Bitcoin Forum

I though it right to share this with the forum as I think this will save some persons from a whole lot of drama and stress in case of a deceased.
I got to find out about a POD form which simply means  PAYABLE ON DEATH  from a friend yesterday  after his father  passed on, leaving them with some reasonable  sum of money in the bank and upon check, the father already has a POD form which saved them from the stress of getting a lawyer and all the legal processes to claim the money but rather all they had to do was get a death certificate, take it to the bank along with the POD form and the money will be issued.

I felt this was very important because I know how much effort and money it took us to get access to my late fathers money in the bank after he passed on.

I think everyone needs to get this form especially  if you have any holdings in the bank.

N/B: no one is dying anytime soon but death is inevitable.

Interesting information, and I am sorry for your loss. Personally, I had no idea POD was something that you could fill in at the bank. I bet banks don't notify clients of this at old age, hoping they leaves their cash behind. Sinister, but can one expect less from banks?

I am sure this will be news to more people and not just myself, +2.


Haha! I am glad you added this, before the trolls played on it otherwise.

I also never knew of this until yesterday and further search on Google also showed that banks wouldn't tell this to their clients left alone the older ones because they already hope they leave their cash behind  and frankly we can't expect anything less from banks.


Thanks senior and I'm glad I have to get to pass some vita information to the forum.


Lol 😆
Funny enough, we all want to live so long both in good health and in wealth and many people  don't want to ever discuss  death not even in assumptions.

Although asking for POD form is a good idea, but it's weird when we're discuss it here.

Most of people in this forum is a Bitcoin holder, they almost of their wealth in Bitcoin, remember the phrase "be your own bank". Bitcoin holder never trust in bank anymore, but they still use fiat and bank too because they've no choice as their country only accept fiat as legal tender. So they just have a small amount money in bank and not really that important to recover the money back to the next generation.

I think that this POD document is required in your country, but it definitely isn't required in mine.
My father died 2 years and I was able to get all his money in his bank account with a death certificate and another certificate of inheritance, which I got from the administration of my local municipality. No "payable on death" document was needed.
I think that the only way you(and anyone else) would need a lawyer is when you fail to prove that you are the son and heir of your father.
I wonder what the process will be, if I had money in a centralized crypto exchange and I die someday. I'm pretty sure that my heirs(if I have any) won't receive any crypto from my accounts and the crypto exchanges will simply find dumb excuses to refuse the withdrawal.

This is very important for everyone, especially those whose parents are wealthy and have a lot of stock across their bank accounts; it will save them the stress that could have come afterwards from the banking management. But aside from this POD, as you call it, which is the next of kin, which is usually listed on the account holder's personal form, if the real owner of the account is deceased, won't the next of KIN automatically gain access to the account by just providing a few documents to prove that the person is really the one listed there?
 
That aside, I know that in this present century, those who are exposed to blockchain technology have shared their funds with a few in the banking sector, but some in their self-custodial wallets, where they can be in total control of them. In cases like that, I believe the next KIN kind of thing will serve as the POD since most people usually have a few trustees who are either family members or relatives who they share access to their holdings with. When anything negative happens to them, there is someone available to access it for them.

I have never heard of POD documents in my country. But there is also no case that the heir cannot take money from his deceased father. I think in my country automatically when the account owner dies, then the ownership of the assets will immediately transfer to the heirs. If in your country you need to make a POD, are there many cases of heirs who cannot take their parents' property?

In addition to the assets that will be transferred to the heirs, debt will also be transferred to the heirs. There are documents related to this in the loan agreement with the bank. in terms of debt, in your country will the debt be transferred to the heirs or will it be paid off when they die?

I actually think that if we die and no one knows about the bitcoin wallet key then no one can unlock our assets forever, and nothing can be done about it.

It's is a good option to make such decision as quick as possible especially for the aged and senior citizens, i think the next of king of a thing is also relevant in this kind of situation, but to get total freedom from any regulating financial institutions, you may also choose to use bitcoin for your decentralized digital asset that does not need all the necessary KYC follow ups, and let them always have a means to have control over their assets, i believe ba decentralized means will be more appreciable than the one with financial institutions like banks.

