What Is Safe?
Safe is a non-custodial, smart contract wallet that operates on Ethereum and other EVM blockchains. It enables users to create multi-sig wallets, which demand the approval of a minimum number of people or wallets before a transaction is processed. Safe is accessible via web, desktop, and mobile apps and aims to bring digital ownership of accounts to everyone by creating universal and open contract standards for the custody of digital assets, data, and identity.
Background
Safe was originally part of Gnosis DAO, but in 2022, the Gnosis DAO team spun Safe out into its protocol.
How It Works
Safe leads the way in modular smart account infrastructure, allowing developers to create various applications and wallets. The vision for Safe Smart Accounts is to become the standard core used in all smart contract-based wallets and to make the benefits of Account Abstraction accessible to both users and developers.
The architectural design of Safe Smart Account is based on a few fundamental principles: security, minimal gas costs, and maximum flexibility. It uses a multi-signature logic for security, optimizes gas costs by storing the transaction data and confirmations off-chain, and supports modules and the delegate call function for flexibility.
Safe’s functionality can be extended through Safe Modules, smart contracts adding custom features. Furthermore, Safe Guards perform checks before and after a Safe transaction. Safe contracts also support alternative signature schemes such as EIP-1271 and EIP-712.
Key Takeaways
- Safe is a non-custodial, smart contract wallet that operates on Ethereum and other EVM blockchains.
- Safe allows for creating multi-sig wallets, requiring approval from multiple entities before processing a transaction.
- It was initially part of Gnosis DAO and was spun out as its protocol in 2022.
- Safe is leading in modular smart account infrastructure, with a vision to become the standard core in all smart contract-based wallets.
- The functionality of Safe can be extended through Safe Modules, and it supports alternative signature schemes such as EIP-1271 and EIP-712.
