ArcBit Wallet Review – Fees, Pros, Cons and Features

ArcBit wallet is a Bitcoin wallet whose design focuses on simplicity and security. It provides a seamless user experience right from setup making it easy to store and transact using BTC. Thanks to its design features, it is one of the simplest Bitcoin wallets to set up and use, particularly for beginners.

However, after taking an in-depth look at its features and analyzing whether it is the safest option in the market, we found out that it is not the safest crypto wallet for you. Therefore, we would not recommend it.

If you would like to know more why we’re not recommending it and how you’ll be able to find a safer crypto wallet, read more below.

What is ArcBit Wallet?

ArcBit wallet is the brainchild of a former blockchain.info wallet developer, Timothy Lee. He was dissatisfied with certain privacy aspects of the blockchain.info wallet and decided to leave to create his own privacy-centric crypto wallet. In June 2015, he launched ArcBit, which has its headquarters in New York.

ArcBit became the very first iOS wallet to support stealth addresses and ranked fifth highest on the Open Bitcoin Privacy Project in front of Samurai wallet and behind DarkWallet. In spite of being full-feature, it is simple enough even for beginners to use. However, it has lots of functional value for Bitcoin veterans as well.

Besides supporting reusable stealth addresses, it can also import BTC from other sources including private keys, watch-only addresses and encrypted keys.

ArcBit wallet compatibility

ArcBit wallet is available on a number of platforms including:

• iOS
• Android
• Windows
• MacOS

What wallet type is ArcBit?

• Bitcoin only
• Software wallet
• Hierarchical Deterministic
• Open source

What cryptocurrencies does the ArcBit wallet support?

• Bitcoin

What fees does ArcBit wallet have?

There are no ArcBit wallet fees for using the service. The only fees one would need to pay for a transaction are Bitcoin network fees, payable to miners.

How to open your ArcBit Wallet account

Now that we have figured out the basic facts on this Bitcoin wallet, let us find out how to open ArcBit wallet.

Step 1: Start by going to Apple AppStore or Google Playstore and downloading the ArcBit app

Step 2: Since there is no sign-up or registration required, that is all you need to know on how to open a wallet on ArcBit.

Your wallet is now ready to start sending and receiving Bitcoin.

At some point during your early use of the wallet, you will get a prompt to set a password for your account and save your recovery seed.

How do I add cryptocurrencies to ArcBit Wallet?

Next, let us find out how to add currency to ArcBit wallet:

Step 1: Open your newly installed wallet

Step 2: The first screen you will see is the “Receive” screen.

On this screen you will see the QR code and your ArcBit wallet address written below it

Step 3: Click on the QR code to copy it and paste in your other BTC wallet to transfer funds.

That is how to transfer Bitcoin to ArcBit wallet. There will be no need to go into how to transfer Ethereum to ArcBit wallet or how to transfer Ripple to ArcBit wallet since it’s a BTC only wallet.

How to send payments on ArcBit wallet?

Now that we have some funds, let us learn how to send payments on ArcBit wallet:

Step 1: Open the wallet and click “Send”

Step 2: Choose the account from which you want to send funds

Step 3: You will get an option to scan your recipient’s QR code or paste their wallet address.

Remember to label frequently used addresses to ease future transactions

Step 4: Set your own transaction fee or use the default.

Note that the default fee is 0.001 BTC. It might be wise to set your own fee based on the state of the network to ensure your transaction gets confirmed

Step 5: Confirm the details and then click send

Your wallet will show seven different addresses, the very last one being the “Forwarding address.” When making a payment, you can derive a unique address associated with this address. Since this is a one-time address, no one can connect it to your wallet.

How do I receive payments on ArcBit wallet?

Here is how to receive payments on ArcBit:

Step 1: Open the wallet and you will automatically land on the receive screen

Step 2: Copy the wallet address and paste it on email or SMS to send it to your counterparty

Step 3: Wait for the funds to reflect in your account

How safe is ArcBit Wallet?

