A spouse may want to hide assets for numerous reasons, ranging from simple spite to genuine fear of one’s financial situation. Regardless of the reason, it is still illegal.
But that does not tend to stop determined people. In fact, in the age of the digital wallet, more people have turned to craftier methods of hiding assets than ever before.
Why choose cryptocurrency to hide?
CNBC discusses the problem of cryptocurrency in relation to divorces. Cryptocurrency and other forms of digital currency have, until recently, remained highly unregulated. Government agencies did not oversee them and the IRS did not require extensive documentation. A lot of these digital spaces allowed for the growth of criminal activity because of that, including money laundering.
Asset hiding is a more benign example of the illegal activities people get up to with digital currencies. Many people have turned to this during divorce because they do not expect their spouses to know or understand cryptocurrency in general.
This is a generally fair assumption, as even the majority of divorce attorneys did not understand the threat that cryptocurrency posed in terms of asset division until recent years.
With the boom in popularity for certain forms of these currencies and the mainstream’s attention turned on it, however, there is less room to hide than before.
Potential red flags
The red flags of asset-hiding also tend to shine through even in the face of new forms of assets. This includes a sudden noticeable reduction in spending, and increased paranoia over digital devices or financial matters. A spouse will likely cut off their spouse’s access to their financial information as well. Anyone noticing such signs may want to take further action.