I have never come to hear about this although I've put no interest to know it anyway but what I noticed most is that those their parents have so much wealth would easily ask their parent to have such form filled so as to ease stress for them, maybe whenever they noticed that their parents are getting aged they may request their parents to get such form to ease them stress.
But from my understand, when telling a local dad for those who still have might be feeling their children are wishing them early death meaning it would be too hard for their parents to pay heed to such form all less those educate parents might over look it and got it filled for emergence purposes could be sickness or death.

I am unaware of POD because I thought every bank will add the nominee at time of creating the account or it can be updated via internet banking whenever we want, even recently I got message about nominee updation from bank but I don't have any changes so I just let it be.

Thanks for sharing this vital information.

This is something every one who owns a bank account and has large deposits there for savings or other purpose should be aware of, so that their family do not get stranded in the case of sudden death or their money left to a bank that do not care about them.

I feel banks do not do enough to make sure that their customers know about the existence of such a form because they know that some funds abandoned in accounts over a period of time with no one coming to claim it can be claimed by them and used for their personal gain without having to answer to anyone.

I don't have idea about POD and this is like the first time of hearing it. But with your explanation on what it's like, I'm thinking this is like a form of insurance. I've got a cheap insurance on my bank and I've applied on it and just in case a sudden death appears to me, my family can easily get the insurance money and they only need to issue a death certificate of mine. The difference of this in that insurance of what I've taken is that, this POD is like an inheritance money, CMIIW.

I just learned about this important bank document from this post. It is similar to a an individual's will. I think it is a very vital document to keep because death is unpredictable. At least the beneficiaries will be free from legal dramas that happen after the death of an account holder. But the main beneficiary of the fund should be a trusted individual because it could trigger greed.

Stealing of the banks' savings or deposits of dead customers is becoming rampant. There have been issues of criminal bankers fraudulently withdrawing funds from the account immediately after they get the information that the client is late. I know it is very difficult to trust people but somebody needs to be aware of your financial standings and other vital information to reduce this kind of incident.

I do not think that such a system is applied in my country, as after death all property is transferred to the court, which applies the provisions of inheritance, which is the money left by the deceased, where the deceased’s loans are paid first, and then the money is divided between his wife and children according to rules and provisions determined by a judge in the court.

These procedures are very slow and require the approval of all children (especially those related to land and real estate). Then, the absence of one of the children, or his lack of consent, or the lack of consent of the mother or wife, means that such funds will remain frozen for many years.

the majority here resort to writing the password for bank cards in a separate account on a piece of paper, provided that they take over the money from it until the inheritance is distributed, but there is no system supported by the state or law such as PAYABLE ON DEATH, although it seems like a good idea.

And I thought a lot of us are already bankless. With so much advice to leave your money out of the banks because of the bank runs, You must have missed the warnings for still having a bank account and having plans to get POD?  Not also sure if this option is offered in my country. But it wouldn't hurt to have POD if you still have a bank account though.

Fathers couldn't just divide everything up while he was still alive. But I could understand why. Because if the father distributed his wealth whiles still alive, he will die sooner when he sees his kids spend like there is no tomorrow. It's also sad to see his son spend money on sex change.

In some countries, it is called POD and in my country, it is called Nominee form. It is a very handy thing in case of emergency. When my father-in-law passed away a couple of years back, my mother-in-law did not have to face even the slightest issue as the nominee form was correctly filled in. She just had to carry her own identity proof and the death certificate and got all money transferred within 3 working days. A completely hassle-free process.  The government has now made it mandatory to have a nominee even if you want to open a stock broking account. It makes sense!

Dear op you have shared a great piece of information here. I didn't know about POD yet well i also had no money in the banks. Because i do not prefer to keep my money in there. Plus even if i have holdings in there, can i still use POD as a son not as a father? I will try to share this new information with my loved ones too as it might help them also.

Maybe this POD forum have different name here so before sharing with others i will try to contact with my banks so that i could know the correct term. But i think as the abbreviation of POD is PAYABLE ON DEATH, it tells the whole story so i think it would not be a problem.

I think this topic is quite educational, I also had a bad experience like the one OP mentioned. I will look more into the details of this POD and see how it works in my country. I find it amusing that some people believe that bitcoin holders do not store money in their bank account. Yes everyone here knows the banks are trash and they keep printing money and causing inflation, but we still use them. Bitcoin adoption is still growing worldwide, and frankly we are not close to the point where we can entirely dump the banks. The governments recognize the threat of bitcoin and they are integrating CBDCs into the system in a subtle manner without the people noticing.

