Bitcoin Magazine

Breez Partners With Turnkey to Bring Non-Custodial Bitcoin to Backend-Run Apps

Breez has partnered with Turnkey to let developers add non-custodial bitcoin to applications that run wallets from their own servers, the companies announced.

The partnership addresses a structural problem. Many mainstream apps operate from the backend, with a single service handling millions of users. Adding bitcoin under that design has meant holding user keys on company servers. 

Holding keys makes a company a custodian, a status that carries licensing requirements, legal liability, and the security burden of a large store of user funds. The alternative has been to build a separate device-based wallet, a change that breaks the architecture these apps use to reach scale.

Under the new model, each user receives a wallet whose keys are created and stored inside Turnkey’s secure enclaves. According to the companies, those keys stay out of reach of the app’s servers, Breez, and Turnkey. The company’s backend holds a credential that defines what actions it can take, while authority to move funds rests with the user.

In other words, this partnership positions some of the world’s largest consumer apps to add non-custodial bitcoin without rebuilding their backend architecture or taking custody of user funds.

Turnkey supports Spark, the network the Breez SDK is built on. Paired with Breez’s server mode, a single backend can manage wallets for millions of users without storing keys.

Registered passkeys enable bitcoin self-custody apps

The approval flow works as follows. The user holds a credential, such as a passkey registered with Turnkey at signup. The server prepares a transaction and displays the amount, the fee, and the destination. 

The user approves the transaction, and it completes. The server cannot spend funds without that approval. For the user, the app’s existing flow does not change, and there is no seed phrase to record.

Turnkey provides embedded wallet infrastructure used by a range of consumer apps and holds a SOC 2 audit. In a note to Bitcoin Magazine, Breez positioned the release as a way for exchanges, fintechs, and neobanks to offer bitcoin and stablecoin services to large user bases without taking custody of funds.

Exchanges can automate payouts under rules their security teams define, and fintechs can add a non-custodial bitcoin service inside their existing interface.

The partnership extends a series of Breez SDK features aimed at lowering barriers to bitcoin integration. Passkey Login replaced the seed phrase, Stable Balance addressed price volatility, and a separate feature added support for sending the stablecoins USDT and USDC. The companies say the combined tools let backend-run products offer bitcoin and stablecoins to users while custody of the assets stays with those users.

Source: BitcoinMagazine