What to do when a Anchorage Digital account holder dies
Contact Anchorage Digital — 6-step process, 6 required documents, and varies significantly based on account structure, jurisdiction, and complexity of the estate; institutional accounts may involve additional legal review
Anchorage Digital Client Services
Anchorage Digital Bank, N.A., Sioux Falls, SD
Anchorage Digital Client Services
Anchorage Digital Bank, N.A., Sioux Falls, SD
Anchorage Digital Client Services / Legal & Compliance (no dedicated retail claims line or online estate portal; estate matters route through the client relationship manager and legal/compliance)
When an account holder at Anchorage Digital passes away, the next step depends on how the accounts were set up. Accounts with beneficiary designations or trust ownership transfer outside of probate. Accounts titled solely in the deceased's name require the estate's legal representative to work with Anchorage Digital's Anchorage Digital Client Services / Legal & Compliance (no dedicated retail claims line or online estate portal; estate matters route through the client relationship manager and legal/compliance) (+1 (415) 941-6300) to access and distribute the funds.
To start a claim, contact Anchorage Digital by phone at +1 (415) 941-6300 or email documentation to contact@anchorage.com. You will need the account holder's full name, account numbers, and a certified death certificate.
Death claim process
Here is the step-by-step death claim process at Anchorage Digital:
Filing a claim
- Entity accounts (fund, corporation, trust): the surviving authorized signers or successor trustee named in the entity's governing documents continue to act; update the authorized-person roster rather than transferring the account itself
- Individual accounts held directly: the estate's personal representative must establish authority through probate
- Certified copy of the death certificate
- Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration from the probate court (individual accounts)
- Government-issued photo ID for the executor or personal representative
- For trust-held accounts: the trust agreement / certification and successor-trustee authorization
- Court order or additional legal documentation if required by Anchorage compliance or the governing jurisdiction
Required Documents
- Certified death certificate
- Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration
- Government-issued photo ID for executor or personal representative
- Court order authorizing transfer of digital assets (if required by jurisdiction)
- Trust documentation (if assets held in trust custody account)
- Any additional documentation required by Anchorage Digital compliance
What to know at this institution
Anchorage Digital is an institutional custody platform and does not publish a standard consumer-facing death-claim form; there is no online estate portal, and the process runs through the client's relationship manager and Anchorage's legal/compliance teams (start at contact@anchorage.com or +1 (415) 941-6300). Unlike self-custody, there is no seed phrase or hardware wallet for an executor to find: because Anchorage custody is engineered to avoid key-person risk, releasing assets to an estate is a matter of re-credentialing authorized users under the custody agreement, not recovering a private key. Client assets are held in segregated, bankruptcy-remote accounts under OCC supervision. Estates should engage legal counsel experienced with digital-asset settlement. Trust-held accounts (including the Two Ocean Trust COIN Trust) bypass probate and follow trust terms directly.
Expected timelines at Anchorage Digital: Varies significantly based on account structure, jurisdiction, and complexity of the estate; institutional accounts may involve additional legal review. Delays are almost always caused by incomplete paperwork—gathering all required documents before filing the initial claim helps avoid back-and-forth.
Anchorage Digital requires several documents to process a claim, including Certified death certificate, Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration, and Government-issued photo ID for executor or personal representative, and additional documentation depending on the account type. Certified copies are typically needed—photocopies are generally not accepted for death certificates or court documents.
Frequently asked questions
Yes. Anchorage Digital partners with Two Ocean Trust (regulated by the Wyoming Division of Banking) on the COIN Trust — the Crypto Optimized Irrevocable Non-grantor Trust. It pairs a formal irrevocable trust structure with Anchorage's custody so digital assets pass to beneficiaries at death through the trust rather than an informal handoff, giving crypto holders the same private-client estate experience available for traditional assets. Because Anchorage custody is engineered to avoid key-person risk, there is no seed phrase or hardware wallet for a trustee to recover. See https://www.anchorage.com/insights/case-study-estate-planning-in-crypto-coin-trust-brings-generational-wealth-management-from-two-ocean-trust-to-anchorage-digital-clients.
The estate representative should contact Anchorage Digital to report the death and initiate estate proceedings. Required documentation typically includes a certified death certificate, Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration, and government-issued ID for the executor. Assets held in a trust account transfer according to trust terms. Assets in individual accounts require probate or court order. Digital asset estate settlement may involve additional complexity including private key authorization changes.
Anchorage Digital's Anchorage Digital Client Services / Legal & Compliance (no dedicated retail claims line or online estate portal; estate matters route through the client relationship manager and legal/compliance) can be reached by phone at +1 (415) 941-6300 and email at contact@anchorage.com for questions throughout the claims process.
If the deceased held multiple Anchorage Digital accounts, each may require a separate claim or have different documentation requirements. The Anchorage Digital Client Services / Legal & Compliance (no dedicated retail claims line or online estate portal; estate matters route through the client relationship manager and legal/compliance) can confirm which accounts require individual attention and which can be processed together.
Sources
Data sourced from Anchorage Digital primary sources (32 pages reviewed). How we research.
Anchorage Digital Client Services
Anchorage Digital Bank, N.A., Sioux Falls, SD
Anchorage Digital Client Services
Anchorage Digital Bank, N.A., Sioux Falls, SD
Anchorage Digital Client Services / Legal & Compliance (no dedicated retail claims line or online estate portal; estate matters route through the client relationship manager and legal/compliance)
Estate planning articles
Learn how to protect your Anchorage Digital accounts and other assets with trusts, beneficiary designations, and estate planning documents.
Is this your situation?
Get a complete guide for your specific circumstances.
More tools for handling this estate
Calculators and checklists for executors and trustees.
How Much Does Probate Cost?
Estimate attorney fees, executor fees, court costs, and timeline for probating an estate in your state. See if the estate qualifies for simplified probate procedures.
How Much Can an Executor Charge?
Calculate how much an executor (personal representative) can charge for administering an estate. See if your state has statutory fees or uses reasonable compensation.
Who Inherits Without a Will?
Find out who inherits your estate and how much they get if you die without a will. Based on your state's intestate succession laws.
What's Fair Trustee Compensation?
Find out what's fair compensation for serving as trustee. Compare family, professional, and corporate trustee rates based on your situation.
How Much Are Estate & Inheritance Taxes?
Calculate federal estate tax, state estate tax (12 states + DC), and inheritance tax (5 states) for an estate or trust.
How Many Death Certificates Do I Need?
Calculate how many certified death certificates you need based on the assets and accounts you need to close. See state-specific ordering information.
