Crypto And Estate Planning Series

The Rise Of Crypto

Crypto assets are on the rise, and there's no stopping them. This new financial universe is growing at a rapid pace and it's changing the way we think about money. The technology-based asset offers a wide range of economic activities whether its investing, trading, banking or lending, to name a few. It appeals to a variety of people on a global scale and the explosion in popularity has largely been driven by the retail market, consequently forcing governmental bodies to take notice and institutional markets to adapt to meet the demands. These digital assets are shaking up the traditional finance and investment world, and for the estate planning world it will be no different.

The Impact Of Crypto On Traditional Estate Planning

Given the atypical manner in which crypto assets are created (on the blockchain) and owned (through private keys) combined with a significant lack of uniform legislation, regulations, or clear procedures and reliable forum for legal recourse directly applicable to this fast emerging “asset class” – as compared to traditional assets – the rules most commonly applied when planning for your estate must be revisited and, where necessary, modified to address any non-investment risks arising from estate planning with cryptocurrency.

In light of this, the Crypto and Estate Planning Series (“Series”) is purposefully written to give basic education and practical information about crypto assets, in general, so planners may ask various questions and explore the potential challenges within the context of estate planning.  As such, the Series is written in individual parts, with each topic analyzed under a separately numbered “Part” and with all collective Parts comprising the entire Series.

New Questions And Challenges For Estate Planners With Crypto Assets

The following topics have been identified for further discussion by the authors throughout the Series: