How to name beneficiaries and fund a trust at Happen Bank

The bank "reserve[s] the right to refuse some forms of ownership and beneficiary designations on any or all of our accounts," and makes "no representations as to the appropriateness or effect of the ownership and beneficiary designations, except as they determine to whom we pay the account funds."¹

A trust can be named as the POD payee by calling customer service. The published form takes a single individual and has no trust-entity field.^{2, 3}

Under the deposit agreement, multiple POD beneficiaries take in equal shares and without right of survivorship.¹

The form takes one beneficiary and has no percentage field, so a separate form is used for each beneficiary, and the online flow does not let you set percentages.^{2, 4}

For payable-on-death accounts. Completed by the account owner. Available to download.²

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POD beneficiaries take without right of survivorship: if one dies before the account holder, that share does not pass to the surviving beneficiaries.¹

Under the deposit agreement, "Beneficiaries cannot withdraw unless: (1) all persons creating the account die, and (2) the beneficiary is then living."¹

On a joint POD account the surviving joint owner takes first; the beneficiaries take only after every person who created the account has died.¹

Any pledge of the account "must first be satisfied before the rights of any surviving account owner or account beneficiary become effective."¹

The application names the account type to hold in trust title: LevelUp Savings, LevelUp Checking, or a CD.⁵

Under the deposit agreement's "FIDUCIARY ACCOUNTS" clause an account "may be opened and maintained by a person or persons named as a trustee under a written trust agreement, or as executors, administrators, or conservators under court orders."¹

For trust accounts. Completed by the trustee. Sent by the institution on request.⁵

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The "ACCOUNT TRANSFER" clause says the account "may not be transferred or assigned without our prior written consent," so re-titling an existing account into a trust is not a self-service change. The bank decides between converting the account and opening a new trust account you fund by transfer.¹

The bank says that "by merely opening such an account, we are not acting in the capacity of a trustee in connection with the trust nor do we undertake any obligation to monitor or enforce the terms of the trust or letters," and that it is "not responsible for the actions of a fiduciary, including the misuse of funds."¹