Kresus Offers Crypto Inheritance Without Key Sharing for $99/Year

Kresus, a self-custody crypto wallet provider, launched a service called Kresus Inheritance that lets users name beneficiaries for their digital assets without handing over private keys. The service costs $99 per year and is available now within the Kresus wallet.

The offering addresses a gap in crypto estate planning. Self-custody wallets give users direct control over their holdings. Most lack the basic succession tools found in traditional banking, such as beneficiary designations or recovery processes. Kresus said existing alternatives for crypto inheritance often require users to store sensitive information, which can create security risks.

Kresus Inheritance works through the wallet interface. Users set up a beneficiary who can claim the assets after a predefined period of inactivity or upon the user's death. The exact mechanism does not require sharing seed phrases or private keys. The company described it as a way to pass digital assets without complex legal steps.

The service reflects a growing awareness that crypto's self-custody model is secure during the user's lifetime. It can become a liability after death. Without a plan, assets held in self-custody wallets may be lost permanently or become inaccessible to heirs. Bitcoin (BTC) holders face the same challenge. Individual solutions vary from multi-signature setups to traditional wills that include seed phrase instructions.

Other crypto firms have explored inheritance features. Kresus is one of the first to integrate the function directly into a self-custody wallet, the company said. The approach avoids the need for third-party custody or legal documentation. The $99 annual fee covers the service regardless of the asset value stored.

The broader crypto market has seen increasing demand for estate planning tools. The asset class is maturing and early adopters are aging. Regulators have not yet imposed specific rules for crypto inheritance, leaving the field open to private solutions. Kresus Inheritance is available to existing Kresus wallet users with no additional hardware or software required.

Kresus said the inheritance gap is especially acute for self-custody users who want to keep their assets out of exchanges. They still need to ensure heirs can access them. Traditional finance offers beneficiary designations on accounts. Crypto wallets generally do not. The company said its service mimics that function while preserving the security guarantees of self-custody. The timing coincides with a broader push for regulatory clarity, though no direct rulemaking for inheritance services is underway. Kresus, founded in 2019, focuses on non-custodial storage and has not disclosed how many users have enrolled in the new service.