Trezor to manage wallet chip supply chain

Flexible supply of cryptocurrency wallets

Cryptocurrency hardware wallet company Trezor has announced that it has tightened its control over the supply chain of silicon chips used in its products. Newly, it has decided to manage the production process of silicon chips in-house.

According to Trezor’s chief financial officer Štěpán Uherik, the new chip-making process will greatly enhance security by eliminating the risks associated with third-party chipmakers.

He also said that by avoiding supply chain issues, the time it takes to produce wallets can be significantly reduced. Uherik explains the reasoning behind this move:

Trezor has been exposed to third-party supply vulnerabilities in the past due to geopolitical turmoil, COVID-19 labor shortages, and crypto market conditions. Demand also surged after FTX’s bankruptcy in November last year, as investors moved funds from exchanges to hardware wallets.

By controlling the supply of chips in-house, it seems to be responding to such supply and demand problems. It is said that it will also help consumers to avoid being affected by wallet price fluctuations in the event of shortages.

Trezor’s new production-controlled chip will be used in its flagship physical wallet, the Trezor Model T.

Uherik said that controlling production gives the company more freedom in designing future products, and also helps it maintain its leadership in the increasingly competitive hardware wallet space.

Trezor will work with Swiss semiconductor manufacturer STMicroelectronics to manage the production of silicon chips.

Supporting startups with chip development

Tropic Square, a startup backed by Trezor’s parent company Satoshi Labs, is also developing a chip that can be used in cryptocurrency wallets. The company reported in February that it had completed initial testing of a prototype of its new open-source chip, the Tropic01.

The initial test results were positive, indicating that chip development can continue as originally planned. In 2024, the company plans to manufacture a second prototype, verify its functionality, and begin mass production.

As for the time schedule, we plan to complete a prototype before mass production in the next year, and if possible, start mass production in 2025 and put it on the market.

This chip performs encryption key generation, encryption, signature, user authentication, etc., and it is expected that Trezor will also introduce this chip when it is commercialized.

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