Originally reported by Cointelegraph on November 14, 2026, at 05:49 (UTC+8). Blockstream announced an institutional digital-asset custody system developed with French technology group Thales. According to Blockstream, the design combines its Secure Multi-Party Computation (Secure-MPC) technology with Thales hardware security modules (HSMs) and executes the entire transaction-signing protocol inside the HSMs’ protected environment.
The architectural distinction is where signing takes place. Blockstream says conventional MPC implementations may perform parts of the process outside dedicated security hardware. Co-founder and CEO Adam Back told Cointelegraph that conventional MPC protocols can also require too much interaction between devices to be practical for fully offline cold storage. He argued that keeping signing devices offline reduces exposure to unauthorized network access and that AI could help attackers find subtle implementation errors in complex systems.
Back cited what he called the Binance $6.3 billion hack as an example of risks to connected custody infrastructure. Cointelegraph reported that, according to Binance’s investigation, attackers compromised employee devices and obtained credentials giving them access to wallet-signing infrastructure. The account describes Blockstream’s design and Back’s security argument; it does not provide an independent assessment of the system’s security.
