Importing an Extended Private Key into Mycelium
As an Electrum HD user, you have probably encountered situations where you need to generate or restore private keys. In some cases, you may want to use an Extended Private Key instead of the default Derived Private Key. This is especially useful when working with certain types of cryptocurrencies or when you need more control over your private keys.
In this article, we will explain the process of importing an Extended Private Key into Mycelium.
What is an Extended Private Key?
An Extended Private Key is a type of private key that includes multiple layers of encryption. It is designed to be more secure and flexible than traditional Derived Private Keys. An Extended Private Key can be used as both a master key and a secondary key, making it easier to manage your cryptocurrency funds.
Step 1: Generate an Extended Private Key for Electrum HD
To generate an extended private key for your Electrum HD wallet, you need to follow these steps:
- Open Electrum HD on your computer.
- Go to the “File” menu and select “Wallet Info.”
- Click the “Private Keys” tab.
- Click the “Edit Private Key” button next to the private key you want to edit.
- In the “Extended Private Key” field, enter the following format: “m/2”/0
- “m”: the unencrypted primary address of your Electrum HD wallet.
- “2”: the number of primary keys (1 for standard, 2 for extended).
/: secondary addresses separated by slashes. In this case, we set it to “/”, which means that the extended private key is the root of the empty string.
Example: “m/2”/0”.
- Click “Apply”, then “OK”.
Step 2: Import the extended private key into Mycelium
To import the generated extended private key into Mycelium, follow these steps:
- Go to the [Mycelium website] ( and log in using your account credentials.
- Click on “Wallet” in the top navigation menu.
- Select “Add New Wallet”.
- Select “Electrum HD” from the list of supported wallets.
- Follow the instructions to import your Electrum HD private key.
- In the “Private Key” field, enter the extended private key “m/2”/0” that we generated earlier.
Tips and Precautions
- Make sure you also exported the original private key from your Electrum HD wallet.
- Please note that importing an extended private key into Mycelium may require additional steps or configuration to ensure proper operation.
- Please note that using an extended private key may provide more flexibility, but it also means you are managing multiple layers of encryption.
After following these steps, you will be able to successfully import an extended private key from Electrum HD to Mycelium. If you have any problems or have more questions, feel free to ask!