Prediction: Some people will die with their #Bitcoin private keys, leaving no inheritance and knowing their pro-rata contribution to humanity.
Discussion
No doubt. I was pleased to the Nunchuk Wallet has an integrated inheritance system so you can setup a plan that will allow your chosen heirs to access funds you have earmarked for them. It will prevent the very issue you describe.
Yes, inheritance plans are a very important part of the Bitcoin journey, but this post is about people who will knowingly die with their private keys by choice.
Those coins will effectively be lost. Which I think is a shame for the Bitcoin ecosystem. Because we've got finite amount of coins, and coins that are lost have an impact on the total number of coins in circulation. I hope people who choose to die without making arrangements for their coins are few.
Yep! That's why we have banks and brokerage firms to custody our most valuable possessions. Self-custody of more than about $20,000 worth of anything is reckless. Just like I would never keep that much actual cash at home or bars of gold at home. I don't keep stock certificates on my computer.
People need to let it go about having their bitcoin confiscated (in the US). It's a problem in certain other countries and that's where Bitcoin shines.