SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA – Kresus has introduced Kresus Inheritance, a new subscription service that allows self-custody wallet users to create a succession plan for their cryptocurrency holdings without sharing private keys or relying on traditional recovery methods.
The feature addresses one of self-custody’s longstanding challenges: ensuring digital assets can be transferred to beneficiaries if the wallet owner dies or becomes permanently inactive. While self-custody gives users complete control over their assets, it has historically offered few built-in solutions for inheritance or estate planning.
Existing approaches often require users to expose sensitive information or depend on costly legal processes. Written seed phrases can be discovered, shared private keys can be misused, and traditional estate planning may not provide a practical solution for managing digital assets.
“Too much digital wealth has already been lost because there was no plan for what happens next,” said Trevor Traina, Founder and CEO of Kresus. “Self-custody shouldn’t mean your assets disappear if something happens to you. With Kresus Inheritance, we’re giving users a secure and affordable way to protect their legacy and ensure the wealth they’ve built can be passed on to the next generation.”
Available for $99.99 per year, Kresus Inheritance is integrated directly into the Kresus wallet. Users can designate a beneficiary who becomes eligible to access the wallet only after a predefined inactivity period has elapsed. Throughout that time, users maintain full control of their assets, and private keys are never shared as part of the succession process. Kresus does not take custody of customer assets, and ownership remains with the wallet holder unless the specified inactivity period expires and the inheritance process is initiated.
The launch comes as cryptocurrency ownership continues to expand. According to a Harris Poll study, approximately 55 million U.S. adults, representing 21% of the population, now own cryptocurrency. At the same time, research from the Cremation Institute found that 89% of crypto investors are concerned about what will happen to their digital assets after death.
Kresus Inheritance is intended to address that gap by incorporating legacy planning directly into the wallet experience. For example, a user holding $50,000 in bitcoin can designate a spouse or adult child as a beneficiary, while ensuring they have no access to the assets unless a verified succession event takes place.
The new service expands Kresus’s existing wallet and infrastructure offerings, which serve millions of self-custody users through the Kresus Wallet, mini-app experiences, and enterprise products. It also reflects the company’s broader strategy of extending its wallet beyond asset storage by introducing tools designed to support long-term digital wealth management.