Coming Soon!

Just as the Node API provides the ability to read data from a blockchain in a standard format, the Wallet API enables developers to write to a blockchain (i.e. construct transactions) in a standard format. To meet strict security standards, implementations are expected to be stateless, operate entirely offline, and support detached key generation and signing.

We are in the final rounds of feedback with a beta group of asset issuers and plan to release the Wallet API specification by the end of June! If you’d like to join this beta group, please reach out to rosetta@coinbase.com.

Standard Format

Rather than defining a new set of types to construct transactions, the Wallet API uses the same set of types as the Node API. Just as you would read a stream of operations to a blockchain using the Node API, you can write a stream of operations to the blockchain using the Wallet API.

With the same expresiveness as on-chain actvity, this standardized format allows for the construction of complex transactions with a general abstraction. Feasibly, you could take the operations observed on-chain using the Node API and construct a new transaction using them (after changing the fields).

Naturally, it is not possible to fully specify everything that will occur in a transaction in many cases (especially in blockchains with invoked events) but it is still possible to deterministically specify intent. Specifying a transfer with a given fee is strightforward enough but specifying a complicated contract invocation is not possible. There is an expectation that what is observed on-chain using the Node API will be a superset of what was provided during construction (not necessarily a strict superset because sometimes it is possible to fully specify a transaction).

It is up to the implementer to responsibly error when a request may lead to non-deterministic transaction construction. One of the largest efforts of the automated testing currently under development is to test this edge case extensively.

Stateless Execution

Wallet API implementations must not keep any state. For example, Wallet API implementations must not assume that they can persist data to help with transaction construction between calls. Each invocation of a function in the Wallet API will be a fresh invocation in a new execution environment (all information needed in later calls must be confined to the responses).

Completely Offline

Wallet API implementations will be expected to run in a completely offline environment. That being said, many blockchains require dynamic information to construct valid transactions (i.e. account nonce or recent block hash). Any metadata required for transaction construction can be retrieved by creating a request that must be made to the /construction/metadata endpoint in the Node API. This explicit connectivity boundary allows for comprehensive auditing of all communication that occurs during transaction construction.

It is likely that developers in the community will build on top of these low level constructs to provide tooling that performs online construction (hiding this metadata fetch) while retaining the ability to construct transaction with the Rosetta operations.

Detached Key Generation and Transaction Signing

The Wallet API exclusively supports detached key management (i.e. key generation and signing). At a high level, this means that Wallet API implementations provide a series of payloads to sign during construction instead of signing transactions directly with some provided key. It is up to the the user of the Wallet API implementation to return a correctly formatted signature to the implementation (the format of each signature type is explicitly specified).

It is likely that developers in the community will build modules that allow for signing these Rosetta-based payloads in many languages (especially for mobile wallet support). This would allow for a WalletLink-like experience for any blockchain (not just for web3-compatible ones).

If you implement one of these signing modules, please reach out to rosetta@coinbase.com so we can feature your work on the site.