I have a soft spot for the browser Brave because it's what got me into crypto in the first place. I was working in publishing and heard about this new model where users could earn from advertisers and use it to reward publishers directly. I downloaded Brave, earned my first BAT, and the rest is history.

But Brave has always had one big limitation: to receive your BAT, you must connect it to a custodial service like Uphold or Gemini. And as we all know, 'not your keys, not your crypto'.

Now it has taken a step towards remedying this by allowing its users to tip publishers ('Brave Creators') on chain, either via the Ethereum or Solana network. The Creators receive the tip (AKA 'contribution') in their Brave wallet, which is a non-custodial wallet. Accepted currencies are ETH (on Ethereum), SOL (on Solana), or BAT (on either network):

If you're a Brave Creator and want to take advantage of this, you'll need to add your Ethereum and/or Solana address to your Brave Creators account:

The easiest way to do it seems to be:

1. Create your Brave wallet first
2. Make sure it is your default wallet in Brave
3. Log into Brave Creators
4. Click to 'Add a new crypto address'
5. Log in to Brave Wallet when it pops up
6. Click on the relevant account to add it to Brave (you'll be prompted to 'Connect' and then sign)

After that, when a Brave user visits your site, clicks on the 'Rewards' icon and selects 'Send contribution', they'll have the option to 'Use Web3 Wallet':

They can then select the amount and network to use:

OK, this isn't a perfect solution. As a Creator, I'd prefer to be given a choice of wallets - though I can see why Brave has prioritised their own wallet!

But it's a great step forwards for anyone who cares about self-custody. And it is only the first step. Rolling out next, Brave users will be able to receive their BAT payouts in a self-custody wallet too...