As 2024 draws to a close, cryptocurrency stands at a turning point. Bitcoin has crossed the $100,000 mark and digital assets have solidified their place in investment portfolios of all sizes. Yet, amid these milestones, a critical, yet overlooked issue remains: the estate planning challenges unique to cryptocurrency and other digital assets. A Looming Crisis: Estate Planning in a Digital Era Unlike traditional assets, cryptocurrencies and digital assets operate outside established estate planning frameworks. Their decentralized nature, reliance on private keys, and pseudonymity make them revolutionary. Butwithout proper planning, crypto holdings can be lost forever, become embroiled in legal disputes, or heavily taxed. This vulnerability is not hypothetical. Chainalysis reports that nearly 20% of all bitcoin is lost or stranded, much of it likely due to the misplacement of private keys or owners dying without a plan for the now-valuable assets transferring to their heirs. As billions of dollars in digital wealth continues to accumulate, the risks tied to inadequate planning grow exponentially. With the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) of 2017 set to sunset in 2025, legal frameworks surrounding wealth transfer may undergo significant changes (while Congress appears likely to act, it is not assured). For cryptocurrency holders, this moment represents both a wake-up call and an opportunity to reassess their plans to protect and pass on digital assets to future generations. 2025 Tax Law Changes: A Catalyst for Action The TCJA temporarily doubled the federal estate, gift, and generation-skipping transfer (GST) tax exemptions, allowing individuals to transfer up to $13.99 million, tax-free, in 2025. Without new legislation, however, these exemptions will revert to approximately $7 million per individual on January 1, 2026 (adjusted for inflation). This reduction will subject a greater share of estates to federal taxes, making planning for cryptocurrency even more urgent. Additionally, the IRS’s new reporting requirements for digital assets , which will go into effect on January 1, 2025, will increase reporting requirements and scrutiny. Pursuant to the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022, Congress has allocated billions of dollars to the IRS, including a bolstering of the agency’s staff and an increased focus on the pursuit of crypto enforcement . Legal Strategies for Cryptocurrency Estate Planning To address these challenges and seize opportunities before the tax law changes, cryptocurrency holders should consider these strategies: 1. Draft Digital Asset-Specific Estate Plans Traditional wills and trusts often fall short when dealing with cryptocurrency. Comprehensive estate plans must create a succession plan, including instructions for accessing private keys, wallets, and recovery phrases (without creating security vulnerabilities). A secure, regularly updated inventory of digital assets is critical to ensure heirs can locate, access and manage holdings effectively. 2. Capitalize on Gift Exclusions and Lifetime Gifting With the current high exemption levels, now is the time to transfer digital assets out of taxable estates. Gifting cryptocurrency to heirs or placing it in irrevocable trusts can lock in tax savings before exemptions are reduced in 2026. Charitable remainder trusts also allow for tax-advantaged transfers, benefiting both heirs and philanthropic causes. Additionally, the annual gift tax exclusion will rise to $19,000 per recipient in 2025. Married couples can gift up to $38,000 per recipient tax-free. Regular use of these exclusions allows incremental reductions of taxable estates over time. 3. Embrace Multi-Signature Wallets and Collaborative Custody Strategic use of multi-signature wallets and collaborative custody can enhance both security and estate planning. By collaborating with multiple parties (such as an executor and trusted family members) to authorize transactions, these wallets prevent unauthorized access while ensuring heirs can access funds when needed. 4. Move Digital Assets to LLCs or Establish Asset Protection Trusts Placing cryptocurrency in an LLC and transferring ownership to a trust can shield assets from creditors and legal claimants. This structure also bypasses probate courts, ensuring a smoother transition to heirs while safeguarding wealth from lawsuits or creditor claims. 5. Stay Ahead of Regulatory Changes The IRS’s rules on cryptocurrency transactions are rapidly evolving and will demand more meticulous record-keeping and compliance measures. Sophisticated tools and legal and accounting expertise will be crucial to navigate this environment and ensure tax-efficient wealth transfers. Looking Forward to 2025 This year underscored the transformative potential of cryptocurrency as an investment class — but also exposed its vulnerabilities. Estate planning remains an afterthought for many crypto holders, even as the value of digital assets climbs and tax law changes loom on the horizon. For 2025, the crypto community must confront these realities. Regulators, estate planners, accountants, financial advisors and investors alike need to prioritize creating and implementing solutions that address the unique challenges of the rise of digital wealth. A Call to Action The close of 2024 is not just a moment to celebrate cryptocurrency’s successes but also a chance to prepare for its future. By taking proactive steps now — whether through establishing estate plans, creating trusts, or implementing gifting strategies — investors can secure their digital wealth and pass it on as a lasting legacy. As the saying goes, failing to plan is planning to fail. For cryptocurrency holders, 2025 offers a rare window to act decisively before tax laws change and vulnerabilities deepen. The time to protect your digital fortune is now. This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal, tax or financial advice. Consult with qualified professionals for personalized guidance.
