Ledger to delay controversial key recovery feature, CEO says

• Ledger has decided to delay its recovery feature as it open-sources the code, CEO Pascal Gauthier said in a letter.
• The Ledger Recover feature won’t be rolled out until the open sourcing is complete, he noted.
• Gauthier also apologised for the way the company handled the communication around the feature’s release.

Ledger is delaying the rollout of its recovery feature, CEO Pascal Gauthier has announced.

According to details in a letter the CEO of the hardware wallet provider addressed to customers and the broader cryptocurrency community, the planned implementation of Ledger Recover will remain on hold until the company releases its code.

“We have made the decision to accelerate the open sourcing roadmap! We will include as much of the Ledger operating system as possible, starting with core components of the OS, and Ledger Recover, which won’t be released until this work is complete,” he noted.

Other than that, Ledger plans to open source the recovery protocol, a move the company believes will enable the crypto community to benefit from increased room for making choices regarding the self-custody of their assets. The service will also remain fully optional.

“We’ve listened to our customers; we are accelerating a roadmap that’s been in progress, and regardless, the security of your Ledger remains unchanged,” the Ledger exec added.

Ledger CEO apologises to crypto community

Ledger announced the recovery service last week, revealing that users would be able to secure the encrypted backups of seed phrases via custodians. 

The feature was to allow crypto holders access and restore private keys after they lose or forget seed phrases. The Ledger Recover is an opt-in feature that will require customers to complete a Know-Your-Customer (KYC) check. 

Criticism of Ledger’s move was massive, with the industry shocked by how the company proceeded to handle the uproar.

In his letter, Gauthier apologised “for the way this was communicated.” The wallet provider’s leadership is also set to hold an AMA on Tuesday, 23 May 2023 at 12:30 pm ET where the Ledger Recover service will be expounded on.