DON'T LET YOUR BITCOIN DIE WITH YOU 💀 ⚰️
Yea look, nobody likes to admit it but we all have to die one day.
As I've been talking to people about their self custody lately - both Casa members and not - I hear the same thing over and over.
"What happens if I die?"
Many people feel pretty good about their bitcoin security for themselves. But their family members often have no idea how to use this stuff. Hardware wallet? Seed phrase stamped on metal? Shamir's secret sharing backups using SD cards, a passphrase, and a treasure hunt through the backyard with a shovel? 😵
We're solving that problem for all Casa members, starting today with Casa Inheritance. A key design principle we kept while building this was to make it as simple as possible for Recipients (your family members that will receive your bitcoin if you pass), while maintaining Casa-level security. An estate transfer is already a stressful time for family, and it can become even more stressful if you add in a crazy treasure hunt to access a fortune in bitcoin.
For our basic 3 key vaults, we wanted it to be as easy as using the app. No metal plates, no need to use a hardware wallet, no magic passwords you have to keep track of or else risk messing up the asset transfer. Simplicity is security.
So how does it work, in detail?
A Vault Owner (Casa member) designates a Recipient (their family or friend) in the Casa app. The Recipient receives an invite to create a free Casa account. The Recipient scans a QR code provided by the Vault Owner, which contains an encrypted version of the owner's mobile key. This encrypted key is only able to be imported by the Recipient's Casa account, and the Recipient can't initially use it or see the vault balance.
If the Vault Owner passes away, the Recipient can request access to the vault in their Casa app. This starts a 6 month timer, and sends a ton of notifications every month to the owner. If the owner is still alive, they can reject the request in app. If they are not, the timer will run out. When it does, the Recipient will be able to use the shared mobile key and the request a signature from the Casa Recovery Key for the shared vault. This gives them 2 out of 3 signatures, enough to access the assets.
For 5 key vault users, one hardware key is shared with the Recipient. This small increase in friction for Recipients is often worth it for the increased security and resilience of a 5 key vault for larger holdings.
To summarize now that you have the details:
1. Share keys and vault access during setup
2. 6 month timelock to ensure no malicious theft
3. Use shared keys and Casa key to access assets
Full setup takes less than 5 minutes.
Inheritance is one of the biggest problems in self custody today. If you've hodled through years of painful bear markets, you owe it to yourself and your family to not let the reward for that patience go to zero because you didn't have a plan - and we're here to make that easy.
Like I said earlier this week - Casa is going after major problems in self-custody this year. Check this one off the list ✅. Next one coming sooner than you think 🔥.
Learn more: casa.io/inheritance
nneuman / Nick Neuman
npub1e2…xflnt
2024-03-28 15:07:27
Author Public Key
npub1e2wr9uhjheywu9eprtxmdkshj8zdr92s8z5t9wkny650rnyp35mskxflntPublished at
2024-03-28 15:07:27Event JSON
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"content": "DON'T LET YOUR BITCOIN DIE WITH YOU 💀 ⚰️\n\nYea look, nobody likes to admit it but we all have to die one day. \n\nAs I've been talking to people about their self custody lately - both Casa members and not - I hear the same thing over and over.\n\n\"What happens if I die?\"\n\nMany people feel pretty good about their bitcoin security for themselves. But their family members often have no idea how to use this stuff. Hardware wallet? Seed phrase stamped on metal? Shamir's secret sharing backups using SD cards, a passphrase, and a treasure hunt through the backyard with a shovel? 😵\n\nWe're solving that problem for all Casa members, starting today with Casa Inheritance. A key design principle we kept while building this was to make it as simple as possible for Recipients (your family members that will receive your bitcoin if you pass), while maintaining Casa-level security. An estate transfer is already a stressful time for family, and it can become even more stressful if you add in a crazy treasure hunt to access a fortune in bitcoin.\n\nFor our basic 3 key vaults, we wanted it to be as easy as using the app. No metal plates, no need to use a hardware wallet, no magic passwords you have to keep track of or else risk messing up the asset transfer. Simplicity is security.\n\nSo how does it work, in detail?\n\nA Vault Owner (Casa member) designates a Recipient (their family or friend) in the Casa app. The Recipient receives an invite to create a free Casa account. The Recipient scans a QR code provided by the Vault Owner, which contains an encrypted version of the owner's mobile key. This encrypted key is only able to be imported by the Recipient's Casa account, and the Recipient can't initially use it or see the vault balance.\n\nIf the Vault Owner passes away, the Recipient can request access to the vault in their Casa app. This starts a 6 month timer, and sends a ton of notifications every month to the owner. If the owner is still alive, they can reject the request in app. If they are not, the timer will run out. When it does, the Recipient will be able to use the shared mobile key and the request a signature from the Casa Recovery Key for the shared vault. This gives them 2 out of 3 signatures, enough to access the assets.\n\nFor 5 key vault users, one hardware key is shared with the Recipient. This small increase in friction for Recipients is often worth it for the increased security and resilience of a 5 key vault for larger holdings.\n\nTo summarize now that you have the details:\n1. Share keys and vault access during setup\n2. 6 month timelock to ensure no malicious theft\n3. Use shared keys and Casa key to access assets\n\nFull setup takes less than 5 minutes.\n\nInheritance is one of the biggest problems in self custody today. If you've hodled through years of painful bear markets, you owe it to yourself and your family to not let the reward for that patience go to zero because you didn't have a plan - and we're here to make that easy.\n\nLike I said earlier this week - Casa is going after major problems in self-custody this year. Check this one off the list ✅. Next one coming sooner than you think 🔥.\n\nLearn more: casa.io/inheritance",
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