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DocumentationGetting StartedMulti-sig Accounts

Multi-sig Accounts

A multi-sig (or multi-signature) account is a special account that requires multiple signatures to sign an extrinsic. Multi-sig accounts significantly enhance security and distribute control of the account. In this section, you will learn how to create and use a multi-sig wallet on Analog Timechain.

Note:

Multi-sig account addresses are deterministic, meaning you can always calculate the address of a multi-sig account by knowing the account’s members and threshold. Since the multi-sig is stored on-chain, you cannot modify it after creation. This means changes to members or the threshold are impossible. Instead, you must dissolve the existing multi-sig and create a new one.

How to create a multi-sig account

Suppose Alice, Bob, and Charlie want to create a 2-of-3 multi-sig account to manage their funds jointly. The following steps demonstrate how to proceed.

Add Contacts

  1. Launch Polkadot.Js Apps by visiting https://polkadot.js.org/apps/?rpc=wss%3A%2F%2Frpc.timechain.analog.one#/explorer 
  2. Navigate to “Accounts”-> ”Address book.”
  3. Click "+Add Contact" to create accounts you want to include in the multi-sig wallet. In this example, we’ll add Alice’s, Bob’s, and Charlie’s addresses and give their contact names each time clicking “Save.”
  4. You should be able to see the accounts created as shown here:

Create a new multi-sig wallet

  1. Navigate to “Accounts”-> “+Multisig”

  1. From the “Available Signatories” column, move the accounts you want to include in the multi-sig wallet to the “Selected Signatories” column. In this case, we’ll include all the three accounts.
  2. Enter the threshold. In this case, we’ll add a threshold of 2, meaning a minimum of 2 signatories are required to sign an extrinsic.
  3. Finally, enter the name of the multi-sig account and click on the “Create” button.
  4. Congratulations! You have just created a multi-sig account. You can see the multi-sig account on the Accounts page as shown here:

How to use a multi-sig account

Now that you’ve set up the multi-signature wallet, you can initiate a multi-signature call from one of its members (let's say Alice). In this example, we’ll transfer some ANLOG from the multi-sig account to another member, say Bob.

Note that a wallet member (e.g., Alice) must first make a deposit to initiate a multi-signature call. The deposit is locked until the call is executed and serves as a fee for the storage space it takes up on the blockchain. This mechanism discourages users from setting up multi-sig calls that are never executed. The deposit is held within the initiator’s account.

The network determines the deposit value using the formula:

deposit = depositBase + (threshold * depositFactor)

The constants depositBaseand depositFactor are predefined parameters established within the chain’s runtime environment. For more details about Substrate multi-sig accounts, check out this documentation .

Now that the basics are out of the way, let's create a multi-sig call from the multi-sig account. Suppose Alice wants to transfer 0.1 ANLOG from a multi-sig wallet to Bob’s account. Here's how you'll proceed:

  1. Navigate to the “Accounts”-> “Transfer”  page.
  2. Select your multi-sig wallet. In this case, we’ll select Demo_Wallet.
  3. Navigate to the “send to address” pallet and then choose Bob.
  4. Enter the amount you wish to transfer. In this case, we’ll enter 0.1 ANLOG.
  5. Next, click the “Make Transfer” link to initiate the transfer process. Here's what you should see:

In the screen that appears, you should be able to see:

  • The sender account. In this case, the Demo_Wallet
  • The signatory that is signing the extrinsic. In this case, it is Alice.
  • The "multi-sig call data," which you’ll need to save for later, as Bob and Charlie will need it to approve the extrinsic.
  1. Now copy the "multisig call data" and share it with Bob and Charlie. Next, click “Sign and Submit.”
  2. Upon signing the extrinsic, a multisig call is triggered, reserving some deposit (see link for more details in Alice’s account. An icon should appear next to the multisig account, signifying a pending approval for this multi-sig call.
  3. Bob or Charlie can now hover over the icon and click “View pending approvals” to approve the transaction. Since this call is a 2-of-3 multi-sig, only one of them is needed to approve the transaction. However, the signatory providing the final approval must paste Alice’s “multisig call data” in step 6 to finalize the call.

Note:

Before signing the transaction, the final signatory must verify that what they are signing is accurate and that Alice didn’t make a mistake in sharing “multisig call data” with them.

Here are steps to verify the“multisig call data”:

  1. Navigate to “Developer” -> “Extrinsics .”
  2. Locate the “Decode” tab and paste the “multisig call data" in the text box that appears. This should display exactly what the extrinsic is from the multi-sig account.
Supported WalletsAnalog Testnet Faucet