San Francisco, United States, December 18th, 2024, Chainwire In a First-of-its-Kind Contest, the Exchange that Is Fastest to Sell 1000 Nodes Will Be Awarded 1000 Free Nodes to Share with Its Community Bluwhale , an AI Web3 start-up, today announces an innovative competition on its platform between two of the biggest and fastest-growing exchange wallet teams—OKX Web3 vs Gate Web3—to see which exchange’s wallet holders will reach 1000 Common Nodes first. The winning exchange wallet community receives 1,000 free nodes to distribute to its members who purchased Bluwhale nodes. The two exchanges have grown and demonstrated dramatic traction over the last year. OKX, one of the largest CEXes globally, has more than $2 billion daily transaction volume for just Bitcoin, while OKX Wallet has more than 100,000 active users daily. The CEX Gate is an established blockchain platform founded in 2013. One of the fastest-growing exchanges this year, it is approaching the peak of the top 10 CEXes and delighting its users with a strong diversity of token offerings. Gate Web3 is a comprehensive platform that drives blockchain technology innovation and adoption, providing decentralized finance (DeFi) services, wallet, Web3 Startup, Web3 Tasks, DApp, and other features. With Gate Web3, users engage in the crypto ecosystem and experience decentralized digital asset management and trading with efficient and secure on-chain services. The OKX Web3 versus Gate Web3 competition starts December 12th at 10AM UTC and ends when one exchange wallet team reaches the target of 1000 Common Nodes sold. Participants can support their preferred exchange in the Bluwhale Common Node Sale by logging in using either Gate Wallet or OKX Wallet and purchasing a Common Node at a 10% discounted price. Bluwhale launched the Master Nodes capable of creating communities in November, selling out Tier 1 and Tier 2 within 48 hours. It is now transitioning into Common Nodes that give buyers a lower entry price point ($50-$60) and allow them to join communities for higher reward boosts. “Node sales have been quite technical where licenses with hardware requirements are being distributed to buyers, limiting attractiveness for retail to participate. At Bluwhale, we turn nodes into a simple and fun concept by allowing communities to compete and run them on their smartphones. We are extremely honored to have OKX and Gate Web3 support our mission of decentralizing AI through nodes on mobile devices. Like this year’s excitement around PvP competitions like Mike Tyson vs Jake Paul, we are hosting this digital one on our nodes.bluwhale.com site, giving the winner community 1000 free nodes to reward its members”, said Jin. Bluwhale AI is the fastest-growing AI network on blockchains, an intelligence layer contextualizing cross-chain and off-chain information powered by millions of mobile devices acting as nodes to share data, storage, and computing for rewards. More than 3000 businesses and approximately 1 million verified users currently are part of Bluwhale’s decentralized AI ecosystem. Purchasers of both Bluwhale Master Nodes and Common Nodes will have a more integral role in the network by running nodes on their smartphones and participating in the ecosystem’s revenue streams. Since the Master Node launch on Nov. 22, the Bluwhale node sale has seen considerable traction. Over 100,000 people from 32 countries have expressed interest in viewing and participating in the sale. More than 30,000 Master Nodes have already been sold to verified owners. The Common Node sale begins on Dec. 12, 2024 at 10AM UTC. Users can visit nodes.bluwhale.com to follow the competition's progress and make their bets. About Bluwhale Bluwhale is reshaping the Web3 landscape so that users can contribute their data, storage, and computing from their mobile devices and exchange it for monetary value. This intelligence layer then matches the user to corporations that benefit from those contributions, turning a user’s digital footprint and mobile device into the most