Seedwills, a Nigerian technology startup, is betting on digital estate planning to help individuals protect family wealth and reduce the difficulties that arise when people die without documented instructions on how their assets should be distributed.
The platform, founded by Kelvin Ojomo, allows Nigerians to create personalised Will documents through a guided online process that takes approximately 20 minutes. Users provide information about themselves, their families and their assets before generating a document, which they must subsequently sign with witnesses in accordance with the provided instructions.
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The startup’s entry into the market comes as estate planning remains an important but frequently postponed aspect of personal and business financial management, particularly for people who own property, operate businesses or have dependants.
For many families, the absence of a Will can complicate the administration and distribution of an individual’s estate after death, potentially creating disagreements over property, financial assets and other inherited wealth.
Seedwills is seeking to address this challenge by making the initial process of preparing a Will more accessible through technology, reducing the time and complexity traditionally associated with getting started.
Ojomo said the idea for the company emerged from his family’s personal experience with the difficulties that followed a death without a Will.
That experience informed the development of a platform designed to encourage more Nigerians to document their wishes while they are alive, rather than leaving their families to navigate uncertainty over their assets after their death.
Seedwills Technology Limited has now opened the platform to the public following two rounds of testing with invited users.
The company offers three packages. Its Essential package costs N29,000 and provides a Will document, while the Premium package costs N49,000 and combines a Will with Powers of Attorney.
A Couples package, priced at N79,000, provides Wills and Powers of Attorney for two people. All three packages include free updates, according to the company.
The inclusion of Powers of Attorney in the higher-priced packages extends the platform’s offering beyond documenting how assets should be distributed after death to include arrangements for authorised representation.
However, the startup says it is a technology platform and not a law firm. Its document preparation process was developed with input from a consultant lawyer, while users with complex family or business circumstances are encouraged to seek professional legal advice.
This distinction is important because generating a Will online does not automatically make it legally valid. Users must still comply with applicable legal requirements, including proper execution and witnessing, for the document to take effect.
For business owners, the implications of estate planning extend beyond the distribution of personal property. The absence of clear succession arrangements can complicate ownership, management and continuity when a founder or principal shareholder dies.
Similarly, families with residential properties, investments and other valuable assets may face additional difficulties when there is no documented direction on how those assets should be handled.
Seedwills is positioning its digital model as a way to bring estate planning closer to ordinary Nigerians, including professionals, parents, property owners and entrepreneurs who may otherwise delay the process.
The company’s commercial opportunity will depend on its ability to build public trust in digital Will preparation, demonstrate the reliability of its documents and persuade more Nigerians to treat estate planning as part of their financial planning.
As the platform begins public operations, its pricing structure and guided online process offer an alternative entry point into Will preparation, although the extent to which Nigerians adopt digital estate-planning services remains to be seen.
Royal Ibeh is a senior journalist with years of experience reporting on Nigeria’s technology and health sectors. She currently covers the Technology and Health beats for BusinessDay newspaper, where she writes in-depth stories on digital innovation, telecom infrastructure, healthcare systems, and public health policies.
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