Illinois residents who have cryptocurrency assets and are planning to end their marriages should be prepared for the likelihood that the divorce process will be much longer and more difficult than usual. There are issues regarding cryptocurrency that can make it difficult to locate and value them.
Cryptocurrency is a type of virtual currency that has existed for almost a decade. It exists online and is traded in transactions based on blockchain technology. Each online transaction with cryptocurrency is linked to a private and public key that makes it possible for every transaction to be followed back to a single person.
In 2017, cryptocurrency became a much larger part of the mainstream when the price of bitcoin increased to $20,000 per coin. Since that time, much of bitcoin’s value has fallen.
Based on the results of a survey, just 5 percent of people in the United States had cryptocurrency holdings in 2018. However, 21 percent of the additional respondents stated that they were thinking about making cryptocurrencies a part of their portfolio. As the popularity of cryptocurrency continues to grow, an increasing number of divorce attorneys are having to grapple with disputes regarding the high-value digital assets.
Professionals in the legal field are discovering that it is very important that they are well educated on cryptocurrency assets. However, according to some experts, enough is not being done to instruct and inform legal professionals about how cryptocurrency works. Finding hidden cryptocurrency assets can be extremely difficult, and it can be even much more so for people who do not understand how cryptocurrencies work.
A divorce attorney may work to obtain a client’s desired settlement terms, including those regarding property division of complicated assets such as cryptocurrency. A lawyer may conduct investigations to locate high-value assets hidden by the opposing party.