What to do when a Bitstamp account holder dies
Contact Bitstamp — 7-step process, 6 required documents, and varies; no published timeline. expect several weeks to months depending on documentation and review.
Brand change
Acquired by Robinhood Markets for $200 million (closed June 2, 2025) and rebranded "Bitstamp by Robinhood." Bitstamp continues to operate as a separate US platform on its own infrastructure and regulatory licenses; it has not been folded into the Robinhood app. Estate/deceased-account inquiries for Bitstamp accounts start with Bitstamp support, which may route to Robinhood's Estates process. Effective June 2025.
Bitstamp is now part of Robinhood. The procedures below reflect Bitstamp's accounts during the transition. View the Robinhood estate planning page.
Customer Support
Customer Support
Customer Support (Estate Inquiries)
When an account holder at Bitstamp 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 Bitstamp's Customer Support (Estate Inquiries) (1-800-712-5702) to access and distribute the funds.
The claim process can be initiated by phone at 1-800-712-5702 or by sending documentation to support@bitstamp.net. Have the account holder's full name, account numbers, and a certified death certificate available when making initial contact.
Death claim process
Follow these steps to file a death claim with Bitstamp:
Filing a claim
- Certified copy of the death certificate
- Government-issued ID of the claimant (executor or administrator)
- Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration from the probate court
- Court order or other legal documentation establishing authority over the estate
- Liquidate crypto holdings to fiat currency, or
- Transfer crypto assets to a designated wallet, or
- Transfer fiat balances to the estate's bank account
Required Documents
- Certified death certificate
- Government-issued photo ID of the executor or administrator
- Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration
- Court order establishing legal authority over the estate
- Estate Tax Identification Number (EIN)
- Proof of the estate's bank account for fiat distributions
What to know at this institution
Bitstamp does not publish a Bitstamp-branded death claim form or a public deceased-account FAQ; estate inquiries on the Bitstamp platform are handled case-by-case through 24/7 customer support (support@bitstamp.net, 1-800-712-5702). Following the June 2, 2025 Robinhood acquisition ("Bitstamp by Robinhood"), Robinhood runs a structured estate process for its own US platform via an online Estates form (robinhood.com/us/en/support/articles/losing-loved-one/): the form collects the decedent's full legal name, Social Security number, date of birth and date of death, a photo of the death certificate (all four corners and any seal visible), and the claimant's contact details, relationship, and government-issued photo ID (front and back), after which a Robinhood estate representative contacts the claimant to guide next steps. Notably, Robinhood's form explicitly instructs claimants NOT to upload copies of wills, trusts, or other estate-planning documents through the form. Because Bitstamp accounts remain on Bitstamp's own infrastructure, contact Bitstamp support first to confirm which path (Bitstamp support vs. the Robinhood Estates flow) applies to a specific account; the Bitstamp path may still require probate paperwork (Letters Testamentary/Administration). Either way, the platform requires legal documentation establishing the claimant's authority before releasing account information or assets, and mere possession of the deceased's credentials (username, password, 2FA) does not authorize access by heirs. Bitstamp holds customer crypto with BitGo as custodian; the exchange controls the private keys, so there is no self-custody seed phrase for heirs to recover. Because crypto-exchange accounts do not support transfer-on-death beneficiary designations, assets in a personal Bitstamp account typically pass through probate unless held in a trust-titled corporate account.
Prepare your letter of instruction to Bitstamp
Bitstamp accepts a claimant-drafted letter of instruction. We draft it for you — addressed to Bitstamp's verified claims department, with the documents it requires enclosed.
Build your letter of instructionExpected timelines at Bitstamp: Varies; no published timeline. Expect several weeks to months depending on documentation and review. Delays are almost always caused by incomplete paperwork—gathering all required documents before filing the initial claim helps avoid back-and-forth.
Documentation required by Bitstamp includes Certified death certificate, Government-issued photo ID of the executor or administrator, and Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration, along with additional paperwork that varies by account type. All death certificates and court documents must be certified copies.
Frequently asked questions
No. Bitstamp does not offer beneficiary designations (TOD, POD, or similar) on any account type. Cryptocurrency exchange accounts generally do not support these features. If the account holder dies, assets must be claimed through the estate settlement or probate process with proper legal documentation.
Contact Bitstamp at support@bitstamp.net or 1-800-712-5702 to notify them of the account holder's death and confirm the current estate procedure, since Bitstamp does not publish a standalone deceased-account form. After the June 2025 Robinhood acquisition, the parent company runs a structured US estate process through an online Estates form, where an estate representative then works with the executor. That form collects the decedent's name, Social Security number, date of birth and date of death, a photo of the death certificate, and your government-issued ID and relationship to the deceased; Robinhood specifically tells claimants not to upload wills or trusts through the form. The Bitstamp support path may additionally request Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration. Crypto held on the account is not covered by a transfer-on-death beneficiary designation and passes through the estate.
No. Bitstamp does not support joint accounts. Each Bitstamp account is associated with a single individual or corporate entity. For estate planning purposes, this means the account holder should consider how their crypto holdings will be accessible after death. Since Bitstamp does not support beneficiary designations or joint ownership, assets in a personal Bitstamp account will typically require probate to transfer. A trust entity may be able to open a corporate account to avoid this issue.
Bitstamp's Customer Support (Estate Inquiries) can be reached by phone at 1-800-712-5702 and email at support@bitstamp.net for questions throughout the claims process.
If the deceased held multiple Bitstamp accounts, each may require a separate claim or have different documentation requirements. The Customer Support (Estate Inquiries) can confirm which accounts require individual attention and which can be processed together.
Sources
Data sourced from Bitstamp primary sources (16 pages reviewed). How we research.
Customer Support
Customer Support
Customer Support (Estate Inquiries)
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