How to Leave Bitcoin In Your Will

People keep their cryptocurrency in a digital wallet, which can be either hardware or web-based. A bitcoin wallet has a public key and a private key that work together to give the wallet owner access. They enable the owner to initiate and sign transactions digitally, as well as provide proof of authentication. These details are required for you to consider bitcoin as an asset, albeit a digital asset. The Times has shown that the world is going digital, so who are we to exclude a digital asset from our will?

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This brings us to the second topic of the day: WILL. But first, let me welcome you to the twenty-first century, where anything is possible if you believe it. A will is a legal document that expresses a person's wishes regarding the distribution of their assets after death. It enables you to specify how your assets, such as bank accounts, real estate, and prized possessions, should be distributed. Property in a living trust cannot be included in your will because it is distributed to the beneficiaries and this is the exception. The law doesn't say you cannot include digital assets in your will, but with bitcoins and other cryptocurrencies, there's a clause.

Remember those keys we mentioned earlier? The ones that allow bitcoin owners to access their wallets? That's where the snag lies. You can find more info on this link

Unlike physical access to properties, which can be as simple as signing pieces of printed paper, it is impossible to access a person's cryptocurrency wallet without knowing the private key. This key should be kept very secret, but owners of these wallets who do not leave a contingency plan for when they die will lose their crypto forever. Let's get a better understanding of what these keys are and what they do before we tackle some of these contingency plans.

The terms "public key" and "private key" are defined.

A public key is a cryptographic code that allows users to receive cryptocurrency in their accounts. When sending bitcoin between peers, the public key is used to generate a public address, which serves as our account number.

A private key, like a password, is a unique string of alphanumeric numbers used in cryptography. To sign transactions and prove ownership of a blockchain address, private keys are used. The final control and ownership of cryptocurrency is represented by private keys. Money can be deposited into public addresses by anyone, but funds cannot be removed without the private key associated with that address.

With this explained, you can deduce that even if an individual is explicitly named in the will to inherit a person's cryptocurrency, even if you know that the cryptocurrency exists and you can see the bitcoins sitting in a crypto wallet, you cannot access them without the private key. As a result, the contingency plan.

Contingency Plan: How you can permit your next of kin to gain access to your bitcoin after you pass on

Buying and storing cryptocurrency at a cryptocurrency bank: Although a cryptocurrency bank can manage your keys on your behalf, you must still leave the crypto bank's and account's details with your next of kin.

Store your cryptocurrency online in a non-custodial multi-sig wallet (multi-sig wallet with no custodian): A non-custodian multi-sig wallet allows you to own and control your crypto currency's private keys, giving you complete control over your funds. The funds should not be accessible to the non-custodial wallet provider because he does not have access to the keys. They simply store users' private and public keys. You can sign up for cryptocurrency inheritance using a non-custodial multi-sig wallet. You will be given a beneficiary card to give to your next of kin, and they will be contacted in the event of your death to receive the funds on your behalf.

Hardware wallet: Keep your bitcoin in a hardware wallet with a copy of the wallet's private keys or the 12-word seed recovery phrase for the wallet, as well as step-by-step instructions on how to access the wallet in a safe deposit box.

Leave Instructions: Your will may not be a safe place to leave instructions about your keys and how to gain access to your crypto account, but if you trust your next of kin, you can disclose this information to them. However, it is still risky.

Unless you have had wealth passed down to you, it can be slow to accumulate assets and extra money. People who receive generational wealth have a significant financial advantage over those who do not. Now that you know how you can pass down the wealth you have accumulated with cryptocurrency, especially bitcoins, it is best you make use of these plans for your family and loved ones.

Isabella Humphrey

Update 17 October 2021