By
Tolu Ajiboye
February 23rd, 2024
The recent market crisis has somehow reminded investors of the safety of using hardware wallets.
Despite the unimpressive market conditions that recently swept through the crevices of the crypto industry, an unlikely hero has emerged – hardware wallets.
The crypto winter saw some major firms laying off a sizable chunk of their staff in a bid to cut costs and meet up with the demands of the extreme market conditions. Others announced transfer and withdrawal freezes, some filed for bankruptcy, and some had to even fold up completely. In short, the impact of the crypto winter had to have been felt by virtually every stakeholder in the industry.
Furthermore, there is the recent spate of attacks that left the likes of Solana and Nomad dazed after losing millions of dollars to exploitations.
In all of these, however, the recent crisis has also somewhat reminded investors of the safety of using hardware wallets. At least according to new evidence surfacing.
Hardware Wallets to the Rescue
Due to the common liquidity crisis of major crypto firms like Hodlnaut and Celsius, investors are having to deal with the reality of having their digital wealth held up in these firms until they come up with some sort of recovery plan. But even more worrisome is that there is no timeframe for when the recovery will be fully executed. So, it might be understandable how hardware wallets are spiking in sales amid the wave of freezes, insolvencies, and attacks.
Although they too can be targeted in phishing attacks, hardware wallets are not prone to online attacks at all. So they are arguably the better option for storing and safeguarding crypto for the long term.
Top Firms Confirm Spike in Sales
When it comes to hardware wallets, Ledger and Trezor are two giants in the business. And according to them, sales are surging recently.
For instance, during the Ledger Op3n conference in June, the company claimed it sold no less than 5 million units. But the company was also quick to attribute the massive sale to recent happenings. It said:
“Recent issues with lenders, bridge hacks, the Solana wallet exploits, etc. have only increased demand and sales.”
Trezor, another major hardware wallet manufacturer also recorded a massive rise in sales. It confirms that there is an “increased interest in self-custody solutions over the past few months.”
Undoubtedly, investors are becoming more security-conscious as they continue looking for ways to mitigate asset losses.