How to name beneficiaries and fund a trust at Cobalt CU
Beneficiaries are managed in branch, by phone or by mail. Trust paperwork is taken in branch or by phone
The goal with your Cobalt CU accounts is to make sure every account has a transfer mechanism in place—either a POD beneficiary designation or trust ownership. Because Cobalt CU is a membership-based institution, trust retitling must maintain the membership eligibility requirement. Accounts without either one pass through the estate, by probate or the state's small-estate procedure.
With 18 product types, Cobalt CU 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 Cobalt CU
Payable on Death (POD) beneficiary designation form (for payable-on-death accounts) and IRA beneficiary designation form (for IRAs).
- Full legal name
- Date of birth
- Social Security number
- Relationship to the account holder
- Fill in every beneficiary detail and the allocation percentages
- All account holders sign
- Return it by mail, in branch, or through Video Banking
- Fill in all beneficiary details and percentage allocations
- All account holders must sign
Required Documents
- Beneficiary's full legal name
- Beneficiary's date of birth
- Beneficiary's Social Security number
- Beneficiary's relationship to the account holder
- Government-issued photo ID (at a branch)
- POD beneficiary designation form, signed by all account holders (when the form is returned by mail, in branch or through Video Banking)
- Trust pages showing the trust name, establishing signatures, and trustee designations, or a Certificate of Trust
- SSN or EIN for the trust
- Government-issued ID for each trustee
- Whether you are opening a new trust account or retitling existing accounts
- That the settlor holds Cobalt membership in his or her own right, per Bylaws Article III, Section 6
- Which trust pages Cobalt wants to see and whether a Certificate of Trust will suffice
Required Documents
- Trust document pages or Certificate of Trust. Pages showing the trust name, establishing signatures and trustee designations. A Certificate of Trust is accepted in lieu of the full trust document
- SSN or Employer Identification Number (EIN) for the trust
- Government-issued ID (for each trustee)
- Full legal name
- Date of birth
- Social Security number
- Relationship to the account holder
- Fill in every beneficiary detail and the allocation percentages
- All account holders sign
- Return it by mail, in branch, or through Video Banking
- Fill in all beneficiary details and percentage allocations
- All account holders must sign
Required Documents
- Beneficiary's full legal name
- Beneficiary's date of birth
- Beneficiary's Social Security number
- Beneficiary's relationship to the account holder
- Government-issued photo ID (at a branch)
- POD beneficiary designation form, signed by all account holders (when the form is returned by mail, in branch or through Video Banking)
What Cobalt CU says about beneficiaries and trusts
Each section is Cobalt CU's own statement, with the document it comes from numbered under Sources.
Which accounts take a beneficiary3
- Payable-on-death account
POD designation is available on Cobalt's deposit accounts: checking, savings, club, money market and certificates.1
Beneficiaries are added to each account individually. A designation on the Share Savings account does not carry to a certificate or a club account.1
- IRA
Traditional and Roth IRAs use a separate IRA beneficiary designation form. A POD does not apply to them.1
- Health savings account
An HSA transfers on its own beneficiary designation, not a POD.1
Who can be named1
- A trust, IRAs
A trust can be named on the IRA beneficiary form.2
How many beneficiaries, and how shares are split
- All accounts
Multiple beneficiaries are permitted, with allocation percentages the owner sets.1
What a designation takes to be effective
- All accounts
All account holders sign the form. Phone alone does not complete the designation; a signed form is required.1
Beneficiary forms Cobalt CU issues2
- Payable on Death (POD) beneficiary designation form
For payable-on-death accounts. Completed by all account holders. Sent by the institution on request.1
Return to
Fax: 1-402-829-7155
Mailing address: Cobalt Credit Union, 7148 Towne Center Parkway, Papillion, NE 68046
- IRA beneficiary designation form
For IRAs. Sent by the institution on request.1
What Cobalt CU's agreement says about beneficiaries1
- Changing or revoking a designation
Changes can be made at any time at no charge.1
Which accounts a trust can hold2
What Cobalt CU says about trust accounts2
- Membership
Under Article III, Section 6 of Cobalt's Bylaws, a revocable trust requires the settlor to be a member in his or her own right. An irrevocable trust requires either the settlor or the beneficiary to be a member.4
Both revocable and irrevocable trusts must state the name of the beneficiary. The trust may be a member as an entity only if all settlors, beneficiaries and trustees are within the field of membership.4
- Review of the trust document
Cobalt Credit Union does not act as trustee and does not monitor or enforce the terms of the trust.2
Accounts handled elsewhere1
- Cobalt Wealth Management (LPL Financial)
Investment, insurance, retirement, estate and financial planning services5
Not in Cobalt CU's published guidance3
- A beneficiary form to download, for deposit accounts
- An online way to name a beneficiary
- A trust as the named POD payee, for deposit accounts
Sources5
- 1.Contact Support
- 2.Schedule an appointment
- 3.Branch locator
- 4.Cobalt Credit Union Bylaws
- 5.Cobalt Wealth Management
Sources
(4)·
Data sourced from Cobalt CU primary sources (21 pages reviewed). How we research.
Download these Cobalt CU instructions
A printable PDF with the steps, required documents, and contact details, verified against Cobalt CU primary sources. Bring it to the branch or keep it beside the phone.
Cobalt CU estate support
Cobalt Wealth Management (estate, retirement, and investment planning through LPL Financial, a separate entity — products are not credit union deposits, not NCUA-insured, and may lose value)
Phone
Toll-free
Financial advisor Erik Wiese (direct)
Cobalt Estate Planning / Legal Karma document support
Mailing address
Website
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