Well I don't have to agree totally with you because I'm certain that there are people who have some reasonable  some of bitcoin  in their wallet and yet still has some good millions  in fiat in their banks and at some points I can't get to blame them because it seems the bank is one of the safest place to keep ones money as  there are laws I helps protect the interest of the customers that in cases of casualties or the bank goes bankrupt,  that it will be responsible for repaying their customers money and this alone makes it seems banking with local banks are guaranteed.

This  is a welcome development  and I hope it gets implemented because I'm sure that banks wouldn't just hand the form to anyone except mostly on recommendations.


Funny enough we only follow threads and don't  practice what we preach.
Most people spoke against centralized exchanges but they're all using it and have you taken time to see the usauage records of centralized exchanges? You'll marvel.
Alot of people here still patronize  the local banks because bitcoin  and cryptocurrency isn't a legal tender and hence any user who's  country isn't cryptocurrency friendly shouldn't boost or condemn or even speak  ill of the local banks.

Though constructive, this strategy may not work for everyone. A Swiss army knife won't assist if you need a chainsaw. Families and finances vary, so do ways to provide for loved ones when we're gone. For people with complicated finances or vast estates, the POD form may complicate issues. Thoughtful point regarding death's inevitability. Everyone must prepare using their best tools. Have a plan, whether it's a POD, will, trust, or detailed letter under the mattress.

Thanks for the tip and suggestion and i honestly wasnt able to know about such thing because the casual stuff on which if ever if your parents or loved ones passed away and having that kind of money in the bank
which you are the ones that will inherit or would get then you would really be passing into lots of processing and hassles on which it is really that pain in the ass but since you do really need up those funds
to make it useful then you wouldnt really be minding the hassle and now we do have that POD then it would really be able to save up those people who are on such situation to be able to save up themselves in so
much hassle. Honestly i wasnt aware on this one time will come it would really be totally useful. There are really that parents or guardians who are really that mindful about into their loved ones and its
true that we cant stay up here forever on which it would really be that understandable that we would really be passing away and its just worthy that they would really get on what we have accumulated or earned.

This information proves valuable, I must say. I have had a neighbour once, who lost their dad and they struggled to claim the benefits and pension which the company he was working for owed upon his demise.

I want to know if such kind of document exist for a cryptocurrency holder. One who has investment in crypto and dies, could there be such a document to transfer his coins to his relative, that is if the keys cannot be found, and the relatives/family has claims of i.d used for KYC and other proof?

Also, what if someone before their death, already filled this POD form, and collected a loan. Will it require the bank to also hold the relatives/family accountable to clear the debt?

N.B: No one is dying anytime soon. Just an honest thought.

Too late for me to want that but, am sure to put that in place for my kids but, you know, if you watch much of ID, you would find out that things like this gets parents killed. An easy means to a deceased asset especially when it’s a lofty one. Of course there would be a will to settle the rest.

I never knew of a POD, so many informations that are hidden from you less you ask or is being told but how could one have known.
Apparently, that’s for centralized systems as we aren’t going to find that within a decentralized bitcoin network. Guess your POD would be having to relate to your wards or spouse your private key or seed phrase, just a don’t do. It’s our bane!

The part where no body hopes to claim responsibility. That’s why taking collateral on loans issued were some of the best moves for banking industries but in recent times where things are been made easy and the hunt for customers have made many neglect the practice. They’ve got there ways and somehow, they would find there ways to profit making.

People can have a scenario that directs their choice towards bank depository to save all crypto wealth so that it is passed on to the family legally, for example you start cleaning up when you are very sick. Of course you can hire a lawyer to inherit your crypto-wealth if it is a large sum, but back to the op's aim, this is an alternative way to save costs instead of involving a lawyer.

I think this highly varies from country to country. I haven't processed something like this, but I have heard how extremely hard it is here. You even need to publish the extrajudicial settlement 3 times for 3 weeks in a newspaper. There are many other requirements. Although it is already made a bit easier thanks to a new tax law, the requirements are still a big hassle to the grieving family.

I'd rather advise old people to choose ATM over passbook. At least with an ATM, a family member who knows the PIN could withdraw everything easily when the account owner dies.

