EthCC9: Interview with Cake Wallet; An open-source crypto wallet with full self-custody

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Cake Wallet makes digital assets accessible, secure, and private for everyone. With support for major cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, Monero, Ethereum, and stablecoins, Cake Wallet provides seamless swaps, self-custody, and advanced privacy features, including Silent Payments and Tor integration.

I have interviewed Vikrant Sharma, the founder and CEO of Cake Wallet. Cake Wallet was one of the sponsors of EthCC9 in Cannes.

Mahsa Can you tell us a bit about your story and how you ended up entering the blockchain industry?

Vik: I first got into Bitcoin back in 2013, and it actually started with mining. I bought a couple of ASIC miners on eBay, set them up in my office building, and ran them for about two years. Since I live in New York City, I also started spending time at the Bitcoin Center around that time and met a lot of amazing people during the early days of Bitcoin. From there, my journey naturally expanded into Ethereum, Monero, and eventually the entire privacy movement within crypto. And that’s ultimately how Cake Wallet was born.

Mahsa: If you had to explain Cake Wallet to your grandmother in the simplest way possible, what would you say?

Vik: I would say Cake Wallet is basically the digital equivalent of keeping your money under your mattress. You fully control your money, you can spend it however you want, there’s no third party involved, and everything is completely permissionless.

Mahsa: What makes Cake Wallet stand out compared to other wallets in the market?

Vik: There are many reasons, but the biggest one is definitely privacy. We originally started as a Monero-only wallet, which naturally pushed us deeply into privacy-focused development. Even for Bitcoin, we were the first wallet to implement Silent Payments and PayJoin Version 2. For Litecoin, we were also the first wallet to integrate MWEB, which is Litecoin’s privacy feature.

That alone already differentiates us from most wallets out there. On top of that, we don’t collect any user data — we are fully privacy-focused. Users can connect their own nodes, and we support a variety of hardware wallets like Ledger and Trezor. We also developed our own hardware-wallet-style solution called Cupcake.

We continue to innovate constantly. For example, we recently added Bitcoin Lightning support using the Spark implementation, making us the first multi-coin wallet with Lightning integration. At the moment, there really isn’t another mobile wallet that combines all these features together in one place. With Cake Wallet, users can truly do everything in a single app.

Mahsa: Can you tell us about the moment when the idea for Cake Wallet first came to your mind?

Vik: It all started around 2017 when we began building. I was actually kicked off Coinbase because I had sent Bitcoin to what they considered a questionable address. That experience made me wonder: how did they even know where I sent my Bitcoin?

That question led me down the path of learning about chain analysis, which eventually brought me into the world of privacy, Monero, and Zcash. From there, we started building privacy-focused tools not only for Monero but for Bitcoin as well.

Since we’re here at an Ethereum conference, I should also mention that we’re actively exploring privacy solutions for Ethereum, including projects like Kohaku and Railgun. We’re looking into implementing those kinds of features in the future as well.

Mahsa: Bearish or bullish in 2026?

Vik: I’m probably the wrong person to ask because I’m always bullish. I’m always buying. Whenever non-crypto people ask me whether it’s a good time to buy, it took me years to figure out the best response. My answer is, don’t ask me, because I’m permanently buying.

Mahsa: If you had one million dollars to invest right now, where would you put your money?

Vik: I’d definitely diversify between Bitcoin and Ethereum, but I would also heavily focus on privacy coins like Monero and Zcash. And of course Litecoin as well, especially because of its privacy features.

It took a few years, but I think the privacy narrative has finally started to gain real traction. I always believed it would happen eventually. As more people enter crypto and begin actively using Bitcoin or Ethereum, they suddenly realize that their transactions can be tracked forever — from the beginning of time to the end of time.

That realization naturally pushes people toward privacy-focused solutions. I think more and more users are waking up to the importance of financial privacy because of that.

Mahsa: What do you personally believe will be the next big category in the blockchain sector?

Vik: Privacy, without a doubt. One hundred percent privacy. But since we’re here at an Ethereum conference, I also think we’ll continue seeing massive growth in tokenization. It’s already happening with tokenized stocks, for example.

Even platforms like Hyperliquid now offer tokenized stocks, metals, and other tradable assets. I think tokenization — especially on Ethereum — is going to continue growing rapidly over the coming years.

Mahsa: Many people have lost hope in the crypto industry and have completely stepped away from the space. What keeps you motivated to continue building in this sector?

Vik: I was actually asked this exact question recently during a breakfast meeting in New York with MoonPay. With meme coins, NFTs, and all the speculation, a lot of people feel burned out, and many people got hurt financially.

My answer was that I think we need to return to the fundamentals of crypto: self-custody and permissionless money. Somewhere along the way, that original narrative got lost. As an industry, we need to refocus on why Bitcoin mattered in the first place and why Ethereum became important.

If we can reconnect people with those original principles, I truly believe we can bring a lot of users back into the ecosystem.

Watch the interview on my YouTube channel:

About Crypto Diva

I’m already in the Future… Meet me there! Blockchain Technology is my passion and I have dedicated my career and research path to DeFi. My ultimate goal is to encourage more female professionals in the DeFi industry.

As the Sales and Marketing Manager of coinIX & COINVEST, I’ve got the privilege of being in close contact with Blockchain investment firms, as well as the innovative web3 projects which are creating the foundations the future financial world. I love to make the impossible possible and i’m willing to go the extra mile for that. Be my companion in my DeFi journey and I’ll show you everything.

Peace & Love,

Your Crypto Diva

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