If you need another sign that the SEC has done a 180-degree turn in its approach to crypto, check out this new Investor Bulletin on Crypto Asset Custody Basics for Retail Investors issued by the Office of Investor Education and Assistance.  As with most of these things, it’s definitely “Crypto Custody 101.”  For example, here’s an excerpt discussing the difference between self-custody and third-party custody:

Self vs. Third-Party Custody

You also need to decide whether you want to manage your crypto assets on your own (self-custody) or if you prefer to have a third-party manage your crypto assets (third-party custody). Hot and cold crypto wallet options exist for both self and third-party custody.

Self-Custody: With self-custody, you control your crypto assets and are responsible for managing the private keys to any of your crypto wallets. With self-custody, you have sole control over the access to your crypto assets’ private keys. Self-custody also means that you have sole responsibility for the security of your crypto assets’ private keys. If your crypto wallets are lost, stolen, damaged, or hacked, you may permanently lose access to your crypto assets.

I guess the only “basic” that the SEC may have omitted from its discussion of self-custody is the risk that if you opt for that approach, you face a non-zero chance of being tortured and murdered for the keys to your crypto wallet.

– John Jenkins