Three years ago, I woke up to an empty wallet.
A fake MetaMask pop-up, one careless click, and every dollar I’d made in the 2021 bull run vanished in seconds. No customer support, no insurance, no undo button. Just silence.
That morning taught me the hardest lesson in crypto: security isn’t optional — it’s survival.
Today, I’m going to walk you through exactly how I rebuilt my setup so it can never happen again. This is the same system I now use for six-figure holdings, and it’s built around one core rule that saved me more than any hardware wallet ever could.
Rule #1: Not Your Keys, Not Your Crypto (Seriously)
After the hack, I swore I’d never leave big money on an exchange again… but I still needed a way to earn yield and borrow cash without selling my BTC when I wanted to buy a car or cover taxes.
That’s when I found the middle ground that changed everything: self-custody for long-term holdings + a trusted borrowing platform for everything else.
Here’s the exact split I use today:
- 80–90% of my crypto → cold storage (Ledger + metal seed backup)
- 10–20% → Nexo (for earning interest and instant cash when I need it)
Why Nexo made the cut (and why I actually sleep at night):
- They never touch your private keys — you keep full control of your coins
- Real-time attestations by Armanino (a top-tier accounting firm) prove 1:1 reserves
- $775M insurance on custodial assets through Ledger Vault & BitGo
- 7+ years in business with zero hacks or lost customer funds
You can check their live proof-of-reserves here: https://nexo.com/ref/hfiatgvezu?tag (full disclosure — that’s my referral link, and yes, we both get $25 in BTC if you deposit $100+).
My Bulletproof Setup (Step-by-Step)
- Long-term stack → Ledger Stax (bought directly from ledger.com)
- Set up offline, no cameras in the room
- Seed phrase engraved on Cryptosteel Capsule, split in two locations
- Passphrase (25th word) memorized only
- Everyday spending & borrowing → Nexo
- Deposit BTC/ETH/stablecoins → instantly earn up to 16% on stablecoins or 7% on BTC
- Need cash? Borrow USD/EUR/GBP at 0–8.9% interest instead of selling (no tax event)
- Repay whenever — no fixed schedule
- Use the Nexo Card to spend the credit line anywhere Mastercard is accepted (2% cashback)
- Active trading → Small amounts only on the exchange, withdrawn weekly
The 5 Mistakes I’ll Never Make Again
- Reused passwords (fixed with Bitwarden)
- SMS 2FA (now only Authy + Yubikey)
- Clicking random “Connect Wallet” buttons (now I triple-check URLs)
- Public Wi-Fi without VPN (ProtonVPN is always on)
- Keeping everything in one place (diversification saved the rest of my portfolio)
The Bottom Line
Self-custody is still king for big stacks — nothing beats a properly set-up hardware wallet.
But if you want your crypto to actually work for you (earn interest, borrow against it, spend it without selling), you need a platform you can trust.
For me, that’s Nexo. It’s the only place I’m comfortable parking coins I might need quick access to.
If you’re ready to start earning on your crypto without giving up control, check out Nexo today.
And please — learn from my stupidity so you never have to learn the way I did.
What’s one security step you swear by? Drop it in the comments (keep the details light — we don’t want to help the bad guys). And if you’ve ever been hacked… you’re not alone. Sharing the story helps the rest of us stay vigilant.