valuable asset. Bluwhale’s innovative AI application specializes in unlocking the full potential of decentralized applications (dApps) by extracting deep insights from consenting user wallets across various blockchain networks. The startup aims to drive user growth, engagement, and retention by identifying and reaching potential users through data-driven decisions and personalized wallet-to-wallet communication. Founded by Stanford and Berkeley machine learning experts and a previous TikTok AI lead, and with $7 million in funding, Bluwhale is on a mission to cultivate the smartest AI layer for blockchains. It aims to enhance dApp smart functionalities and significantly amplify user acquisition and market penetration through decentralized AI. Users can visit www.bluwhale.com . ContactErica ZeidenbergHot Tomato Marketingerica@hottomato.net Disclaimer: This is a sponsored press release and is for informational purposes only. It does not reflect the views of Crypto Daily, nor is it intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, or financial advice.
Aave DAO delegate and service provider Aave Chan Initiative has initiated a proposal on the crypto lender’s governance forum to deploy Aave v3 on Sonic. Sonic Labs announced the mainnet launch of its layer-1 Ethereum Virtual Machine-compatible blockchain Sonic on Dec. 18. The new governance proposal seeks community support that would allow the integration of Aave ( AAVE ) v3, currently with a total value locked of over $22 billion, to the new L1 blockchain. “This Temp Check seeks the community’s input on the deployment of Aave V3 on Sonic Mainnet,” proposal’s author ACI noted. Read more: Ethena Labs proposes collab with Trump-backed WLFI The Sonic Foundation has committed to providing $15 million funding, migration incentives, up to 50 million native Sonic tokens S and 20 million USDC supply. Following the temp check, consensus will take the proposal to a snapshot stage, then Aave Request for Comment and Aave Improvement Proposal. The ARFC and AIP stages lead to a vote that will see final confirmation and deployment. Sonic’s mainnet launch brings the native token S, faster finality and a fee monetization feature. Aave-Chan notes in the proposal that this feature could be a great source of additional income for Aave. “Given the impressive history of the team building Sonic, and the innovations it promises, it represents a strong candidate for deployment of Aave V3. In addition, the fee monetization for apps has potential to be an additional income source for Aave,” the proposal states in part. With Sonic live, Fantom ( FTM ) token holders can upgrade their FTM to S 1:1. The Sonic Labs team applied a points system to the L1 network’s airdrop, with about 190.5 million S tokens available to eligible community members. FTM traded around $1.16 at the time of writing. Read more: FTM soars 21% amid Sonic mainnet launch hype
Aave DAO delegate and service provider Aave Chan Initiative has initiated a proposal on the crypto lender’s governance forum to deploy Aave v3 on Sonic. Sonic Labs announced the mainnet launch of its layer-1 Ethereum Virtual Machine-compatible blockchain Sonic on…
Grayscale’s latest Bitcoin ETF has captivated investors, pulling in over $1 billion in net inflows during 2024, showcasing the growing demand for cryptocurrency investment vehicles. This surge is part of
Trump Patriot could turn early investors into multi-millionaires, like Shiba Inu (SHIB) and Dogecoin (DOGE) did. Trump Patriot (TRUMPPAT), a new Solana memecoin that was launched today, is set to explode over 19,000% in price in the coming days. This is because TRUMPPAT is set to soon be listed on numerous crypto exchanges, according to reports. This will give the Solana memecoin exposure to millions of additional investors, who will pour funds into the coin and drive its price up. Currently, Trump Patriot can only be purchased via Solana decentralized exchanges, like Jup.ag and Raydium.io, and early investors stand to make huge returns in the coming