How Bitzo Works: Non-Custodial Security & Inheritance

A structured, human-led workflow for UK private clients. Architecture, verified contacts, documentation, and recovery coordination, without Bitzo ever holding keys, taking custody, or asking for seed phrases.

The five steps

1. Discovery

A 20-minute call to understand your position, your existing setup, your concerns, and who you want involved (family, executors, advisers). No commitment. Book here.

2. Architecture review

We map your current wallets, custody points, devices, and access paths. We identify single points of failure: a lost seed phrase, a broken hardware wallet, an exchange lockout, a family who cannot act. We agree the target architecture, which may be the one you already have, with documentation around it.

3. Verified contacts

Trusted people (family members, executors, professional advisers) are identity-verified through recorded calls and rotating verification codes. We document who can act, in what capacity, under what triggers. No contact ever holds your keys.

4. Documentation: the Policy Pack

A plain-language reference designed for non-technical executors and solicitors. It includes:

What digital assets exist (at a high level appropriate to the audience).
Who is verified to act, and in what role.
The recovery workflow for each scenario (death, incapacity, lost device, etc.).
Verification protocol and authority checks.
Evidence retention and audit trail requirements.

The Policy Pack is delivered as a versioned, immutable PDF. Updates create new versions; the audit trail is preserved.

5. Recovery rehearsal and annual review

We rehearse the workflow with verified contacts before it is needed in real life. Then we review annually, or sooner if your wallets, contacts, or the regulatory environment change.

What's in your Policy Pack

The Policy Pack is what you receive at the end of the documentation stage: a plain-language reference designed for non-technical executors and solicitors, delivered as a versioned document. It stores public key material only, never seed phrases or private keys, and includes:

Wallet architecture summary, what digital assets exist, at a high level appropriate to the audience, public key material only.
Signing rules, how many keys are needed, where they are held, and who has access.
Named verified contacts, who is verified to act, and in what role, family, executor, solicitor, or adviser.
Recovery workflow steps, the step sequence for each scenario: death, incapacity, lost device, or loss of access.
Escalation path, who is contacted, in what order, and under what triggers, so nobody is guessing under pressure.
Review history, versioned updates over time, with the full audit trail preserved.

Updates create new versions rather than overwriting old ones, so your review history and audit trail are preserved, and the pack stays live through the Client Portal as your situation changes.

The verification protocol in action

Here is an illustrative example of what happens when a trusted contact, say, your named executor, needs to act:

Recorded call, a UK-based Bitzo specialist conducts a recorded video or phone call with the contact to confirm identity, authority, and consent.
Rotating one-time code, the contact confirms a rotating verification code, so each verification is unique to that moment, a copied document or an old recording is not enough on its own.
Cross-check against the Policy Pack, the specialist checks the contact's role, their authority, and the trigger conditions against what your Policy Pack defines, alongside any required legal documentation such as a grant of probate.
Logged before anything proceeds, the verification method, date, and consent confirmation are recorded in the audit trail.

This example is illustrative. The exact checks, documents, and conditions that apply to your contacts are the ones defined in your own plan, nothing happens outside them.

What a review covers

Automated review prompts arrive every 4 to 6 months, with scheduled reviews included in your plan. Each one confirms the plan still works in practice:

Contacts still reachable, phone numbers change, email addresses expire, circumstances move on. We confirm your trusted contacts remain valid and reachable.
Wallet changes documented, new wallets, new devices, or new exchange accounts are reflected in your Policy Pack, so the documented structure matches reality.
Access instructions current, the recovery steps your executor or family would actually follow are checked against your current setup and wishes.

What the audit trail records

Every review, verification event, and document version is logged and visible in your Client Portal. A typical entry looks like this (illustrative): “Contact verification completed, logged with timestamp”.

Over time this builds a complete history, verification methods and dates, consent confirmations, document versions, and decision logs, that executors, solicitors, and professional advisers can rely on when it matters.

