokens in their Stacks wallets to pay transaction fees, execute smart contracts, and stack them to earn BTC rewards. Stacks wallets can also be used to purchase, sell, store, or trade assets like Stacks NFTs and Inscriptions.
How to manage Bitcoin NFTs in your Stacks wallet
Bitcoin NFTs can be bought, sold, stored, or collected using Stacks wallets’ native STX tokens. The simplest way to do this is by using digital wallets that are compatible with Stacks and NFTs, like Leather. Additionally, Bitcoin NFTs can be created, purchased, and sold on NFT marketplaces that exist on the Stacks blockchain like Gamma.
STX wallet features
Self-custody, meaning that the owner of the wallet has 100% total control over its funds and private keys.
Open-source and audited, ensuring transparency and reliability
Easy token management, including BTC, STX, BRC-20, and other Bitcoin tokens
Access to other digital assets like Stacks NFTs, Ordinals, and Bitcoin Stamps
Integration with Bitcoin Name System (BNS), giving users control over their DIDs
Connection with DeFi protocols rapidly growing in the Stacks ecosystem
Interoperability with emerging L2 solutions, making moving assets between layers easy
Native access to platform mechanisms like Stacking
Store Stacks (STX) in a Non-Custodial Wallet
Typically, Stacks wallets are non-custodial (or self-custody). This means owners have complete control over the keys, funds, and other assets in the Stacks wallet. This ensures that no third-party or outside members can access or hold on to the Stacks wallet and its contents, as everything is owned and controlled by the wallet’s owner. However, because the owner has sole control over the wallet, they are responsible if anything happens to it or if they lose the keys needed to access it.