Those of you that have purchased XRP coins and are now thinking of storing them long term, might opt for a cold storage solution.
A cheaper alternative to hardware wallets would be a paper wallet. Making your own Ripple paper wallet is not as difficult as you might expect.
How does it work?
A crypto paper wallet will have printed on it both a public key and a private key. The process of generating the public wallet involves the selection of a random secret private key on which it creates the public key. For this, you will need to use an online key pair generator.
Keep in mind that all Ripple wallets require a Base Reserve, which is a minimum amount of XRP that keeps the wallet activated. The Base Reserve is currently set at 20 XRP. If you go under the reserve, you will not be able to send XRP to other wallets.
Below, you will find a step-by-step guide on how to create a Ripple paper wallet:
Step 1: Generating your wallet
· Access the site of a Ripple wallet generator. A recommended site would be xrppaperwallet.com. After entering the site, click on the blue “Generate A Paper Wallet” button located under Cold Wallet and your newly generated wallet will be displayed on the screen. The wallet generator will provide you with your Ripple Address, which represents your public key, and a Ripple Secret, representing your private key.
To ensure the integrity of your wallet during this process, you could save the website to your computer and run it on the website later, when your computer is offline. This will deter any data from being transmitted online, where it could be found and used by bad actors.
· Open a text file, copy and paste the Ripple Address (public key) into it, and save the document. You will need this address later on to verify your balance or move your XRP.
· Print out your wallet. It is best to avoid sending the print over any online connection or on a printer that doesn’t belong to you or someone you do not trust.
The most optimum mode in which you can print your wallet is by storing it on a USB drive and directly print it from the device, with the printer not being connected to the internet. You could also try connecting your PC directly to the printer via cable and print while both devices are offline.
It is recommended that you print multiple copies in case you might lose or damage your Ripple paper wallet.
If you have completed these three simple steps, you should now have a piece of paper which has printed on it a public/private key pair. Now that you have your Ripple paper wallet, we can move on to sending some XRP into it.
Step 2: Sending XRP to your wallet
Whether you are withdrawing from an exchange wallet or a web-based wallet, the process is similar for most types of XRP wallets.
· Log into the exchange or web-wallet where you stored your Ripple. Find the withdrawals section and your Ripple balance.
· Now click on the withdrawal button. You should receive a pop –up message asking you what amount do you intend on withdrawing, and the recipient’s address.
· You should first make a test transaction with a small amount, to see if the setup was made properly. As Ripple requires a minimum of 20 XRP to activate a wallet, you will have to first send 20 coins in addition to the transaction fees and withdrawal fees of your exchange.
· Open the text file where the public address of your wallet was saved and then copy and paste it into the address you wish to withdraw to. Check to see if the pasted address matches with the printed one.
· After you have verified that the addresses are the same, proceed to press “Send” and finalize the transfer of your Ripple coins. You will then have to be patient for a bit until your Ripple is deposited into the wallet. This process should last no more than a minute. You can use an account viewer to verify if the funds have appeared in your paper wallet by pasting your public key into the search bar. If you cannot find the account or the balance shows 0 coins, do not panic. This means the transaction just hasn’t gone through yet and you have to wait and verify it again later.
· After your account has received the test amount, you can proceed with sending the entire balance by re-doing the steps mentioned above and modifying the withdrawal amount.
Risks
· Someone might physically force you to give them your wallet. That’s why you should never brag about having a paper wallet as that can make you immediately a target.
· Paper is not a very resistant material. It can be easily damaged by many environmental factors and it can become brittle and can be torn without much effort.
· You could forget the location of your paper wallet or you could accidentally damage it. After all, to err is human.
Conclusion
If you have completed the above-mentioned steps, then congratulations, you now have a Ripple Paper Wallet! Make sure to store it somewhere safe and implement the security recommendations suggested in the article.