What recovery actually looks like

When recovery is triggered (by you, a family member, an executor), Bitzo coordinates:

Identity verification of the requesting party (recorded video or phone call, rotating codes, document checks).
Authority verification against the Policy Pack and any required legal documents (e.g. grant of probate).
Coordination with the verified contacts who can act on the wallets.
Logged audit trail of every step.

Bitzo does not move the crypto. Bitzo coordinates the people who can.

Optional: inheritance enforced by the Bitcoin network itself

For Bitcoin holdings, your plan can include an on-chain timelocked recovery path: a second set of spending conditions built into your own wallet, for example, your executor's key, that only becomes valid after a period of inactivity you choose. Until then it cannot spend anything; after it matures, it works whether or not Bitzo exists, because the Bitcoin network itself enforces it.

Set up in your own open-source wallet software, Bitzo coordinates and documents; your keys never touch us.
Your regular reviews double as timelock refresh checkpoints, so the recovery path never matures while you're active.
Documented in your Policy Pack so your executor knows the path exists, and when and how it becomes usable.
Cryptographic enforcement and human verification together: the timelock guarantees access is possible; the verified process makes sure it goes to the right hands.

Honest scope: this is optional, applies to Bitcoin (timelocks of this kind do not exist for Ethereum or exchange accounts), and requires compatible wallet software and hardware. For everything a timelock cannot cover, the documented, human-verified process does the work.

Ongoing monitoring: the Bitcoin Watchtower

Between reviews, your plan doesn't just sit in a drawer. The Bitcoin Watchtower watches the addresses you've documented, from Bitzo's own Bitcoin node, and emails you the moment coins move, usually while the transaction is still waiting to confirm. It's the tripwire between "everything is fine" and "something needs your attention right now".

Watch-only by design: public addresses you choose, with your explicit consent, never keys, never custody.
Outgoing movements trigger an urgent alert with clear next steps if the transaction wasn't yours.
Incoming payment receipts confirm transfers to cold storage landed where they should (optional).
Your portal shows a live view: what's watched, every movement seen, and a simple quiet-coins status.

Honest scope: monitoring starts from the moment an address is enrolled (we don't scan its history), and it is included with Continuity Plus (up to 3 addresses) and Private Client (up to 20).

What we do not do

We do not hold keys, seed phrases, or wallet credentials.
We do not provide regulated financial, legal, or tax advice.
We do not take custody of crypto, fiat, or any client asset.
We do not act as a wallet provider, exchange, or custodian.

Common questions

Where does the key come from when someone dies?

From the places you already control. Your keys and backups stay where you keep them, a safe, a bank deposit box, or with your solicitor. The Policy Pack records where they are and who is allowed to retrieve them. When recovery is triggered, Bitzo verifies the person's identity and authority, then guides them to retrieve and use those keys. The optional Bitcoin timelock adds a cryptographic backstop that works even without Bitzo. Bitzo never holds the keys itself.

How long does setup take?

Typical engagements run 2 to 4 weeks from discovery call to delivered Policy Pack. Complex multisig or multi-jurisdiction situations take longer.

What does it cost?

See pricing for the Core Continuity, Continuity Plus, and Private Client plans. Each tier includes setup and an annual review cycle.

Can my IFA, solicitor, or accountant be involved?

Yes. Many engagements involve a professional adviser. We coordinate with them rather than replacing them. See adviser support.

What if I move wallets or change my mind later?

The annual review cycle is for exactly this. You can also trigger an update outside the annual cycle if your situation changes materially.

Does Bitzo monitor my wallets?

Optionally, yes. The Bitcoin Watchtower is watch-only monitoring of addresses you choose, run from Bitzo's own node, an email the moment coins move, often before the transaction confirms. Public addresses only; never keys. Included with Continuity Plus and Private Client.

Related insights

Next step

Book a 20-minute discovery call. We will understand your situation and recommend a sensible starting plan, or tell you honestly if Bitzo is not the right fit.