Whirlpool primary sources
Reviewed: 2026-05-15 UTC
Official product page
- https://samouraiwallet.com/whirlpool
- Best concise current framing of Whirlpool as Samourai’s CoinJoin implementation.
- Used to confirm that Whirlpool is presented as a privacy tool for coordinated Bitcoin mixing, that it emphasizes breaking deterministic input/output links, and that repeated mixing rounds are part of the public-facing privacy model.
Official non-custody explainer
- https://samouraiwallet.com/whirlpool/non-custody
- Best concise source for the trust model.
- Used to confirm that Whirlpool is explicitly framed as non-custodial, that participants sign locally, that the coordinator only organizes the round, and that users retain control of private keys throughout the process.
Reference implementation repository / overview
- https://github.com/Samourai-Wallet/Whirlpool
- https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Samourai-Wallet/Whirlpool/whirlpool/README.md
- Best source for the implementation’s own architectural self-description.
- Used to confirm that Whirlpool is described as a fully modular CoinJoin implementation, that it is built on a heavily modified fork of ZeroLink, that it depends on a blinded coordinator server, and that Samourai shipped the system across GUI, CLI, API, and mobile-oriented integrations.
ZeroLink-derived theory document
- https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Samourai-Wallet/Whirlpool/whirlpool/THEORY.md
- Best source for the mechanism and privacy model beneath the marketing pages.
- Used to confirm the pre-mix / post-mix wallet split, the role of common denominations, the Chaumian CoinJoin workflow, the use of separate anonymity-network identities, the importance of transaction-chain hygiene after mixing, and Whirlpool’s place as a specific fork/evolution of ZeroLink rather than a generic CoinJoin brand.
Architecture note
- https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Samourai-Wallet/Whirlpool/whirlpool/ARCHITECTURE.md
- Best concise source for module decomposition.
- Used to confirm the server / client / protocol / CLI / GUI split and the explicit claim that the protocol layer mediates between client and server implementations.
Main takeaways from this pass
- Whirlpool is best understood as equal-denomination remix coordinator infrastructure rather than just a wallet feature.
- The main lower-layer split is pre-mix wallet preparation, coordinator-mediated Chaumian CoinJoin, and post-mix wallet discipline; privacy depends on all three, not the round alone.
- The blinded coordinator is a real but narrow control surface: it organizes rounds and message flow without taking custody or learning the intended input-output mapping under the intended design.
- Whirlpool adds a useful comparison point between JoinMarket’s market-based liquidity model and Wasabi/WabiSabi’s variable-amount credential model.