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How do spouses use crypto to hide assets?

On Behalf of | Mar 18, 2023 | Family Law |

Asset hiding exists alongside divorce and has since divorce itself became legal.

These days, many people attempting to hide assets in divorce turn toward cryptocurrencies to do so. But how and why do they do this?

Transferring assets to crypto

CNBC discusses the use of cryptocurrency in divorce. Cryptocurrency is a form of digital currency that has only recently garnered mass public attention. Up to that point, many people used crypto as a way of getting unregulated transactions under the nose of the government, without having to worry about taxes.

Though the government cracked down on crypto in recent times, this has not stopped people from using it as a way to hide money from unwanted eyes.

In still illegal but less dramatic situations, this includes divorcing individuals using crypto to hide their assets from their spouses.

They do so by transferring other assets like cash into cryptocurrencies like bitcoin. They intend to sell their crypto stocks after the divorce gets finalized, keeping it hidden in the meantime so they do not have to worry about dividing anything with their partner.

Tracking crypto stashes down

These days, it is easier to find hidden assets in digital currencies because more people have an awareness of it. This means it is possible for forensic financial analysts with a specialty in digital currencies to work on tracking missing or hidden assets down.

Thus, always pay attention to potential red flags that may indicate asset hiding so you can take this information to analysts and investigators. This can include furtive behavior surrounding finances or sudden changes in financial spending habits.