Guardian Guide
What guardians do, what they can't do, and how to fulfill your role.
Someone trusted you to be a guardian of their Ante vault. You're a safety net - if the owner becomes inactive, you and other guardians can help transfer their assets to their chosen beneficiaries. You can never access their funds yourself.
What You Can Do
- Monitor - Get notified if the owner misses check-ins
- Remind - Send check-in reminders if they're overdue
- Vote - If truly inactive, vote to approve transfer to recipient
- Execute - After all safeguards pass, sign the final transfer
- Access or withdraw the owner's funds
- Change where assets are sent (only owner sets recipients)
- Act alone (multiple guardians must agree)
- Bypass the grace period (owner can always cancel)
- See the owner's balance or transaction history
The smart contract enforces these limits - not just policy, but code.
What You Need
Added by email? Just sign in - a wallet is created for you automatically.
Added by wallet address? You'll need access to that wallet to sign transactions.
The owner typically sponsors your gas fees. If not, you'll need ~$5-20 ETH to vote/execute.
Accepting Your Invitation
Receive notification
Email or in-app notification that you've been added.
Review the vault
See who the owner is and who will receive assets.
Accept the role
Confirm you're willing to be a guardian.
When Action Is Needed
Most of the time, nothing. Owner checks in every ~90 days. You're only notified if something changes.
If the owner becomes overdue:
- Overdue → Send a reminder
- Voting → Vote to approve transfer if truly inactive
- Grace Period → Owner can still cancel
- Execute → Sign the final transfer
At every step, the owner can stop the process by checking in.
Common Questions
What if I lose access to my wallet?
Tell the vault owner ASAP. They can replace you. Multiple guardians means one losing access doesn't break the system.
What if I'm unavailable to vote?
Only enough guardians to meet threshold need to vote (e.g., 2-of-3). Others can act without you.
Can I see the owner's balance?
No. You only see you're a guardian and who the recipient is. Privacy is protected.