Backup and recovery systems and methods for cryptowallets

A method of establishing electronic access recovery credentials for a cryptocurrency wallet on a hardware wallet device, the method comprising:

• setting, on the hardware wallet device, a first number, N, of secret shares to be generated based on a seed value;
• setting, on the hardware wallet device, a second number, M, less than or equal to N, of secret shares required to recover a seed value;
• applying, by the hardware wallet device, a first secret sharing technique to generate the first number, N, of the secret shares from the seed value;
• communicating, by the hardware wallet device, with an attached removable authentication device;
• receiving, from a user input component of the hardware wallet device, a PIN sequence;
• setting, by the hardware wallet device, a PIN stored on the removable authentication device to be the PIN sequence;
• storing, by the hardware wallet device, a first secret share of the first number, N, of secret shares of the hardware wallet device on the remote authentication device having the PIN sequence;
• and
• displaying a message on a user output component of the hardware wallet device instructing a user to physically attach one or more additional removable authentication device to the hardware wallet device in electronic communication with the hardware wallet device.

A hardware wallet device to provide an electronically accessible cryptocurrency wallet, comprising:

• a user input component configured to receive a personal identification number (PIN) sequence from a user;
• a removable authentication device reader configured to physically attach to a physically attachable removable authentication device containing a stored PIN and connect the removable authentication device in electrical communication to a processor;
• the processor, wherein the processor is configured to communicate with the removable authentication device to cause the removable authentication device to compare the PIN sequence to the stored PIN, wherein the processor is further configured to retrieve a secret share from the removable authentication device in response to the PIN sequence matching the stored PIN;
• a digital storage unit configured to store the secret share retrieved from the removable authentication device,
• wherein the processor is further configured to:
• determine if a number of stored secret shares on the hardware wallet device meets or exceeds a first threshold;
• and
• (i) in response to the number of stored secret shares on the digital storage unit of the hardware wallet device meeting or exceeding the first threshold, applying a first secrets sharing technique to the stored secret shares on the digital storage unit to recover a seed value of the hardware wallet device and storing the recovered seed value on the digital storage unit;
• and
• (ii) in response to the number of stored secret shares on the digital storage unit not meeting and not exceeding the first threshold, displaying a message on a user output component of the hardware wallet device instructing a user to physically attach one or more additional removable authentication device to the hardware wallet device and in electronic communication with the hardware wallet device.