days. Early investors in SHIB and DOGE made astronomical returns, and Trump Patriot could become the next viral memecoin. Trump Patriot launched with over $9,000 of liquidity, giving it a unique advantage over the majority of other new memecoins, and early investors could make huge gains. How to Buy To buy Trump Patriot on Raydium.io or Jup.ag ahead of the CEX listings, users need to connect their Solflare, MetaMask or Phantom wallet, and swap Solana for Trump Patriot by entering its contract address – 9hmvtogFEjzZQMFfJ5Hiq7fQSq7E38mG3Qjb7X42qM6P – in the receiving field. If you don’t have one of these wallets already, you can create a new wallet in a few minutes and transfer some Solana to it (which will then be used to buy the memecoin), from an exchange like Coinbase, Binance and many others. In fact, early investors could make returns similar to those who invested in Shiba Inu (SHIB) and Dogecoin (DOGE) before these memecoins went viral and exploded in price. If this happens, a new wave of memecoin millionaires could be created in a matter of weeks – or potentially even sooner. The Solana memecoin craze continues amid larger memecoins, like Shiba Inu (SHIB), Dogecoin (DOGE) and DogWifHat (WIF) trading sideways in recent weeks and losing momentum. This is why many SHIB, DOGE and WIF investors are instead investing in new Solana memecoins, like TRUMPPAT. Such memecoins have no utility and no inherent value, but investors looking for high gains have been investing in them due to their potential to rapidly rise in price.
S&P 500 Continues 2.5% Drop, Nasdaq 100 Falls 3%, Gold Down 2%, BTC Slides 5% ————— 💰Coin: BTC ( $BTC ) $100,952.50 ————— NFA.
BOB, the "hybrid layer-2" network seeking to make Bitcoin the center of the decentralized finance (DeFi) universe, has taken a step toward that goal by integrating with BTC restaking protocol Babylon. An abbreviation of "Build on Bitcoin," BOB's aim is to establish Bitcoin as the foundational network for DeFi by creating bridges between itself and other blockchains, using Bitcoin as the anchor chain to finalize transactions. Integrating with Babylon forms part of BOB's roadmap by giving it "Bitcoin finality," the point at which a transaction is permanent and irreversible on the oldest blockchain. Assets deposited from other chains on BOB would be confirmed and verified on Bitcoin via Babylon's protocol. Babylon, which is billed as a way of using BTC to secure other protocols and decentralized applications, is the foremost Bitcoin staking project in the sector, with total value locked (TVL) of around $6 billion. Staking refers to offering up crypto tokens to support the running of a blockchain network in return for rewards, similar to accruing interest in a bank account. Such a process is fundamental to networks like Ethereum and Solana which run on a "proof-of-stake" mechanism, but is absent from Bitcoin, which use "proof of work." However, given that the total market cap of bitcoin is greater than every other crypto asset combined, projects like Babylon are exploring ways of tapping into BTC's deep reserves to benefit the broader industry. This week, Babylon completed its third staking round in which it took its total BTC staked to 57,290 ($5.93 billion), placing it in the top 10 protocols by TVL, according to data tracked by DeFiLlama . BOB's next step is to launch bridges connecting Bitcoin to other networks, using BitVM, a computing paradigm designed to allow Ethereum-style smart contracts on the world's original blockchain. BitVM is set for testnet release in Q1 of 2025. Read More: WBTC Episode 'Reopened Old Wounds' of Centralized Failures: Bitcoin Builders Association
Bitcoin experienced a significant drop following remarks from Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, indicating a more cautious approach to interest rate cuts in the upcoming year. The decline in Bitcoin,
Bitcoin dropped after Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said the central bank would cut interest rates at a slower pace in the new year.