The information is very helpful and adds to the knowledge of all my friends. Maybe the bank system in each country is different regarding the requirements for disbursing bank account balances for families who have died. in my country, the requirement is to do it after the parents die first, then we can take care of it so that it can be taken up by the heirs.

In my country, as an heir, I have to prepare requirements such as:
1. ID cards of heirs and ID cards of account holders
2. Certificate of deposit (for deposits), savings book (savings owner)
3. Death certificate
4. Certificate of heirs.

After this has been fulfilled, assets owned by deceased parents can be taken from the bank for heirs. To be honest, this is very inconvenient in my country. I can say that it is still difficult and the process is long. I hope one day, my country can implement a system like in your country too. just by filling out the POD form and this form can be filled in before the parent dies.

Thanks for sharing this op. I searched about it on the banks where I have an accounts but I can't find any information regarding POD or similar, maybe they have other term? I think I have to personally inquire about this.

I remember when my father died, my mom also presented the necessary requirements to withdraw the funds that will be used for his funeral. It took her a while before we finally got the money because of the additional documents needed that the bank demand, they're strict in this matter.

I don't usually deal with banks so this is honestly the first time I'm hearing about POD or Payment on Death, thanks for this really important information because most people probably haven't heard of it.

When a person dies and has an account in the bank, the heirs suffer from complex legal procedures to obtain the money of the deceased, and in many cases, the family of the deceased may not know that he had an account in one or more banks, so this money is lost, and the banks, of course, are happy with that.

So it is good to have this form and to fill it out and tell the heirs so that they can get the money from the bank easily.

in the US

Every time I have opened a bank account it's had a POD component to the application. Figured it was baked in.

I leave everything to my mom in the event she has passed it all goes to charities I have already chosen.

I don't like my kids.

I didn't know about this thing before, and I decided to check whether my country has it. In my country, one can make a special statement in the bank for an event of death, but that's basically to transfer ownership of a bank account to a specific person. It's still cool, but it's not about a specific sum of money being paid out. And it's considered a supplement to the testament (or a testament if there's no additional document), so there are still documents needed to claim that money. Perhaps the usefulness of this option does depend on a jurisdiction.

Different countries, different rules. That's what I got from @OP's story.

I just heard about this. Usually, if someone dies, their family can request a death certificate from the hospital and bring it along with proof of identity from other family members (in this case, the father, mother or siblings) to the bank, tax or other related office with the government.

Then the government office verifies if they are really family members and checks the necessary documents. Specifically for banks, family members can show a death certificate and proof that they are their children or relatives. Then, the bank will verify with the government office (or this requirement is required before they come to the bank office). The bank will check the accounts of the deceased and if there is money, the bank will hand it over to family members.

Everything in this life is inherently impermanent, we cannot anticipate everything when that case happens to our own family.
I very much welcome this and see it as a protection for the interests of loved ones, sometimes we also need to live a little further even though in this case it is really a no-brainer desire to see a loved one die.
But if I know this problem, then I understand the importance of this problem in life.

I have had about the POD form before but one will have to bother himself if he has a lot of properties for the children to inherit. I don't have the interest in this but I think this is an important form for us to inform our old parent mostly if they have properties to for the children to inherit. The bank are one of the firms that will always want to earn from there client at any slightest mistake. I have seen Many cases that bank claim the money of the deceased client because the families do not know about the funds in there bank.

Through a legal process, I think even next of Kin is not entitled to the money in account except when the real owner of the account already made an arrangement on payable on death, but in Nigeria, I have forgotten one document they called, it is used to process the money after the owner of the account has passed away, that's what they use to retrieve money in account without getting a lawyer or getting legal process involve but this of course may be different from other country but I'm making reference to Nigeria because I knew you are from Nigeria and if you need a video about the explanation, I will forward it for you.

Death has been my concern and I think this is also a concern for Bitcoin holder who held private key in close secret, it's the best thing to do but I just hope one don't passout with the private key to the grave while the family are on earth suffering to look for money to arrange for his burial. ;D

The problem is that if you give someone the key to your bitcoin wallet, your funds could go missing at any time. The problem is that if you give someone the key to your bitcoin wallet, your funds could disappear at any time. And bank tellers - they are very likely to take advantage of the situation

Death is one thing we can't escape as human being, only those who will be alive around the time when Jesus Christ returns that won't die but go with him to heaven. The rest of us will have to die therefore we have to be prepared for it everyday. The information you haave passed is very important to those individuals from your country and maybe neighboring countries as they might also be practicing this in their banking sector. Every country has their own law and they have to be followed which is why they have to get the  POA form.