Let us now find out how safe the wallet is by looking at ArcBit safety features:

Private Keys Storage

ArcBit allows users to store their own private keys and is therefore a non-custodial wallet. This means that in case the wallet’s servers get compromised, user funds will not be at risk.

Optional Cold Storage

Selecting advanced features will let you integrate your ArcBit watch-only addresses with cold wallets for more secure storage.

Hierarchical Deterministic Algorithms

ArcBit wallet lets you change addresses during every transaction for privacy purposes. As such, it is difficult for malicious entities to track transactions to your wallet address.

Open Source

ArcBit is based on open source code, making it possible for external parties to audit it and identify loopholes and bugs.

The team behind ArcBit has put a significant amount of effort into the security of the wallet. However, it is still not the most secure wallet out there. The wallet does not require a password to access your Bitcoin account and has no two-factor authentication. It also lacks multi-signature support making it hard to have multiple users on a single account.

One of the most glaring omissions in addition to the above is the fact that it is unregulated. As mentioned at the onset, non-compliant platforms hold a higher risk potential than licensed ones like eToro.

In our eToro review you can see it is regulated in multiple jurisdictions including the US (FinCEN), UK (FCA), Cyprus (CySEC), Australia (ASIC) and Europe (MiFID).

ArcBit Wallet Pros and Cons

ArcBit Wallet vs. other wallets – how does it compare?

ArcBit wallet vs eToro

• Coins supported

One of the main differences between ArcBit and eToro is that while ArcBit supports only one cryptocurrency, and that is Bitcoin, eToro supports five. That is already a big difference that definitely favours eToro. Even though you only want to store Bitcoins only, you may still want to consider using eToro because we generally consider it a better platform than ArcBit.

• Regulation

eToro is also a regulated platform and ArcBit is not. eToro in fact, is regulated by CySec and others of the most trusted regulatory agencies in the industry. The fact that the platform is regulated guarantees the correct functioning on the platform. You cannot get scammed and platforms have to be transparent about all the costs and risks of trading and storing currencies. The same cannot be said for unregulated platforms like ArcBit.

Update 2024 – Going forward, the only cryptocurrencies eToro customers in the United States will be able to trade on the platform will be Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash and Ethereum.

ArcBit wallet vs. Bitcoin Core

• Ease of Use

Both ArcBit and Bitcoin Core are Bitcoin only wallets. But ArcBit is designed to be much easier to use in spite of offering full features. Opening the wallet is a breeze and the user interface is friendly. Bitcoin Core, on the other hand, is best suited for seasoned BTC users. Its installation process is lengthy and cumbersome, requiring lots of space for the entire BTC blockchain.

• Privacy

ArcBit was a pioneer in offering iOS stealth addresses for transaction privacy. Bitcoin Core goes a step further as it is compatible with Tor, which can mask IP addresses for anonymity. Furthermore, the fact that transactions on the latter are posted directly on the BTC blockchain makes them harder to track.

ArcBit wallet vs. Wagecan

• Functionality

Though both of these are Bitcoin wallets, WageCan has higher functionality as users can access virtual or physical debit cards. This makes it easier to make payments in outlets that accept MasterCard. Users can also make withdrawals from tens of millions of ATMs around the world.

• Convenience

ArcBit is one of the most convenient wallets to use thanks to its simple setup procedure. WageCan also has a simple setup process but requires an email address and password unlike the former.

Furthermore, ArcBit allows users to save frequent contacts so as to make transacting easier and reduce the chances of erroneous transfers. WageCan does not have this feature.

Conclusion

A comparative look at the above wallets reveals that eToro is way above the rest in the most significant aspects. Because it is a licensed platform, it offers matchless safety for its users’ funds and is therefore highly recommendable. It is, in fact, one of the most reliable choices for crypto users and traders.

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