The estate that spanned two countries — and a missing hardware wallet
Marc had assets in France, Singapore, and on a Ledger wallet in his home office drawer. His family found two out of three.
Financial impact
~S$152,000+
Time lost
14 months
Problems
5 critical
The situation
Marc, 52, French national, Singapore PR, married to a Singaporean
Marc has a will made in France 8 years ago — before he moved to Singapore. He has no Singapore will. His CPF nomination names his wife (this one is current). His company insurance has no nominated beneficiary. He has never told anyone about the Ledger wallet.
Marc has lived in Singapore for 12 years. He is married to a Singaporean, and they have two children (10 and 14). His assets span two countries: in France, an apartment in Lyon (€320,000), an assurance-vie at AXA (€85,000), a PEA at Boursorama (€42,000), and Livret A savings (€18,000). In Singapore: an HDB flat in joint tenancy with his wife (S$650,000), CPF (S$180,000), an SRS account at DBS (S$35,000), company group term life insurance (S$200,000), and a joint savings account (S$45,000).
He also holds 1.2 BTC on Binance (~S$95,000), 0.8 ETH on a Ledger hardware wallet stored in his home office drawer, and various altcoins on Crypto.com (~S$12,000).
What happened
Marc dies on a business trip to Jakarta
Family is in shock. Wife obtains the death certificate in Jakarta (Indonesian process, requires local lawyer). Company insurance claim initiated — but no beneficiary nominated, so it goes into the estate.
Singapore lawyer engaged
Lawyer asks: 'Do you have a full list of his assets?' Wife doesn't know about the SRS account, the Binance account, or the Ledger wallet. Letters sent to DBS, OCBC, CPF, and Prudential individually — each requires the Grant of Probate before releasing information.
French succession opens in parallel
A notaire in Lyon opens the French succession. He finds the PEA and Livret A but has no visibility on Singapore assets. The French will from 8 years ago names Marc's elderly mother as beneficiary — no longer reflecting his wishes. French forced heirship rules apply: children are entitled to at least 2/3 of the French estate.
Certificate of foreign law required
The notaire requests a certificat de coutume (certificate of Singapore law) from the SG lawyer. The SG lawyer has never heard of this. Back and forth begins between two legal systems.
Grant of Probate granted in Singapore
SRS account discovered via DBS response — wife had no idea it existed. S$35,000 recovered. Lawyer asks about digital assets. Wife remembers Marc mentioning Bitcoin but has no passwords or account details.
Ledger wallet found — but no seed phrase
Marc's friend recognises the hardware wallet in the drawer but doesn't have the seed phrase. The 0.8 ETH is permanently inaccessible. Binance begins a 3-month identity verification process.
French and Singapore processes grind forward
Translation and apostille of SG documents required. Marc's mother (named in old French will) contests the distribution. Family dispute begins. French inheritance tax: ~€28,000.
The damage
Total impact
~S$152,000+
Time lost
14 months
How Keepsafe would have changed this
The legal procedures still take time. What changes is how quickly they start — and how much damage is prevented.
Without a plan
- Wife didn't know about the SRS account (S$35,000)
- Ledger wallet found with no seed phrase — 0.8 ETH lost permanently
- French will from 8 years ago, never updated — no longer reflects wishes
- Company insurance has no nominated beneficiary — enters estate
- Notaire and Singapore lawyer didn't know about each other
- Total cost: S$152,000+ and 14 months of legal process
With Keepsafe
- All assets listed with institution, account references, and jurisdiction — discovery in minutes, not months
- Crypto access instructions stored in encrypted vault, shared with wife as trusted person — all digital assets recoverable
- Readiness checklist flags: 'Your will is 8+ years old' and 'You have no Singapore will' — both updated before death
- Checklist flags missing beneficiary — updated to name wife directly, paid within 60 days
- Professional contacts stored in vault — both lawyers connected on day one, no wasted weeks
- Estimated savings: S$40,000–80,000 through recovered crypto, faster legal start, and eliminated disputes
“Marc's estate wasn't complicated because he was rich. It was complicated because no one had a map. An asset inventory, one Singapore will, and a note about the Ledger wallet would have saved his family S$65,000 in lost crypto and months of cross-border legal chaos.”
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