In my country this isn't needed, if you have a next of kin linked to your bank account, they have a right to the money and asset you left behind and this is how it should be in all countries. We shouldn't make loved ones pass through stress to get money left behind to them.

Well, undoubtedly such things exist appropriate to each country, then, the requirement is a certificate of death or whatever it is called in each country, the form is random paperwork, you know.

On the other hand, the inheritance includes the money from the bank.  Come on, I honestly don't understand the particularity of this topic, but no way.

The importance here is always to make the inheritable terms very clear, really is! because disposing of that money is complex for the interested parties, so beyond that particular form, which continues to be a procedure within the real process, which is the inheritance.

Not withstanding your disparage or logical aspersion on bank, even if you decide to hodl your money in btc or any other cryptocurrency, remember to have a confidant who will know your phrase to your wallet or will have access to it by means of directions you will drop on the exact description to get your passphrase otherwise such incident of death is still same as what experience OP shared and in fact regarding to cryptocurrency, if the passphrase was not disclosed then forget your earnings at least. So this is a head up that POD or disclosure of passphrase is apt.

Yes, there are really indeed things which cant really fit out on such situation because there are really things which its not really that something ideal to be exposed into other peoples awareness like private keys or seed phrases on which we know that on the time that there's someone who do able to know on what it is, then there's always a chance for those money to be stolen because temptation is there and the main features of
crypto is that it cant really be traced up once you've been hacked. This is why its not really that applicable for this kind of situation unless if it would be personally given to the ones who would inherit.

Agree on most points on here that this would always boils down on a certain countries laws in regarding to it on which here in our place that i wasnt aware about that kind of form because once there's someone died
on your family then it would be automatically means that you would inherit those things that they had left but of course it would always be having those kind of requirements which it would be that normal.

This is informative information because this is the first time I will hear about the POD but sadly I don't keep money in the bank and only have a few funds I budget for the week or month.
In the meantime, I believe this will help a lot of people that keep funds in the bank or that have grandparent which currently receive monthly pension bonus funds.

A nice suggestions though but most at times the ATM card get expired and how would they managed to renew their cards without the original owner to signed their signature on the card renewal form otherwise the family members can't be able to access the account as well. Cheque book is something very difficult for family members to use and make withdrawal from the owners account.

Except in most cases where either the children learns the signatures of their parents to be able have access to account, this act is not encouraging the best is just either have the ATM card with them and make sure is up to date before whatever may likely happens.

Well, this seems to me very useful information, however.. you must remember that the conditions that different corporations handle regarding scenarios like this may vary from entity to entity and also be regulated by the particular laws of the nations where they reside and operate develop. . . so taking it for granted as a general fact can set aside certain considerations that must be taken into account in each particular case, however I am sure that each financial institution must have a policy like this or similar in the scenario you mention, and many people may not know, so thanks for the contribution.

If it's a checking account that is left by a dead loved one, I guess you don't have a choice but to go through the process. As for an ATM account, expiration is probably not much of a problem. ATM cards usually expire after several years. It's an unfortunate coincidence though if the expiration happens around the time of death.


I don't think forgery is a good option. Signing on behalf of a dead parent is probably illegal in all jurisdictions. Especially involving a financial document, I'd rather go through an inconvenient process than risk getting entangled in a legal problem.

Is this applicable to all countries? We do have relatives right now that died in an accident both husband and wife, and one of their children but until now, the bank has been processing this with the help of the mother of the husband, which takes too long, but all requirements have been met. If using POD, does it speed the process? But thanks for the information. I was not aware of this, and this is very helpful just to be prepared.

Yes. That's the prerequisite. But, maybe yes, as a child there are also those who don't want to be bothered with the complicated administration of the bank in the process of claiming at the bank for their parents' savings after they died for one reason or another.

In this case, where one of the members can also withdraw funds from their parents' savings that have been stored in their bank account, that is, on one condition, when our parents deposit some funds at the bank, we are reminded to make an ATM card (Automatic Teller Machine).

