I spent four months building a Bitcoin wallet solo, live-streaming the entire process from wireframe to completion. While the result is imperfect, the journey taught me invaluable lessons about engineering—and myself—that no tutorial could match.
⚠️ Disclaimer
This wallet is testnet-only and in ALPHA. Do NOT use it with real Bitcoin. It’s a learning project, not production software.
The Origin Story
After winding down my previous startup, BitEscrow, I immersed myself in Factorio for 270 hours in a month. The game’s systems-thinking approach rewired my engineering mindset, and upon emerging, I decided to build a Bitcoin wallet from scratch as an MVP for a larger project.
Why Build Another Bitcoin Wallet?
- Short answer: A technical deep dive before pivoting to infrastructure.
- Long answer: Initially planned as an MVP, the project revealed flaws in my original idea (niche demand, market viability) and reaffirmed my passion for infrastructure development.
The Journey
Challenges & Pivots
- Near-quitting point: Overwhelming feature creep and vanishing motivation.
- Breakthrough: Embracing imperfection and focusing on core functionality (sending/receiving Bitcoin).
Key Decisions
- Cut non-essentials: USD conversions, animations, Jibberlink integration.
- Systems thinking: Shifted from coding to architecting flows, aided by AI as a "temporary co-founder."
The Tech Stack
Core Libraries
| Component | Purpose |
|---------------------|----------------------------------|
| BitcoinJS-lib | Bitcoin operations |
| React Native + Expo | Cross-platform mobile dev |
| Zustand | State management |
Bitcoin Standards
- BIP-32/39: HD wallets & mnemonic phrases.
- SegWit: Implemented for efficiency.
APIs & Infrastructure
- Primary: Mempool API (with Esplora fallback).
- React Query: Data fetching.
Lessons Learned
Technical Insights
- UTXO handling is where theory meets reality.
- BitcoinJS is powerful but low-level; BDK+LDK might suit teams better.
- AI pair programming amplifies skilled developers.
Personal Growth
- Ship ugly: Momentum > perfection.
- Infra > UI: Confirmed my backend engineering passion.
FAQ
Q: Is this wallet secure for mainnet use?
A: No—it’s testnet-only and lacks security hardening.
Q: What’s the hardest part of building a wallet?
A: UTXO management and key storage.
Q: Why use React Native?
A: Fast iteration for MVP purposes.
What’s Next?
This wallet served its purpose: a learning tool. Now, I’m onto bigger infrastructure projects.
👉 Explore the GitHub repo for code insights!
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