Bitkey Inheritance: Pass on Your Bitcoin Safely and Easily

Inheritance allows you to designate a beneficiary of your Bitkey to ensure your bitcoin stays in good hands for years to come.

Bitkey, a hardware wallet designed to simplify bitcoin self-custody, has announced the upcoming launch of Inheritance, a new feature that will allow users to designate a beneficiary for their bitcoin. This feature is set to be rolled out in December and will become available to all Bitkey customers by January 2025.

With Inheritance, users can ensure that their bitcoin will be passed on to a trusted individual, even after their passing. This capability is especially crucial for bitcoin holders who wish to safeguard their digital assets for future generations.

To set up Inheritance, users can simply designate a beneficiary within the Bitkey app. This beneficiary can be easily updated or removed as needed. Notably, beneficiaries will not have access to information regarding the bitcoin balance in the benefactor's Bitkey.

Once a beneficiary initiates an inheritance claim, a six-month waiting period will commence. This measure is in place to prevent accidental or fraudulent claims. During this period, Bitkey will send regular alerts and notifications to the wallet owner, informing them of the claim. The wallet owner has the authority to cancel the claim at any time, thus retaining complete control over their funds.

Upon completion of the waiting period, the beneficiary will be notified that the funds are available for transfer to their Bitkey wallet, completing the inheritance process.

Benefits of Inheritance for Bitkey Customers:

Self-custodial bitcoin holding provides users with unmatched control over their funds, ensuring that no third party can access or handle them. While this offers an extra layer of protection, it also comes with the responsibility of having a plan in place for the future. Without such a plan, funds may become inaccessible after the owner's passing. Inheritance solves this issue, providing peace of mind knowing that an investment will continue to be cared for by a designated loved one.

Bitkey is renowned for its user-friendly design, eliminating the need for memorizing lengthy seed phrases or spending hours setting up a wallet. Inheritance seamlessly extends this experience to beneficiaries, ensuring they can easily access, protect, and manage their inheritance without the hassle of complicated legal documents.

Throughout the inheritance process, Bitkey maintains the utmost privacy and control for its customers. Beneficiaries are unable to view or access the benefactor's Bitkey wallet. Moreover, wallet owners retain complete control, including the ability to change their beneficiary at any time. The six-month waiting period for claims serves as an additional safeguard against accidental or fraudulent claims. Notably, no personal information is ever required in this procedure.

Looking ahead, Bitkey plans to expand the Inheritance feature to include support for multiple beneficiaries and transfers to external wallets. The team remains committed to fulfilling Bitkey's core promise of making bitcoin self-custody both easy to use and difficult to lose.