Short answer: an executor usually starts with a discovery record, not a blockchain search. Check exchange and trading-platform accounts, bank and card statements, email, phones and computers, wallet apps, personal papers, and people who helped with the deceased person’s finances. HMRC publishes a similar checklist for personal representatives.[1] Finding evidence of a holding is different from obtaining authority to deal with it, and both are different again from having the technical credentials needed for self-custodied crypto.
This is a UK-focused educational guide. It is not legal, probate, inheritance-tax or financial advice. The rules and practical process can differ between England and Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland. A solicitor or appropriately qualified tax adviser should deal with the estate’s circumstances.
Start with discovery, not access
A useful discovery record is a dated list of leads and what each lead does, or does not, establish. It should be readable by the executor and any professional adviser without containing secret credentials.
Record, for example:
- the names of exchanges, brokers, trading platforms or payment services mentioned in papers or email;
- bank and card payments that appear connected to cryptoasset services;
- email addresses, phone numbers and devices that may be associated with those services;
- wallet applications, hardware-wallet references, addresses or transaction hashes found in records;
- the names of accountants, solicitors, family members or other advisers who may know about the holdings;
- dates, document names, account references and the person who found each item; and
- unanswered questions, such as whether a service account was closed, transferred or held jointly.
Keep the record separate from any secret that could authorise a transfer. The purpose is to show where an enquiry should go and how the evidence fits together. It is not a checklist for trying passwords, connecting a wallet, moving coins or guessing a recovery phrase.
HMRC says cryptoassets may be held through online accounts, mobile applications or other digital services, and specifically points personal representatives towards exchanges, statements, email, devices, wallet software, personal papers and people involved in the deceased’s financial affairs.[1]
Exchange accounts and self-custody are different problems
Exchange or platform accounts
An exchange account may leave ordinary evidence: emails, statements, app notifications, identity checks and payments to or from a bank account. That evidence can help an executor identify the provider and show that an account may exist.
It does not automatically give the executor permission to operate the account. The provider will have its own deceased-customer and estate process. The executor may need to establish authority, provide documents and follow the provider’s requirements. Do not assume that knowing a username, seeing an app on a phone or finding an old password settles the question.
Self-custodied crypto
With self-custody, a blockchain address may be visible without revealing who controls it. The practical question is whether the estate has reliable evidence linking the address to the deceased and a lawful route to the technical means of control.
A wallet app, a device, a public address, a transaction record or an email can each be a useful clue. None, by itself, proves that the deceased owned the asset, that the person holding a device was authorised to transfer it, or that the wallet can still be recovered. A recovery phrase or private key is a transfer credential. It should not be copied into a public will or casually circulated to family members, advisers or an executor.
This article deliberately does not tell readers where to store a seed phrase or private key. The right arrangements depend on the person’s circumstances and should be discussed confidentially with an appropriately qualified professional. The family-facing record should identify that a confidential access arrangement exists and explain how to obtain professional help, without reproducing the secret in an ordinary document.
Why a seed phrase should not go in a public will
A will explains who should benefit and who should administer the estate. GOV.UK says it should identify the executor and explains that wills can be kept with a solicitor, a bank, a will-storage company or the probate registry.[2]
In England and Wales, probate records can be searched and a copy of a will may be available after probate is issued, although not every probate record contains a will. GOV.UK also notes that Scotland and Northern Ireland use different processes.[3] That makes a will a poor place for a credential that could directly move crypto. The risk is not limited to the intended beneficiary: a copied or exposed phrase may be usable by anyone who obtains it.
The safer distinction is between:
- discovery information: enough to alert the executor that crypto may exist and where to ask questions; and
- transfer credentials: information that could authorise a transaction.
The first belongs in the estate-planning conversation. The second requires a confidential, professionally reviewed arrangement. This is a security principle, not a prescribed storage method.
