Showing your seed phrase or wallet password to your next of kin while your alive

[Finestream]

Not totally giving out your seed phrase but just telling him a bit that you are currently investing into bitcoin will make him aware that he has to recover your bitcoin investment once the owner is no longer alive, or else the investment you have been worked for long will only be wasted, having no someone to benefit it.

But if you are actually a responsible and knowledgeable one, why not save it in a timelock instead? Just let your own family knows about it before you'll be gone in this world.

[Felicity_Tide]

1. Is it good to give our seed phrase or wallet password to our next of kin while we are alive since death is inevitable?

Imo, I don't think that would be necessary. All that matters is that he/she is aware that you do hold a few sats.
My reason for saying this doesn't have anything to do with trust. Its just a way of treating the whole thing as a regular inheritance and not something you unveil before hand. If you as a parent holds the seed phrase, at least, it should be somewhere around the house_{(probably where you keep your stuffs)}, or the location should be specified on a will instead.

So, I'm of the opinion that there is no point of sharing such a sensitive information. Them being aware that you hold a few Bitcoin, should be more than enough.

[Natalim]

This is the core dilemma of inheritance planning, if you give full access, you're trusting them completely some use time-locked transactions or instructions with a lawyer, you have to weigh the risk of betrayal against the risk of your coins being lost forever

While its quite a positive idea for some, but majority would not prefer doing it because betrayal can always happen anytime, especially that it involves a highly valuable asset.

My preferred choice, use the time-locked instead as it avoid the possibility of stealing your bitcoin. However, your family should still be aware that you're into bitcoin accumulation, so that they will be aware if you have left bitcoin asset for them or not when you're no longer around.

[Alphakilo]

I was thinking about all those ideas and I came up with a thought that leads to questions.
1. Is it good to give our seed phrase or wallet password to our next of kin while we are alive since death is inevitable?

2. If the answer to the first question is Yes, what then happens to us if the next of kin defraud us of our hard earn wealth while we're alive?

Not all next of kin have bad intentions and that means they could defraud you when they come into financial need with the hopes to pay back and actually don't or they could not, if they have money, or don't have such intentions at the least.
It isn't a safe practice though because they are next of kin for a reason and the reason being that they are to take the parents place Incase of death or for claims of something more valuable at the time.

[Stepstowealth]

While its quite a positive idea for some, but majority would not prefer doing it because betrayal can always happen anytime, especially that it involves a highly valuable asset.

Things could always just change even between people related by blood, your next of kin can suddenly become your enemy even before you realize that they are an enemy to you. Planning for your death should not involve giving out seed phrase to your next of kin, that could be the action that can even lead to your death. You can have resources set out that when you die, important documents and details of yourself like your seed phrase is passed on to your next of kin then. Not good to rush showing important details to your next of kin, that title can change at any point.

[Antona]

I was thinking about all those ideas and I came up with a thought that leads to questions.
1. Is it good to give our seed phrase or wallet password to our next of kin while we are alive since death is inevitable?

2. If the answer to the first question is Yes, what then happens to us if the next of kin defraud us of our hard earn wealth while we're alive?

Not all next of kin have bad intentions and that means they could defraud you when they come into financial need with the hopes to pay back and actually don't or they could not, if they have money, or don't have such intentions at the least.
It isn't a safe practice though because they are next of kin for a reason and the reason being that they are to take the parents place Incase of death or for claims of something more valuable at the time.

That's the real conflict even with good intentions, desperate times can lead to bad decisions, they might "borrow" from the wallet, fully intending to replace it, but never can that risk is there even if they're not malicious

[Woodie]

Truth be told no one wants to do this step because they all think they are bringing themselves closer to death or selling out on their finances, it's like talking of a will people get so @#&£ scared of this as it's like a death wish 

But some inspiration I saw from this forum , was out fallen brother C* the loan person, he got the wife involved in his business which suggests he could have initiated her in the know how of crypto and maybe seed phrases and all that, and this is a leaf 🌿 we all should be taking because not everyone gets to prepare for their passing ..

[freedomgo]

That's very risky mate. Even your own spouse cannot be trusted with it if she's not actually a crypto lover.

I would settle having time-locked instead, this will prevent me from worrying too much. But if your wife is also active in crypto, or she knows actually the real value of bitcoin and how to grow it in the near future, then you must trust him with that. If she's a good wife to you, then she can be trusted with bitcoin then.

[Rgram]

While you might feel it’s a sensible or reasonable thing to do so, you don’t get to loose your Bitcoins to the many burnt coins out there, you would as well come to the reality that, you’ve given off a means to having your Bitcoins lost to just anyone.
Your next of kin might not knowing do away with your Bitcoin but, people don’t approach the security of an asset that isn’t theirs in the same way they would do their own. Once the keys is off you, it’s not longer private and Gould very easily become public knowledge.

[nakamura12]

That's very risky to show your seed phrase to your next of kin but having your next of kin know you have crypto then you can left it to your next of kin when that time comes. Think of it as an inheritance to your next of kin before passing which means your next of kin will only know the seed phrase once the person is gone. As we know that there are different ways to store seed phrase amd you can also consider time lock as others have suggested.

[Nothingtodo]

.I was thinking about all those ideas and I came up with a thought that leads to questions.
1. Is it good to give our seed phrase or wallet password to our next of kin while we are alive since death is inevitable?

2. If the answer to the first question is Yes, what then happens to us if the next of kin defraud us of our hard earn wealth while we're alive?

If someone shares the seed phrase of a Bitcoin wallet with someone while they are alive and they cheat while they are alive, there is nothing they can do because no one can tell who will cheat and when. Sometimes one's own wife and children can cheat, one's close blood relatives can cheat. However, even if you know that your death is inevitable, you should still pass on your seed phrase to your children or grandchildren, otherwise the Bitcoins you left behind will be lost for life after your death. If you pass on your Bitcoin wallet seed phrase to them during your lifetime, they will be able to use your Bitcoins after your death.