It's estimated that around a fifth of all Bitcoin that will ever exist is already lost — not stolen, just stranded. Wallets whose owners died, or forgot, or never told anyone the keys existed. The technology worked perfectly. The succession plan didn't.
If you hold any crypto, the question isn't whether your wallet is secure today. It's whether the right person could ever reach it if you couldn't. And the way most people try to solve that quietly creates a much bigger risk.
Never write your seed phrase into an app — including ours
Your 12 or 24-word recovery phrase is full, irreversible access on its own. Anyone who reads it can empty the wallet in seconds. So the rule is simple: the seed phrase belongs on steel or paper, in a safe — never typed into any online service. Testamently will actively warn you if you try.
Store the half that’s useless on its own
Instead of the keys, record the part that only helps someone who already has the physical wallet:
- The device PIN for your hardware wallet
- Where the hardware wallet itself is kept (“the Ledger is in the home safe”)
- Where the steel backup plate lives — without copying what's on it
- Which exchange or custodian holds the rest, so nothing is missed
On its own, that information unlocks nothing — it's worthless to anyone who doesn't already have your wallet at home. But to the person you leave it to, it's the difference between a smooth recovery and a fortune lost forever.
Released only if your check-ins stop
Assign the record to someone you trust. They confirm once, then see nothing — until your check-ins stop for your chosen window, or a death certificate is verified. Never a moment before. That's the whole idea: you hold the wallet, we hold the harmless half, and the two only ever meet when they're truly needed.