How to name beneficiaries and fund a trust at CPB
Beneficiaries are managed in branch, by phone or by mail. Trust paperwork is taken in branch, by phone or by mail
Preparing your CPB accounts for estate transfer involves two primary strategies: designating beneficiaries on individual accounts and, where supported, retitling accounts into a revocable living trust. Both approaches bypass probate, but they work differently depending on the account type.
With 16 product types, CPB offers a range of transfer options. Some accounts support Payable on Death (POD) designations, others can be retitled into a trust, and some require probate if no beneficiary is designated. The sections below break down each step.
Beneficiary form at CPB
Beneficiary designation form and IRA beneficiary designation form (for IRAs).
- Give the beneficiary's full legal name, date of birth, Social Security number, and relationship
- For IRA accounts: complete the IRA beneficiary designation form with primary and contingent sections
- Account number(s) for the accounts to be updated
- Identity verification information as requested by the representative
- Full legal name, date of birth, Social Security number, and relationship for each beneficiary
- Allocation among multiple beneficiaries, with any unequal split recorded explicitly
Required Documents
- Beneficiary's full legal name
- Beneficiary's date of birth
- Beneficiary's Social Security number
- Beneficiary's relationship to you
- Government-issued photo ID (at a branch)
- Account numbers and identity verification information (by phone)
- Certification of Trust (when naming a trust). A copy is required, so the trust name, date and tax identification number are recorded exactly
- IRA beneficiary designation form, completed (for an IRA)
- Beneficiary designation form, signed (by phone or by mail)
- Certification of Trust or the complete trust agreement (CPB may request a copy of any trust agreement covering the account)
- Trust Tax Identification Number (EIN), or the grantor's Social Security number for a revocable living trust
- The exact trust name and date of execution
- Trust name exactly as it appears in the trust document
- EIN or grantor SSN for the trust
- Trustee names and contact information
Required Documents
- Certification of Trust or full trust agreement. CPB takes a Certification of Trust (also called a Trust Abstract or Affidavit of Trust) or, without one, a complete copy of the trust agreement. CPB may request a copy of any trust agreement covering the account
- Amendments to the trust agreement (if the trust has been amended)
- Government-issued photo ID (for each trustee)
- Trust tax identification number. An EIN for an irrevocable trust, or the grantor's Social Security number for a revocable trust
- Exact trust name and date of execution
- Trustee names and contact information (on a mailed application)
- Death certificate (if a grantor or trustee named in the trust is deceased and a successor trustee is signing)
- Give the beneficiary's full legal name, date of birth, Social Security number, and relationship
- For IRA accounts: complete the IRA beneficiary designation form with primary and contingent sections
- Account number(s) for the accounts to be updated
- Identity verification information as requested by the representative
- Full legal name, date of birth, Social Security number, and relationship for each beneficiary
- Allocation among multiple beneficiaries, with any unequal split recorded explicitly
Required Documents
- Beneficiary's full legal name
- Beneficiary's date of birth
- Beneficiary's Social Security number
- Beneficiary's relationship to you
- Government-issued photo ID (at a branch)
- Account numbers and identity verification information (by phone)
- Certification of Trust (when naming a trust). A copy is required, so the trust name, date and tax identification number are recorded exactly
- IRA beneficiary designation form, completed (for an IRA)
- Beneficiary designation form, signed (by phone or by mail)
What CPB says about beneficiaries and trusts
Each section is CPB's own statement, with the document it comes from numbered under Sources.
Which accounts take a beneficiary2
- Payable-on-death account
CPB records a POD designation on a deposit account as an "Informal Trust Account" under its Deposit Account Agreement. The owner keeps full control, and the funds pass to the beneficiaries who survive the owner.1
An Informal Trust Account has no written trust agreement and is available on checking, savings and CD products.1
- IRA
The IRA beneficiary designation form has primary and contingent beneficiary sections.2
How many beneficiaries, and how shares are split
- Payable-on-death account
CPB pays multiple informal-trust (POD) beneficiaries in equal shares unless its records indicate otherwise. Unequal percentages are specified on the form.1
What a designation takes to be effective
Beneficiary forms CPB issues2
What CPB's agreement says about beneficiaries4
- What the owner keeps while living
The owner of an Informal Trust Account owns it during life, and the beneficiaries have no rights during the owner's lifetime.1
- No beneficiary survives
If no named beneficiary survives the last surviving owner, state law determines who owns the funds.1
- A beneficiary who dies first
The owner agrees to notify CPB immediately of the death of any designated beneficiary, not just of an owner.1
- When a designation takes effect
A change requested by phone takes effect only when the signed written direction is back with the bank.1
Which accounts a trust can hold2
Trust account forms CPB issues1
- Trust account application
Completed by the trustees. Sent by the institution on request.2
Return to
Mailing address: Central Pacific Bank, P.O. Box 3590, Honolulu, HI 96811
What CPB says about trust accounts2
- Whether a new account is opened
An existing account can be retitled to the trust name. The same SSN or EIN keeps the account open rather than closing and reopening it.2
- Review of the trust document
On a Formal Trust Account CPB acts "only as custodian of the trust funds," has no obligation to inquire into the trustees' powers or duties, and the trustees indemnify the bank against beneficiary claims.1
On Formal Trust Accounts and other fiduciary accounts, CPB "reserves the right to require such documents and authorizations as we may deem necessary" to confirm who may direct a withdrawal, at opening and at all times after.1
Accounts handled elsewhere1
- CPB Trust and Asset Management
Trust services where CPB itself serves as trustee, co-trustee or agent for the trustee3
Phone: 1-808-544-3544
Not in CPB's published guidance2
- A beneficiary form to download
- An online way to name a beneficiary
Sources3
Sources
(1)·
Data sourced from CPB primary sources (15 pages reviewed). How we research.
Download these CPB instructions
A printable PDF with the steps, required documents, and contact details, verified against CPB primary sources. Bring it to the branch or keep it beside the phone.
CPB estate support
Trust and Asset Management Division
Phone
Toll-free
Vice President and Personal Trust Manager
Vice President and Senior Trust Officer
Vice President and Senior Trust Officer (second line)
Vice President, Trust Officer - Fiduciary Risk Oversight
Assistant Vice President, Trust Officer
Sr. Trust Services Administrator
International Trust Officer
Institutional Trust Officer
Mailing address
Website
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