BlitZ
From banking and investments to personal content and digital identities, when much of our lives exist online, planning for digital assets at death or incapacity is no longer optional. For high-net-worth individuals and families, digital estate planning has become a central part of legacy management, touching everything from access to online financial accounts to the long-term stewardship of intellectual property and business platforms.
Yet, despite its importance, many still overlook this area. According to recent surveys, a majority of people underestimate both their digital footprint and the complexity involved in transferring or securing these assets for future generations. Experts now say that digital assets can represent tens or even hundreds of thousands of dollars in value, once you consider everything from cryptocurrency holdings and domain names to revenue-producing digital businesses and cloud-stored intellectual property.
The New Frontier: What Counts as Digital Wealth
Today’s definition of digital assets is expansive. It includes financial accounts and cryptocurrency wallets, but also extends to social media and email accounts with personal or business value, cloud photo libraries, online subscriptions, and even customer databases used in digital enterprises. The unifying theme is simple: these are assets with value and identity perpetuated electronically. Their ownership, storage, and transfer require specialized planning that goes beyond traditional wills and trusts.
Understanding this new frontier isn’t just technical, it’s strategic. As Avestar Capital’s Chief Investment Officer, Brian Fullerton recently put it, “Digital assets are among the fastest-growing components of modern wealth. They demand planning not just to secure them, but to ensure they fit within a broader legacy strategy.”
Common Challenges That Advisors Are Seeing
One of the biggest challenges in digital estate planning is that most digital accounts operate under “terms of service” agreements that govern how access and transfer work — if at all. Unlike physical property, which can simply be bequeathed to heirs, many digital platforms restrict access after the user’s death unless specific legal authority is granted in advance. This makes proactive planning essential, rather than merely a good idea.
Moreover, the landscape constantly evolves. New account types and platforms emerge while legal frameworks lag behind, meaning that what works today may need revision tomorrow. “Effective digital estate planning isn’t a checkbox exercise — it’s ongoing stewardship,” explains Xerxes Soli Mullan, Avestar Capital’s Founder. “Clients need easy mechanisms to update inventories, update access instructions, and coordinate with legal counsel regularly.”
Why Advisors Are Becoming Central to Digital Planning
For most people, taking inventory of their digital presence is daunting. Advisors now play a crucial role in initiating conversations that many clients hadn’t even thought of. The process typically begins with a comprehensive audit of digital assets — logging every relevant account or digital property, clarifying access methods, and determining which elements hold financial or sentimental value.
Once this inventory is complete, advisors can help prioritize and coordinate with attorneys to ensure legal documents, wills, trusts, and powers of attorney explicitly grant fiduciaries the ability to manage and distribute these assets. In many jurisdictions, laws like fiduciary access statutes now require clear language in estate planning documents before a trustee or executor can gain access to online accounts.
Strategic Steps Recommended by Industry Leaders
Based on best practices and Avestar Capital’s guidance, advisors recommend a multi-stage approach:
- Create a detailed inventory of digital assets and update it regularly. Online content, wallets, and accounts are constantly changing, so keeping this list up to date is crucial.
- Work with legal counsel to embed clear access permissions into estate planning documents. Without this, fiduciaries may find themselves legally barred from acting on behalf of the client.
- Appoint a digital executor or digital fiduciary with appropriate technological understanding. This can differ from the traditional executor role, especially for complex assets like blockchain-based holdings.
These steps align with broader guidance from wealth planning professionals who stress documentation, legal clarity, and secure storage of critical information as cornerstones of successful digital estate planning.
Avestar Capital on the Future of Digital Wealth
At Avestar Capital, leadership emphasizes that digital estate planning will only grow in relevance. “The next generation of wealth transfer will be as much about digital identity and digital value as it is about real estate or equities,” says the firm’s President, Shilpa Konduri. “Families that begin planning now will preserve not just financial value, but control, privacy, and peace of mind for their heirs.”
Another senior executive at Avestar Capital adds, “We see the most success when digital planning is integrated into the overall wealth strategy — not treated as an afterthought. It’s about protecting legacy in every dimension of life.”
Conclusion: Digital Estate Planning as Legacy Planning
As technology continues to shape how wealth is created and stored, estate planning must adapt accordingly. Digital assets are integral to modern life and, for many families, carry real monetary and emotional value. They require thoughtful documentation, legal structuring, and ongoing communication between clients, advisors, and attorneys.
Advisors and family offices like Avestar Capital are at the forefront of this evolution. Their experience underscores a central truth: digital estate planning is not just about safeguarding digital accounts; it’s about preserving a legacy that reflects the full breadth of a client’s life and accomplishments in the digital age.
Reference:
