Research overview + April 2026 update
by Alien Investor
#Bitcoin #Privacy #CoinJoin #Wasabi #WabiSabi #SelfCustody #OpenSource #NoKYC
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๐ Transparency: This article was my original research overview โ written before I had used Wasabi myself. Since then I have run CoinJoin on Tails with Wasabi and published detailed hands-on articles (linked at the bottom). This overview remains as a conceptual reference โ the technical fundamentals are still accurate. No financial or legal advice.
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1) What is Wasabi Wallet?
Wasabi is an open-source Bitcoin wallet for desktop, focused on privacy. It's non-custodial โ you hold your private keys yourself. The focus is on two layers:
Network privacy: Traffic routes through Tor by default (IP obfuscation). On-chain privacy: CoinJoin, to make input/output linkage harder.
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2) How CoinJoin works in Wasabi (in rough terms)
CoinJoin means: multiple participants build a single Bitcoin transaction together. Outside observers can no longer clearly tell which output belongs to which input. Wasabi uses the WabiSabi approach (credential-based).
Simplified: you register inputs, receive anonymous proofs (credentials), and register outputs later through a separate path. The documentation describes how the "input side" and the "output side" (often explained as "Alice" and "Bob") run over separated communication streams โ to make trivial correlation harder.
"CoinJoin is not invisibility. It's a tool that makes analysis harder โ and after that, discipline is mandatory."
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3) Key terms (so you don't fall for marketing)
Pseudonymous vs. anonymous โ Bitcoin is public. Without extra measures, you are surprisingly analyzable. UTXO thinking โ Privacy is "which coin is being spent for what?", not "account balance". Coin Control โ Deliberately selecting and separating UTXOs. That's the foundation of any privacy strategy. Heuristics โ Analysts use patterns (merge, change, timing, reuse). CoinJoin is an opponent โ not a cure-all.
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4) "Setup" โ as a mental model, not a how-to
When you research the topic, the same points come up almost every time. For a full step-by-step guide from personal experience: see the hands-on articles linked at the bottom.
Check the source โ Download only from the official site or GitHub. Verify signatures/hashes. Back up cleanly โ Write the seed down offline, store it safely, use a strong password. Plan separation โ Decide in advance which coins you actually want to CoinJoin and which you don't. Test, don't believe โ Small amounts first, understand the behavior, then scale.
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5) Does Wasabi make Bitcoin "anonymous"?
No. Bitcoin is fundamentally pseudonymous โ the blockchain is public.
CoinJoin can make input-to-output linkage much harder. But the most common failure is not "the wallet", it's the behavior afterwards:
UTXO merge โ spending multiple separated coins together later. Address reuse โ using the same address again. KYC feedback loop โ mixing private UTXOs back into KYC flows. Predictable patterns โ timing, amounts, "always the same behavior".
If you throw everything back together after the CoinJoin, the CoinJoin was just an expensive detour.
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6) The 2024 coordinator shutdown: why it matters
The well-known default coordinator (zkSNACKs) shut down its CoinJoin service on June 1, 2024. Wasabi continues to work as a wallet, but CoinJoin since then depends on which coordinator you use or configure.
This matters because a coordinator can set rules and parameters (fees, participation conditions, rejection of certain UTXOs). CoinJoin is a protocol โ but coordinator policy is still a factor.
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โก April 2026 Update: CoinJoin lives on
The zkSNACKs shutdown was not the end of CoinJoin โ only the end of a single coordinator. The WabiSabi protocol is open and still alive.
Third-party coordinators: Wasabi Wallet now actively instructs users to configure a "Third-Party Coordination Service Provider." The ecosystem has decentralized โ several independent WabiSabi-compatible coordinators exist.
GingerWallet: A fork of Wasabi Wallet that emerged after the zkSNACKs shutdown, with its own CoinJoin coordination. Independent project, independent dev team, same WabiSabi protocol.
Wasabi is actively developed: Version 2.7.2 was released in November 2025. New features include Silent Payments (unlinkable static addresses) and improved Coin Control.
"Multi-Party Collaborative Transactions" instead of "CoinJoin": Wasabi has rebranded the feature. You can hide payment origins, batch payments to save on miner fees, and consolidate self-spends โ all through the WabiSabi protocol.
Tor integration: All traffic routes through Tor. Compact Block Filters for blockchain sync โ no central server knows your balance.
Bottom line: CoinJoin is not dead. It became more decentralized. But you now have to choose a coordinator yourself โ that's more responsibility, not less privacy.
What that means in practice:
You need to research which coordinator you trust. You need to verify their policies (fees, UTXO filtering, logging). You need to understand that a coordinator sees the transaction being built โ even if WabiSabi limits what they can learn.
More freedom, more responsibility. Same deal as self-custody.
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7) Practical friction: exchanges, banks, "compliance"
CoinJoin is technically a cooperative transaction. Still, reality can bite: exchanges and banks may block deposits coming from a CoinJoin context or demand source-of-funds proof. That's not "good", but it's the world we live in.
If you want to test: start small and keep your flows cleanly separated. If you want to move back into the "KYC world" later: expect questions. If you want privacy: accept that privacy can be uncomfortable.
๐ Warning: "Mixing" can be flagged as money laundering risk
CoinJoin is quickly labeled as a money laundering indicator or "mixing" by some authorities, banks, and exchanges. That doesn't automatically mean you're doing something illegal โ but it can lead to questions, blocked deposits, account freezes, or "source of funds" requests. Be aware of this reality and research the legal situation in your country before experimenting.
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Alien verdict
Wasabi shows: privacy isn't a button, it's a behavior. CoinJoin can help โ but only if you take separation and coin control seriously. I have since used Wasabi myself on Tails โ the full hands-on report is in the linked articles below.
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[Further Reading] Full walkthrough (setup to 100% Privacy Progress): alien-investor.org/en/coinjoin-tails-praxis.html Technical setup guide (Tails, Tor, coordinator): alien-investor.org/en/wasabi-tails-guide.html The concept โ fungibility & anonymity set: alien-investor.org/en/coinjoin-fungibility.html
"Trust no one โ manage your finances yourself."
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Original article (German, with more context on the blog)
๐ alien-investor.org/wasabi-wallet-research-transparent.html
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Tools for Sovereign Individuals (Affiliates โ Support at No Extra Cost)
Tools I use myself โ for Bitcoin self-custody and digital sovereignty:
๐ฅ Buy Bitcoin in Europe โ 21bitcoin: Bitcoin-only app from Europe, ideal for DCA and stacking sats regularly โ no shitcoins. Use code ALIENINVESTOR for a permanent 0.2 percentage point fee reduction on instant and savings plan purchases. ๐ alien-investor.org/21bitcoin
โฟ BitBox Self-Custody: Hardware wallet instead of exchange account. I use the BitBox โ available as BitBox02 and the new BitBox for iPhone (Nova). Use code ALIENINVESTOR for 5% off. ๐ alien-investor.org/bitbox
๐ก๏ธ Privacy & Mail: For email, VPN, and cloud I use Proton โ privacy-first, no Big Tech dependency. ๐ alien-investor.org/proton
Note: Some links are affiliate links. Using them supports my work at no extra cost to you. Thanks!
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Money, power, Bitcoin โ and OPSEC. I write about financial sovereignty, privacy, and cybersecurity in a world built on control. More at alien-investor.org ๐ฝ