How to name beneficiaries and fund a trust at First Hawaiian

A P.O.D. authorization may be placed on an individual or a joint account.¹

The bank's notice of change effective May 31, 2022 amends the Deposit Rules "by allowing a payable on death authorization on a checking account." The posted Rules, which predate it, still read "This authorization cannot be applied to checking accounts."^{2, 1}

A trust may be named. The Rules pay the account to the trust if it is in existence at the owner's death, and to its legal representative if it ceases to exist after the death but before payment.¹

A charity may be named. The Rules pay the account to the charity if it is in existence at the owner's death, and to its legal representative if it ceases to exist after the death but before payment.¹

A trust may be named as IRA beneficiary.³

The Deposit Rules allow only one beneficiary per account. There is no percentage split among multiple named beneficiaries and no contingent beneficiary.¹

A P.O.D. authorization must be signed in a branch.¹

For payable-on-death accounts. Completed by the account owner, with the banker. Provided at a branch.¹

For IRAs. Sent by the institution on request.³

A P.O.D. beneficiary designation controls the account regardless of what the owner's will says.¹

If the named beneficiary dies before the owner, the P.O.D. authorization terminates and the account is paid to the owner's estate.¹

On a joint account, the beneficiary owns the account after the last owner dies.¹

An existing P.O.D. authorization can be changed or deleted during the owner's lifetime by contacting the branch. The bank pays the balance to the beneficiary last designated according to its records.¹

A P.O.D. authorization is available only at the Hawaii branches. "In trust for" accounts can no longer be opened at the Hawaii branches.¹

"In trust for" accounts are opened at the Guam branches, and an account with a P.O.D. authorization held there is treated as an "in trust for" account. On the death of the last surviving trustee, funds go to the beneficiary, or jointly to the beneficiaries if more than one is living.¹

"In trust for" accounts are opened at the CNMI branches, and an account with a P.O.D. authorization held there is treated as an "in trust for" account. On the death of the last surviving trustee, funds go to the beneficiary, or jointly to the beneficiaries if more than one is living.¹

A trust gets a new account rather than a retitled one. Deposit Rule 13 does not allow an existing account to be transferred to another party "unless you close your account and have the new owner open a new account."¹

Under Rule 18, the customer, not the bank, notifies the third parties that initiate direct deposits and automatic payments when an account is closed or its number changes.¹

An account owned "either in your individual capacity or as the trustee of your own revocable living trust" is automatically an Associated Account for Priority Banking combined balances, so funding a revocable trust does not break a fee waiver.⁴

The first-year trust management fee discount, a former Priority Banking benefit, was discontinued as of May 31, 2022.⁴

If the property securing a home equity line is held in a trust, the bank's home equity disclosure lists trust reviews among the third-party services a borrower pays for.⁵

Corporate trustee, co-trustee, agent for trustee and trust real estate services⁶