Deposit execution

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Depositing funds requires the Internet, and does not require handling any critically sensitive cold storage data, so you can use any Internet-connected computer for this section.

You will need access to an electronic and paper copy of your Cold Storage Information Page.

  1. Consider whether you want to route your funds through one or more intermediary non-cold-storage addresses for privacy purposes. (Review the Privacy Considerations subsection for details.)

    If you do, make those intermediate transfers using whatever means you normally use to transfer bitcoins.

  2. If you are depositing a large amount, consider making a small deposit as a test followed by a second deposit for the remainder.
  3. Verify cold storage address.
    1. Get one of the paper Cold Storage Information Pages containing your cold storage address.
    2. Open your electronic copy of the Cold Storage Information Page (see Section II for details). If you’ve lost access to it, you’ll need to recreate a new electronic copy by transcribing one of the hardcopies (attached to each public key) by hand.
    3. Visually verify that the cold storage addresses are identical in the electronic copy and paper copy. This is to insure that the electronic copy was not damaged, hacked, accidentally changed due to a typo, etc.
    4. Return the paper Cold Storage Information Page to its normal secure storage.
  4. Perform the deposit.

    1. Use the wallet software or service of your choice to prepare to send the desired amount of funds to your cold storage address. The Bitcoin network requires a fee to process transactions. We recommend you use a wallet service that either covers the fees for you or recommends a fee amount automatically, which most do.

      Enter all necessary transaction information, but do not actually execute the transaction.

      1. Copy-paste your cold storage address from the Cold Storage Information Page into the wallet software.
    2. Double-check that the address you pasted matches the address in the Cold Storage Information Page. If you use the wrong address, you will lose all of your funds with no recourse.
    3. Execute the transaction.
  5. Verify the deposit on the public blockchain.
    1. Go to Blockstream.info, paste the address into the search bar, and press Enter. You’ll be taken to a page that says “Address” at the top, with your cold storage address listed underneath.
    2. Within a couple of seconds you should be able to refresh this page and see your unconfirmed transaction at the top of the transaction list.
    3. Periodically refresh the page until you see the funds reflected in “Confirmed Unspent”. This may take anywhere from several minutes to many hours depending upon the fee rate you paid and how many other transactions are currently waiting to be confirmed on the network.

Your funds are now secured in cold storage.

If this was your first deposit to this cold storage address, proceed to the next section. Otherwise, you have completed the Deposit Protocol.