The Winklevoss twins have won a patent for securely storing digital assets which adds to a long list of nine successful patents won by the billionaire twins, per information published on the website of the U.S. Patent Office.
The new patent, labeled 10,068,228 sets out a plan for cold storage of digital assets by building a computer network, made up of isolated computers used to host secure storage wallets for cryptocurrencies and cryptocurrency exchange-traded products (ETPs).
According to the filed document with the Patent Office, the computers will be physically separated from one another, but will be connected to the blockchain when moving assets and carrying out transactions on the network. As a result, they will effectively function as cold storage devices permitting user access only with the use of unique cryptographic keys.
New storage accounts on the network will have a separate cryptographic key, divided into several parts with each fragment saved onto an external storage device such as a USB drive, physically engraved onto paper, laminated cards and more.
An excerpt from the patent document abstract states that the “reference identifier” may be associated with each “digital asset account.”
“A respective reference identifier may be associated with each digital asset account. At least one of the one or more private keys corresponding to each digital asset account may be divided into a plurality of private key segments and written to a card along with the respective reference identifier to create sets of collated cards, wherein each set comprises cards corresponding to different private keys.”
The storage of the cryptographic keys starts at production. According to the document, they may be stored on both physical and electronic mediums, but at least, one set of the keys must be kept on an electronic storage device such as a USB drive. The document further states that, when keys are not created onsite at the storage location, they must be delivered in person or via fax to the storage location. Owners must also present three separate forms of identification when creating and accessing their accounts.
The application reads in part:
“In embodiments, private keys for a multi-signature account may be distributed to a plurality of users who are required to authorize a transaction together. In embodiments, private keys for a multi-signature account may be stored as backups, e.g., in secure storage, which may be difficult to access, and may be used in the event that more readily available keys are lost.”
Several industry heavyweights have been clamoring for a reliable custody solution. Earlier this year, Goldman Sachs announced it was considering launching a crypto custody service. Famed crypto investor Mike Novogratz also weighed in on the matter, while speaking to Ran Neu-Ner on CNBC’s ‘Cryptotrader,’ where he suggested that a custody service from a trusted source could result in a price recovery of digital assets.
“I think the next move up is going to need custody from a trusting source. […] If I’m in the state of Wisconsin, I’m not going to risk my job on a company called BitGo.”