Bittensor Wallets
A Bittensor wallet represents a user or entity’s identity and signing authority on the network. It stores cryptographic keys used to access TAO, delegate stake, and authorize operations (Wallets, Coldkeys and Hotkeys).
What It Represents
A wallet contains or references one coldkey and one or more hotkeys. The coldkey controls TAO, stake, and high-authority ownership actions; hotkeys support operational roles such as mining, validation, and subnet registration (Wallets, Coldkeys and Hotkeys, Glossary: Coldkey, Glossary: Hotkey).
Wallet applications, CLI tools, and storage labels describe interfaces or where key material is kept. They do not create a separate on-chain identity from the coldkey-and-hotkey structure underneath (BTCLI Reference, Working with Keys).
A wallet balance also cannot be drawn down to nothing without consequence. The glossary documents an existential deposit of 500 RAO: if a wallet’s balance falls below that minimum, the account is deactivated and the remaining TAO in it is destroyed, so emptying a wallet almost completely can wipe the leftover dust rather than leaving it (Glossary: Existential Deposit).
Wallet examples from one network environment should not be read as representing production custody or signing behavior on another (Bittensor Networks).
Distinction from Wallet Address
A wallet is the key-backed identity built around coldkeys and hotkeys. A wallet address is the coldkey’s public-key-derived identifier used to send and receive TAO (Glossary: Wallet Address).
- Wallet — key-backed identity and signing authority model.
- Wallet address — public identifier used to send and receive TAO.
Distinction from Coldkey
A wallet is the container of coldkey and hotkey roles. The coldkey is the security-critical key that controls TAO, stake, and ownership actions (Glossary: Coldkey).
- Wallet — container of coldkey and hotkey roles.
- Coldkey — high-authority key controlling TAO and stake.
Distinction from Hotkeys
Hotkeys are operational keys inside a wallet used for subnet roles. The coldkey owns those hotkeys and keeps fund custody (Glossary: Hotkey).
- Wallet — full coldkey-and-hotkey identity structure.
- Hotkey — operational key layer inside that wallet.
Distinction from Seed Phrase Security
Seed phrase security is the practice of protecting the recovery phrase that can regenerate a wallet’s key material (Handle your Seed Phrase/Mnemonic Securely).
- Wallet — key-backed identity used to sign and access TAO.
- Seed phrase security — protecting recovery material that can regenerate the wallet’s keys.
Distinction from Bittensor Tools
Bittensor tools are software surfaces used to reach network features. A wallet is the coldkey and hotkey account material those surfaces operate with (Bittensor Tools).
- Bittensor tools — software surfaces for interacting with the network.
- Wallet — key-backed identity those surfaces use.
Distinction from Local Wallet
A local wallet describes where wallet files are stored on disk. The wallet concept remains the on-chain identity tied to coldkey and hotkey pairs (Glossary: Bittensor Wallet).
- Wallet — key-backed on-chain identity.
- Local wallet — file storage location for signing material.
Distinction from Yuma Consensus
Wallets name identity and signing authority through coldkey and hotkey material. Yuma Consensus converts submitted validator weights into emission shares after evaluation completes (Yuma Consensus).
- Wallets — identity and signing authority through coldkey and hotkey material.
- Yuma Consensus — on-chain weight aggregation that settles emissions.
Reader Boundary
Wallets should not be read as a single application install, a subnet role, or an SS58 string by itself. The term names the key-backed identity and signing authority model built around coldkeys and hotkeys (Glossary: Bittensor Wallet).