How to Pass On Cryptocurrency and Digital Assets to Your Family

Cryptocurrency has one unforgiving feature: lose the private key and it's gone for good. There's no bank to report it to and no support desk that can recover it. If something happens to you and no one else has the key, your BTC, ETH, and USDT stay locked on-chain forever. Satoshi Nakamoto's roughly 1.1 million BTC hasn't moved to this day—most likely because the private key was lost. Further reading: TimeWill's encryption scheme: how letters and passwords are protected separately.

Three Approaches to Inheritance, Compared

• Write it on paper — The most traditional method. But paper gets lost, soaked, or burned—and even if family finds it, they may not know what to do with it.
• Tell your family in person — Tell them the private key face to face. The problem: relationships can change. And those 12 seed-phrase words? Your family may not even copy them down correctly.
• Encrypt with heartbeat-triggered release — Store the private key encrypted in TimeWill and set a heartbeat check-in. If something happens to you, it's automatically released to the person you designate. No one can see it while you're fine; your family receives it when it matters. Of the three, this is the most dependable option.

What If Your Family Doesn't Understand Blockchain

This is the most practical question. Your spouse, parents, or children may have never even heard the word 'blockchain'—hand them a private key out of nowhere and they won't know what to do. In TimeWill, alongside the private key, you can write a step-by-step guide: who to ask for help, how to install a wallet, how to transfer funds. Your family just follows the guide and finds the right person to help; they don't have to figure it out themselves.

Don't Forget the Exchange Accounts

Many people don't keep their coins in a wallet—they're on Binance, OKX, or Coinbase. Exchange accounts are even trickier than private keys: they need an email, SMS verification, Google Authenticator 2FA, and sometimes KYC. In TimeWill, write out the entire login flow: account, password, GA backup codes, bound phone number, and frequently used withdrawal addresses. Lay it all out at once so your family doesn't have to guess.

It's Not Just Crypto—All Digital Assets

• Domain names — Account credentials and transfer codes for GoDaddy and Namecheap. A good domain can be worth more than ETH.
• Game accounts — Steam, Honor of Kings. Whatever they're worth, at least don't let thousands of hours of progress go to waste.
• Cloud storage — Photos, files, and notes in iCloud or Baidu Netdisk. These mean more to your family than you might think.
• Subscriptions — Netflix, YouTube Premium, ChatGPT Plus—at least help your family cancel them.

Is There Tax on Inheriting Crypto Assets

Mainland China does not yet have clear tax regulations on the legal status of cryptocurrency, but this may change in the future. Plan ahead and store your private keys and operation guide encrypted, so you can adapt flexibly as policies shift. For specific tax questions, consult a qualified tax professional.

What If the Exchange Account Gets Frozen

Yes, this is a real risk. If an exchange suspects the account is being operated by someone other than you (for instance, your family logging in with your password), it may freeze the account. Make it clear in your guide: have your family contact the crypto-savvy friend you designate for help, rather than trying random passwords themselves.

Can a Multi-Signature Wallet Solve the Inheritance Problem

Social recovery wallets (such as Argent) or multi-signature setups are technical solutions, but the premise is that your family knows how to operate them. For most ordinary households, storing the private key encrypted plus a clear operation guide for your family remains the most practical approach today. Multi-signature can serve as an advanced supplement.