Wallets, Coldkeys, and Hotkeys
In Bittensor, a wallet represents identity and signing authority divided across two key types (Wallets, Coldkeys and Hotkeys).
What It Represents
A wallet pairs one coldkey with one or more hotkeys. The coldkey controls TAO, stake, and high-authority ownership actions. Hotkeys handle operational roles such as mining, validation, subnet registration, and weight submission (Glossary: Coldkey, Glossary: Hotkey).
A coldkey can exist without a hotkey for balance, delegation, or subnet creation. Mining and validating require a paired hotkey. TAO transfers should go to a coldkey public key, not to a hotkey (Wallets, Coldkeys and Hotkeys).
Wallet examples from one network environment should not be read as representing production key authority or balances on another (Bittensor Networks).
The Coldkey Is Stored Encrypted
In Bittensor’s wallet model, the coldkey is not kept on disk in ready-to-use plaintext form. The wallet documentation states that a coldkey is stored only in encrypted form and requires its encryption password to authorize use, which is why the coldkey stays suitable for high-authority actions while the hotkey handles routine online work (Wallets, Coldkeys and Hotkeys).
Distinction from Coldkeys
This article explains how coldkeys and hotkeys divide authority inside one wallet. The coldkeys article centers on the security-critical custody key (Glossary: Coldkey).
- This article — combined coldkey and hotkey wallet model.
- Coldkeys — high-authority custody key vocabulary.
Distinction from Hotkeys
This article keeps both keys in one wallet picture. The hotkeys article focuses on operational keys for subnet-facing work (Glossary: Hotkey).
- This article — joint coldkey and hotkey roles in one wallet.
- Hotkeys — operational signing keys for subnet-facing work.
Distinction from Wallets
A wallet is the key-backed identity container. This article names how coldkey and hotkey roles divide signing authority inside that container (Glossary: Bittensor Wallet).
- Wallet — key-backed identity and signing authority model.
- This article — how coldkey and hotkey roles divide that authority.
Distinction from Wallet Address
A wallet address is the coldkey public key used to receive TAO. Coldkey and hotkey name signing roles inside the wallet (Glossary: Wallet Address).
- Coldkey / hotkey — signing roles inside the wallet.
- Wallet address — coldkey public key used to receive TAO.
Distinction from Seed Phrase
A seed phrase is recovery material that can recreate coldkey and hotkey key material (Handle your Seed Phrase Securely).
- Coldkey / hotkey — keys that authorize actions in the wallet.
- Seed phrase — recovery material that can recreate those keys.
Distinction from Coldkey Swap
Coldkey swap migrates on-chain identity, including associated hotkeys and registrations, to a new coldkey without resetting registered positions (Coldkey Swap).
- Coldkey / hotkey structure — how signing authority is divided inside one wallet.
- Coldkey swap — migrating that on-chain identity to a new coldkey.
Distinction from Nominator
A nominator stakes TAO onto a validator’s hotkey. Coldkey-hotkey vocabulary names your own custody and operational key roles (Glossary: Nominator).
- Coldkey-hotkey wallet — your own custody and operational authority.
- Nominator — account that stakes TAO onto a chosen validator’s hotkey.
Distinction from Yuma Consensus
Coldkeys secure TAO and stake; hotkeys run subnet roles and submit weights. Yuma Consensus converts those weight submissions into emission shares after evaluation completes (Yuma Consensus).
- Wallets, coldkeys, and hotkeys — custody and operational key roles.
- Yuma Consensus — on-chain weight aggregation that settles emissions.
Reader Boundary
Coldkeys and hotkeys divide signing authority inside one wallet model. A coldkey is not a hotkey, and a wallet address or seed phrase is not the same thing as either role (Wallets, Coldkeys and Hotkeys).