Build an evidence map
The evidence map prevents one dramatic clue from being treated as proof. Use a simple table such as this one:
| Evidence found | It may show | It does not necessarily show |
|---|---|---|
| Exchange email or statement | A relationship with a provider, and possibly a balance or transaction | That the balance is current, solely owned or available to withdraw |
| Bank or card payment | Money moved to or from a crypto-related service | Which wallet ultimately received the asset or who controlled it |
| Wallet app on a device | The device was used with wallet software | That the deceased controlled every address shown or that the wallet is recoverable |
| Public address | Transactions associated with that address | The person’s identity, ownership or authority to transfer |
| Transaction hash | A record of a transaction on a particular network | The lawful owner, the real-world source of funds or the reason for the payment |
| Recovery phrase or private key record | Potential technical control of a wallet | That using it is legally authorised, safe or appropriate for the finder |
| Family member’s recollection | A lead about a service, device or arrangement | A complete valuation or proof of legal ownership |
Preserve original records where possible. Note the date, source and context. Avoid altering a phone, uninstalling an app, resetting a device, importing a wallet or sending a test transaction merely to see what happens. Those actions can destroy evidence, create security risk or affect the estate’s position.
What HMRC says about the estate
HMRC’s CRYPTO25000 manual says cryptoassets are treated as assets of a person’s estate in much the same way as bank accounts, property, shares and investments. It says the date-of-death value should be provided when submitting an Inheritance Tax return, where appropriate.[1]
HMRC also says that if cryptoassets are identified but believed to be inaccessible, the explanation and believed value should be included in the additional-information box of form IHT400. That is guidance for the estate’s reporting process, not a shortcut for deciding ownership, valuation, domicile, situs or tax treatment.
Tax treatment can depend on facts such as the asset, the person’s residence and domicile history, transactions during administration, and the tax being considered. Do not turn this article into a filing decision. Ask a qualified tax adviser or read the current HMRC guidance for the relevant return.
Legal and professional limits
Legal limit: this article does not decide who owns an address, whether a will covers a particular asset, whether an executor may use a device or credential, or which documents a provider must accept. The Ministry of Justice says that, from December 2025, certain digital assets such as crypto tokens can be recognised as personal property in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, while the detailed treatment of particular assets remains fact-sensitive.[5] Scotland has its own legal framework. Obtain advice for the actual estate.
Tax limit: HMRC’s checklist is a starting point for finding possible assets. It is not a personal Inheritance Tax calculation, valuation opinion or clearance from HMRC. Keep evidence of how any valuation and reporting decision was reached.
Security limit: do not publish, email widely or paste into a will a recovery phrase, private key, password, one-time code or other transfer credential. The NCSC recommends strong, unique passwords and two-step verification for online accounts, but its password-manager guidance does not replace specialist advice about crypto transfer credentials.[4]
Provider limit: an exchange’s terms and estate procedure can change. Use the provider’s official deceased-customer or legal-request channel, and be alert to recovery scams. No legitimate-looking message should be treated as authority to send a fee or disclose a recovery phrase.
Practical family checklist
Before a death, a family can agree a plain discovery plan without sharing a seed phrase in the checklist itself:
- Name the executor and make sure they know where the current will and estate-planning papers are held.
- Record that crypto may exist, including the names of known providers, wallets or advisers, without recording a transfer credential in the will.
- Keep a dated inventory of relevant email addresses, devices, apps, accounts and paperwork, and update it when circumstances change.
- Explain which clues are evidence of an account and which are only leads. A public address is not the same as an exchange account.
- Write down who should be contacted for legal, probate, tax and provider questions. This is a referral list, not a product recommendation.
- Agree that family members will not guess passwords, move assets, reset devices or respond to unsolicited recovery offers.
- After death, preserve devices and records, open the discovery record, and take advice before attempting technical access or transfers.
- Reconcile the evidence map with the estate inventory and keep a note of assets that are identified but inaccessible.
Internal links
- What is a crypto wallet, private key, address and seed phrase?
- Is blockchain private, public or permissioned?
- Crypto scams: rug pulls, phishing and fake support in the UK
- What is a cryptoasset?
Sources
[1] https://www.gov.uk/hmrc-internal-manuals/cryptoassets-manual/crypto25000 — HMRC CRYPTO25000: Cryptoassets for individuals: Inheritance Tax
[2] https://www.gov.uk/make-will/writing-your-will — GOV.UK: Making a will: Write your will
[3] https://www.gov.uk/search-will-probate — GOV.UK: Search probate records for documents and wills
[4] https://ncsc.gov.uk/collection/top-tips-for-staying-secure-online/password-managers — NCSC: Managing your passwords
[5] https://www.gov.uk/government/news/uk-among-first-countries-to-recognise-cryptocurrency-as-personal-property — Ministry of Justice: UK among first countries to recognise cryptocurrency as personal property