Is it worth taking BTC off an exchange to a hardware wallet?

[Maus0728]

Thank you for correcting my mistake, so that the information regarding Electrum is clear. And make newbies understand more about Electrum.
Because I never used Electrum,

Just to add, you can even encrypt your bitcoin wallet using a hardware device by connecting it to verified Electrum Bitcoin Wallet. Most people often uses Electrum as their wallet interface by integrating it to hardware devices in order to increase the privacy rather than using the Leger Live (if ever you are using Ledger Products). This means that you need to have your hardware wallet ready when you open the electrum application.


In case OP still has any doubts why holding bitcoin to an exchanges is risky, then it would be better to take a look at this massive list of exchanges going AWOL. Regardless of how reputable and distinguished these exchanges are, it is still a matter of time before these incidents might happen.

[1] Exchange Graveyard

[1715408394]

1715408394

[1715408394]

1715408394

[1715408394]

1715408394

[The Sceptical Chymist]

You gotta learn from history sir: https://cryptosec.info/exchange-hacks

OP, if I could draw big red arrows pointing to the above post, I would because it's that important.  Coinbase and Gemini are probably the least likely to not survive a hack, but one of the first things you should have learned when getting into bitcoin is that if you don't have control over the private keys to your coins, you don't control your coins--someone else does, and there have been horror stories of people losing fortunes because of exchange hacks or exit scams perpetrated by exchanges.

So yeah, I'd say get your coins off those exchanges and buy a decent HW wallet (Ledger and Trezor are going to be the ones most members here would recommend).  They're definitely worth the small investment it takes to purchase one.