Aug 2, 2023

How to create a Bitcoin wallet app for cryptocurrency transactions

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The cryptocurrency industry is gaining more and more popularity, and at the same time, new ways of storing cryptocurrencies appear. Ideally, if access to Bitcoin is as simple as possible and cryptocurrency can be used at any time. Bitcoin’s mobile wallets are now in demand. Their main convenience is the lack of the need to have access to a computer. Creating such applications is not easy, but cryptocurrency is a profitable area for your business.

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What is a Bitcoin wallet?

Bitcoin is an innovative payment network and a type of virtual currency. Using P2P technology, Bitcoin works without any regulator or central bank. Transaction processing is carried out by the network participants themselves. Due to its unique capabilities, Bitcoin opens up new horizons that no payment system could previously give.

The universal cryptocurrency wallet is used as a personal channel of interaction with the Bitcoin network and acts as an intermediary between the client and the financial system. Such an application stores keys, conducts any operations with Bitcoin and provides information about your funds.

Bitcoin wallets contain private keys: secret codes that allow you to spend Bitcoins. In fact, you need to store and protect not the Bitcoins themselves, but these private digital keys, which provide both access to cryptocurrency and the ability to conduct transactions.

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Why a mobile wallet is the best solution

Bitcoin wallets are divided into several types: desktop, online wallets, mobile, hardware devices, and a paper document. However, mobile apps are the most popular option. Why is that?

Desktop wallets are really good if you need to store bitcoins, but they aren’t useful for shopping in physical stores. This is where the mobility of the application comes in handy. Once installed on your smartphone, your wallet can store private keys for your bitcoin addresses. Thus, it allows you to make purchases using the device.

Mobile apps are safer than online wallets: just keep track of your device, and the secret code remains unknown. And if you are dealing with an online wallet, a lot depends on the security of the site. Mobile wallets are designed using simplified payment verification. Thus, only a small part of the blockchains is downloaded, and the funds sent are authenticated on another trusted node of the cryptocurrency network.

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Bitcoin wallet features

An application for working with cryptoccurency is not an easy task. It has to perform many functions. We have created a list of the main features for a mobile bitcoin wallet:

  • Registration. Logging into a personal account is where the user starts working with the application. Make registration simple but reliable.
  • Profile. Designed to manage cryptocurrency transactions: send, receive, move, verify.
  • Built-in QR code scanner. It is widely used in payment transactions for sending and requesting money.
  • The ability to generate new addresses for all transactions.
  • PIN-code. It is used to protect the application.
  • Information. Shows the balance of the mobile wallet.
  • Sending and receiving payments. Via Bitcoin URL, NFC and QR Codes.
  • Support for multi-currency bitcoin exchange. Users can change bitcoins to another cryptocurrency and vice versa.
  • Cryptocurrency rate. Thanks to your application, users will be aware of the latest changes in the exchange rate.
  • Bitcoin trading. This feature is for selling or buying bitcoins.
  • Track payments in real-time. All the best wallet apps give users the ability to track payment transactions in real-time.
  • Push notifications. The function helps the user stay up to date with everything that happens with his tools and notifies you of news in the application.
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Technologies

There are two ways to develop a bitcoin wallet that you can use. Creating such a serious application requires a special approach and knowledge, if you do not have experience with platforms, programming languages, and libraries, we advise you to contact a professional development team.

Libraries

Open source tools offer the necessary functions, set up an electronic wallet on the blockchain and carry out financial transactions. Let’s take a closer look at popular libraries:  

  • Blockchain. It is used as a platform for digital assets, supports a wide range of languages for writing code, and works on Android/Windows/iOS platforms.
  • Bitcoinj. This is a cross-platform Bitcoin library that can come in handy with Windows and Android platforms, is easy to use and provides detailed documentation. Built-in Java, but compatible with JVM languages, allows you to work with MainNet, TestNet3.
  • Coinbase SDK. This is a cross-platform Java library that can be used to create a Bitcoin wallet application for Android and iPhone devices. The library also supports languages such as Python, Java, and others. It allows you to buy, sell and manage a wide range of cryptocurrencies.

Open-source libraries provide many features. They allow you to: work on an existing wallet or create it with an encrypted and detected password, check the balance of payments, send/receive cryptocurrency or calculate exchange rates.

Own developments

Using standard libraries has its drawbacks. To make the best application that meets all the requirements, you can choose a more complex path without using open-source codes. Then your project will go through the following stages of development:

  • Blockchain synchronization via API installation;
  • Adjustment of permissions for outgoing and incoming transactions;
  • Creating a cryptocurrency wallet;
  • Setting up standard programs for managing transaction processes.
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The security of funds is your primary task

Security question bothers users the most because it is their money and they need to completely trust the application that works with it. Therefore, it is worthwhile to carefully work out the security system of the mobile wallet. Security must be ensured in several ways.

Multi-signature

Multi-signature is an advantage of bitcoin payments. Among other things, this function increases the level of security of the service, allowing several users to partially sign one address with a public key. If someone wants to spend bitcoins, they should get 2-3 signatures to complete the transaction. The number of signatures required must be set in advance when creating the address.

Backup

In case of hacking or loss of the device, one of the first actions that the user wants to do is a remote wipe. You can make this process much less painful by simplifying your wallet backup

The most secure backup will be done on the user’s computer or on the SD card. Also, a convenient option is to copy data to the Dropbox or Google Drive cloud.

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Encryption

The wallet must be encrypted with a strong password, this makes it difficult to hack a mobile device, although it does not provide 100% protection. Provide users with rules for setting a strong password during registration. After all, security also depends on the users themselves.

Multi-step verification

Access to the wallet must be closed by two-factor or multi-factor authentication. For greater reliability, when entering the profile, send SMS to the user number to confirm the identity of the incoming. This is common practice for such apps.

Auto exit

Request a password every time a user exits the application. The phone can simply be left in public places, lost, or a person can become a victim of thieves. Reauthentication at each login provides greater safety. This is another advantage of bitcoin wallet apps over other types

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Bitcoin wallet development cost

If you have basic development knowledge and are planning to work on a project yourself, you can always use ready-made solutions and libraries. The main investment here is the time to study the technology and specifics of the application.

However, if you need a professional app that can work with multiple currencies and carry out many transactions, it is better to hire the development company for help. The cost of these services can vary from several tens to hundreds of thousands of dollars, depending on the complexity of the app, features, level of security and overall performance.

Before calculating the total cost of a bitcoin wallet, let’s talk about app development in general. Even a simple version for one platform may require more than 500 hours. What stages the work will consist of:

  • Backend — $ 10,000
  • Mobile app for Android or iOS — $ 25,000 – $ 35,000;
  • Design — $ 7,000;
  • Web/desktop version (if needed) — $ 5,000;
  • Testing — $ 4,000.

An important factor in calculating the total cost of the application is the hourly rate of the development team that you hire. Prices can range from $ 25 to $ 150. Thus, a Bitcoin wallet can cost from $ 70,000 to $ 100,000 or more. Of course, these are only approximate numbers, and the final cost of developing will depend on the scale and specifics of the project.

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Final words

The advent of bitcoins has opened up many new opportunities for people who believe in this technology. Working with cryptocurrency is a good solution for business because, with the popularity of bitcoin, the demand for useful tools has grown. Now you know basics about the creation of the Bitcoin wallet app, its functions, and estimated costs. Give users a simple, clear and functional product, and the app market will be yours!