Self-custodied crypto has a specific failure mode that custodial accounts do not: if nobody else can reach the keys, the funds are gone when you are. Inheritance closes that without weakening custody while you are alive.
The silence period is the whole safety mechanism. Long enough that a holiday or a lost phone cannot trigger it, short enough to be useful.
Configure inheritance
- 1
Open Settings → Recovery → Inheritance.
- 2
Nominate your heirs.
- 3
Set the silence period.
Pick a length you are confident you will never accidentally exceed. Months, not days.
- 4
Keep check-ins passive by simply using the app.
Normal activity counts as a check-in. There is no separate ritual to remember.
- 5
Make sure your heirs know a plan exists, and how the passphrase reaches them.
The passphrase handoff is deliberately out-of-band — it is not stored with the plan. An heir who cannot obtain it cannot complete a claim.
- 6
Review the plan when your circumstances change.
Good to know
- Nothing is transferred, escrowed or restricted while the plan is dormant. It is a conditional path, not a lock.
- A claim in progress is visible to you and can be stopped, which is what prevents a premature or malicious claim.
- This is a technical mechanism, not legal advice. How it interacts with a will or estate law in your jurisdiction is a question for a professional there.
Frequently asked
No. A claim cannot begin until the full silence period has elapsed with no activity, and you are notified and can cancel if one starts.
No. The server stores ciphertext, and the passphrase is handled out-of-band. There is no point at which we could complete a claim ourselves.
Check in, or extend the silence period. Any normal use of the app resets the clock, and you are warned as the deadline approaches rather than being surprised by it.
Get SpendTheBits
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