What to do when a BitGo account holder dies
Contact BitGo's Legal & Regulatory Requests — 6-step process, 7 required documents, and varies; institutional accounts may require additional compliance review
Legal & Regulatory Requests
After an account holder at BitGo dies, accounts with beneficiary designations or trust ownership transfer to the designated recipients without probate. Solely-owned accounts require the estate's representative to contact BitGo's Legal & Regulatory Requests at 833-242-1493 with the proper legal authority documents.
Claims can be filed by phone (833-242-1493) or by emailing documentation to inquiries@bitgo.com. Before reaching out, gather the account holder's full name, account numbers, and a certified death certificate.
Death claim process
The death claim process at BitGo works as follows:
Filing a claim
- Certified death certificate
- Government-issued identification for the claimant (executor, administrator, or trustee)
- Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration from the probate court
- Trust documents (if assets are held in a trust-titled account)
- Estate Tax Identification Number (EIN)
- Verification of legal authority of the claimant
- Confirmation of asset holdings and account status
- Coordination of on-chain asset transfer to the designated recipient wallet
Required Documents
- Certified death certificate
- Government-issued photo identification for the claimant
- Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration (court-issued)
- Estate Tax Identification Number (EIN)
- Trust agreement or certificate of trust (if trust-titled account)
- Wallet address for receiving transferred digital assets
- Any additional documentation required by BitGo compliance
What to know at this institution
BitGo does not publicly document a standardized death claim process. The process for estate settlement of digital assets held in custody will depend on the account type (institutional vs. individual), the custodial services agreement, and applicable state probate law. For self-custody wallets, heirs must have access to private keys or key shares -- BitGo cannot recover assets from self-custody wallets without the client's key shares. Contact BitGo support directly to initiate an estate claim.
How long the process takes at BitGo: Varies; institutional accounts may require additional compliance review. The most common reason for delays is missing or incomplete documentation, so submitting everything upfront is the best way to keep things moving.
BitGo requires several documents to process a claim, including Certified death certificate, Government-issued photo identification for the claimant, and Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration (court-issued), 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
For assets held in qualified custody through BitGo Bank & Trust, N.A., the estate's executor or administrator must contact BitGo with a certified death certificate, Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration, and other required documentation. BitGo will coordinate the transfer of assets to the estate or designated recipient wallet after verifying legal authority. For self-custody wallets, heirs must have access to the account holder's private keys or key shares -- BitGo cannot recover self-custody assets without them. Initiate the process by emailing inquiries@bitgo.com or calling 833-242-1493.
With qualified custody, BitGo holds all three keys in cold storage and acts as a regulated custodian, fully isolated from internet-connected systems. With self-custody wallets, the client retains key control using a 2-of-3 multi-signature architecture (you hold two keys; BitGo holds the third platform key for countersigning). For estate planning, qualified custody is generally simpler because the custodian can coordinate asset transfers upon death with court documentation. Self-custody wallets require the account holder to securely document and store key recovery information that fiduciaries can access.
Yes. BitGo offers institutional staking across a broad range of proof-of-stake protocols managed directly from custody wallets. Supported networks include Ethereum, Solana, Bitcoin staking via Babylon and Core, and restaking via EigenLayer; the current supported asset list is published at https://assets.bitgo.com/coins. Staked assets remain in custody and are subject to the same estate claim process as other custodied assets, though unstaking/bonding periods may delay the transfer of certain assets.
BitGo Qualified Custody is backed by up to $250 million in insurance coverage protecting assets against theft or loss while in custody. This coverage is not FDIC or SIPC insurance and does not protect against market loss, blockchain protocol failure, or insolvency of an issuer. Coverage continues to apply while assets remain in qualified custody during the estate-claim review period; once assets are transferred on-chain to an estate or beneficiary wallet, they leave BitGo's custody and the insurance does not follow them.
BitGo's Legal & Regulatory Requests can be reached by phone at 833-242-1493 and email at inquiries@bitgo.com for questions throughout the claims process.
Multiple BitGo accounts may mean multiple claims. Some account types can be processed together, but others require their own documentation. Check with the Legal & Regulatory Requests to confirm what applies.
Sources
Data sourced from BitGo primary sources (21 pages reviewed). How we research.
Legal & Regulatory Requests
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