How to create an assisted bitcoin multi-sig wallet?
Set up a 2-of-3 multisig wallet with Savel. Savel co-signs your transactions — software key for automated approvals, or air-gapped key for manual signing.
Wallet (Software Key)
Savel's key is encrypted and stored on secure servers in Switzerland. Transactions that match your security rules (daily limits, time delays) are co-signed automatically — no manual approval needed. Ideal for everyday use.
Air-Gapped Vault (Offline Key)
Savel's key is generated and stored on an air-gapped device that never touches the internet. Every transaction requires your manual approval and a second signature from Savel's team. Ideal for long-term savings and high-value storage.
What you'll need
- • An approved Savel account with an active plan (Wallet or Air-Gapped)
- • A hardware wallet for your signing key (Trezor, Ledger, Coldcard, SeedSigner, or Krux)
- • Sparrow Wallet (free, desktop) — any wallet manager works, but this guide uses Sparrow
- • A second offline device for the Family Recovery Key (another hardware wallet, or the same one wiped after exporting)
Caution: Never share your private keys or seed words — not even with Savel. Only public keys (xpub/zpub) are needed to build the wallet. Anyone with your seed phrase can spend your bitcoin.
Important: Do not import your Family Recovery Key (Keystore 2 / Backup) into Sparrow or any wallet manager. Private keys belong on a hardware or air-gapped device — never in a computer or software wallet. Keeping it on your computer means a single compromised machine could expose both your primary key and the backup, defeating the purpose of a backup key.
Supported signing devices
Connected (USB)
- • Trezor (Model One, Model T, Safe)
- • Ledger (Nano S Plus, Nano X)
Air-Gapped (QR codes)
- • Coldcard (QR via camera or microSD)
- • SeedSigner (QR via camera)
- • Krux (QR via camera)
Air-gapped devices communicate via QR codes only — no USB, no Bluetooth, no internet connection. This eliminates all remote attack vectors. Krux is an open-source air-gapped signer built on inexpensive hardware (K210-based boards) that supports air-gapped PSBT signing via QR codes.
Create your assisted multi-sig wallet
The steps below are the same for both types of wallet — with a software key for automated co-signing or an air-gapped key for manual approval. Your hardware wallet and Family Recovery Key always stay on cold devices.
Step-by-step guide
Sign in to your account
Sign in at the top-right of the page and open your Dashboard from the member menu.
Choose a plan
Pick a plan that fits your needs — Wallets with automated signing (Lite Essential, Lite Pro) or Air-Gapped Vaults (Air-Gapped Essential, Air-Gapped Pro). Go to Plans to choose or upgrade, and pay with bitcoin.
Create your wallet in Savel
On your Dashboard, click Create Wallet or Create Air-Gapped Vault. Savel generates its key and shows you its public key (xpub/zpub with a QR code). For Wallets this is a software key stored encrypted online; for Air-Gapped Vaults it is generated on an offline device that never touches the internet. This key alone cannot move funds.
Build the multisig wallet in Sparrow
Open Sparrow Wallet (free at sparrowwallet.com) and go to File → New Wallet. Choose "Multi Signature" as the Policy Type and select your quorum — 2-of-3 by default, or the larger setup your Pro plan allows (3-of-4, 3-of-5, 4-of-5).
Keystore 1 — add Savel's key
Under Keystore 1, choose "Watch Only Wallet", label it "Savel", and paste the xpub/zpub from the Savel page (or scan its QR code). This gives Sparrow Savel's public key without any access to the private key itself.
Keystore 2 — create the Family Recovery Key
Label Keystore 2 "Backup". This key lives on a separate offline device used only for inheritance and emergencies: create a new wallet on any hardware or air-gapped device, use its "export xpub" screen to paste the public key into Sparrow, write the seed words down, and store them in a different physical location than your main device. If you only own one hardware device, you can wipe the key off it afterwards — the seed words are the key.
Keystore 3 — connect your hardware wallet
Label Keystore 3 "MyKey". Use "Connect Hardware Wallet" (Trezor, Ledger) or "Airgapped Hardware Wallet" (Coldcard, SeedSigner, Krux — all via QR code) and follow your device's instructions. This is your primary signing key — write the seed words down and keep them safe.
Apply, then copy the wallet descriptor
Click Apply — Sparrow combines all keys into the final configuration. Go to the Settings tab, find the Descriptor field, and press Edit to copy the full text (or display it as a QR code). The descriptor contains only public keys: sharing it proves the wallet configuration but cannot spend anything.
Paste the descriptor into Savel and finish
Back in the Savel page, give your wallet a name, paste the descriptor (or scan the QR code), and click Save & Finish. Savel validates the setup — supported quorums are 2-of-3, 3-of-4, 3-of-5, and 4-of-5, and the descriptor must contain Savel's key — then stores everything encrypted. From this moment Savel can co-sign whenever you request a transaction.
Tip: Configure your security rules (maximum value, daily transaction limits, and time delays) in the wallet security settings. Savel verifies every transaction against these rules before co-signing.
After you create your wallet
- • Keep your hardware wallet and Family Recovery Key in separate physical locations
- • Back up your wallet descriptor — save it alongside your legal documents or print the QR code
- • Set your security rules — value limits, daily limits, and time delays
- • Practice a test transaction to confirm everything works
- • Enable two-factor authentication for an extra layer of account security