I think this is another easy and hassle-free way to record everything in cash and stay in his account for the rest of his life without needing to submit a POD form from the bank.

This is literally the first time I'm getting to know that something like this exists that can save you the hassle of running here and there only to get the money someone late left you or your family. Banks along with courts make you do a lot of paperwork and visit a lot of places meet a lot of people getting signatures and whatnot only to get what is righteously yours, that does make one safe from all the drama and stress as you said.

I really appreciate the information you shared and I will definitely get my POD form from my bank once I have a significant amount stored in there so that I can pass it on to my children to save them all the hassle and doing all those paperwork visiting different offices around the city.

This is not possible in the country I live in. At least it can be done for a short time, but then it's not valid. Because there is a system used by the state and it works in an integrated way with all systems. For example, when a person dies, it is not valid when you try to use that person's card at an ATM. The system knows that person is dead. We need to know the legal processes required to avoid dealing with such situations.

We need to stay away from actions aimed at deceiving others. Otherwise, you may face big fines.

You can take the forms as in the subject. Or, through a lawyer, you can inherit the information containing all your accounts to your family to be given after your death. There are many options.

I am surprised to see this not mandatory in your country. In India filing nominee of your Bank account is an absolute necessary step even while opening up an account. Infact you can even allocate how much of it should go to whom. Even in case of Demat accounts, fixed term deposits etc. This is a very basic step. Obviously I can just imagine the fate of the family who lost their person and even will have to fight a case for their own money.

Someone talking about ATM withdrawal it has certain daily limit of withdrawal so things aren't that easy.

I just hope this applies to all countries, there are so many funds that have been taken over by the banks because the deceased didn't discuss the money matter with the close relatives and all, even with the next of kin issuing details some bank will not notify you of any money owned by the deceased. Even with this POD, one needs to be aware and be notified before you have a claim to it.

Yeah I saw people talking about ATM withdrawals and I this will only work if you know the card pin and of a truth, majority of us wouldn't want to disclose our ATM card pin to anyone not even our spouseeft alone family members and this is where the challenge with ATM withdrawal is else i would have been one of the best options.

My country's banking system  is a messed up one and at such  everyone wants to get money either by crook or by hook and the banking  sector isn't left out on this and since there sre possibilities of the bank having claims over the money of a deceased, I guess that is already enough reason not to want to make the form an obvious  one but the goodness is that,  I read one if the comment that it is made compulsory when opening  a cooperate account but not everyone can get a cooperate account but we hope the society gets aware of the POD form.

What a wonderful information. I'm hearing this for the first time. I think most people are not aware about this. Banks will never tell clients about this because of their selfish interest. That's why I love this forum. Alot of things has been learnt from here and I will continue to learn more.

Not sure I'd want to hand out too many of these, I guess its not too different from a cheque that does not expire.  I think its reasonable that a bank doesnt especially highlight the availability when the correct course is via other legal means.
I suspect the crypto could only be passed on by being sold.  Unless you were donate the physical usb stick type device containing the balance that would work also I guess but I find that method to be a bit haphazard personally as its possible for things to get lost or damaged.   I think this part of crypto might represent some vulnerability.

Your last sentence is the icing on the cake and it's true. Our people think when anyone talks about death around them it's a bad omen. Whether we talk about death or not, it's something that's programmed to happen. The simple way to sequent it is to say that we all are dead people walking but waiting to drop.

Now that banks are beginning to have this form it will also be good for them to always alert their customers about it with series of adverts on it. They shouldn't just be silent about it and then insidiously wait when such funds can't be tracked by deceased families so the banks can claim them.

Very bitter truth and most times I even wonder if people even imagine themselves absent in the world and I believe  if we have more people who ever take out some time to imagine themselves absent in the world then we'll  have a better world as I believe  that people will get to realize that nothing is eternal and no need for hate and bitterness when we'll  definitely  die someday and most times, I even wonder if people who do evil intentionally to others even to killing others in either diabolical ways or other ways ever have the thought that they will die someday?
Well that's a topic for another day.

Well I don't think the banks will make this form obvious anytime soon and your response above says it all why they wouldn't want to disclose this.
I've also heard case where an account officer was operating the account of a deceased even without informing the bank or the family of the deceased and it was finally noticed and the account officer was later prosecuted and this is a show of greed and I think the POD form should be made necessary while opening  an account or when an account reaches a certain amount.

Thank you for the information OP. Yes, death is inevitable that’s why we have to at least prepare for it. I just hope banks are also smart enough to inform their clients about getting a POD especially for their big clients so that when unforeseen events suddenly happen, those families left will still benefit from their late family member’s bank deposits and investments.

I have used this during the death of my father in law. He had his pension account and to receive the pension after his death we were requested to fill the form along with the legal heir certificate. Accordingly the legal heir to receive the pension after my father in law's death is my mother in law. Her bank details have been updated and she receives the pension. Much needed information shared by OP. I used this service back in the year 2020.

I don't think this kind of POD Form that is issued by the Bank is applicable in my country, in here Bank is Obligated by the law to give the money of the deceased to their family, or else if they want to give their money to someone outside of family they need to make a wills (this one might need a lawyer). Both my parents died last two years when the covid attacks, gladly they don't left much money so I and my siblings never bother to argue about some money, all those money were spent for the funerals.



I wish I don't need bank account, most of the transaction here now is cashless, and the only legal currency is the money issued by central bank, Bitcoin is illegal as the form of payment here.

Good thing if it does happen but there are situations where those possessions or bank accounts involved wont really be given out on the heirs or to those loved ones until if there's someone would claim.
There are instances where banks didnt really bothered out themselves on giving on what they dont own but rather they do keep on remaining silent until the time comes that it had been remembered into the family
who had been affected.Good thing that it was remembered because if it doesnt then for sure those funds or money would really be that be put up into their pockets.

So far i wasnt really that still aware about POD form here on which banks been having about inheritance or whatsoever and just like on what you have said that banks would be the ones who would
reminding you if ever there's really a bank account of someone who had passed in your family but in overall it would really be just that normal that you are the ones who would really be
making up some follow ups on something like this, you are the ones who would really be needing to process specially if you do know that your loved ones have something money left in bank.

This is something that I have always wondered: what happens to my deposit in banks when I’m gone all of a sudden and I haven’t delegated an heir? For sure my immediate relatives would have to get something, right? But the legal fees would surely be getting the bulk of what I might leave. POD is a great way of ensuring that they will still have access to whatever money I have left in the bank if worse comes to worst. Of course, no one wants to die that early against our terms, but we cannot really tell for certain when we will be leaving this world.

To tell you the sincere truth, I don't think those whose consciences have been seared with hot iron ever imagine in any way that one day they will die. If these ones do, there won't be so much vices and wickedness in this world as everyone will know there's a day of reckoning. This day most people don't evaluate life based on legacy but on wealth. It's worse in Africa. Good name being better than riches is almost a cliché in Africa now.

The story you shared is common place with us in Africa but so many people from saner clans will think it's a figment of someone's imagination.

I agree. To think that there's always been an option such as this, but never knowing as banks don't necessarily advertise or mention them to clients (specially when applying for an account) is terrible. As someone who is saving not only for myself, but for the rest of my family it would be good to know that my hard earned savings will still be usable for them once I pass. As stated, death is inevitable so it's good to know that the money we worked hard on can still be useful for our loved ones.

Never heard of such a thing and it doesn't necessarily make much sense, but laws around what happens to people's assets will vary wildly between countries. Not sure how a POD form would interact with the rest of someone's estate when it comes to settling the will. If a person has assets and debts, which is quite common, the debts need to be resolved as well. I don't see why this piece of paper would override anyone else being owned money before the whole estate is settled. I guess it may make sense if the person does not owe any other money elsewhere.

First time I'm hearing about this. Thanks for the piece of information.
This is the kind of information the fraudulent institution should educate their clients on, but they won't because they're looking for every means necessary to scheme money off their customers.
I felt your next of kin then gets what's in the account at the time of death if they can provide legal evidence that the owner of the account has truly died. 

No one prays for death (except if you're suicidal) but we should always prepare for it. In the same way, no one prays for negative things to happen but we also have to ensure our property and lives.
People should try to write their wills and put their affairs in others. Doing these things doesn't mean you're calling death. It means you're just preparing for the inevitable.

If you want to learn more through this forum, you should also be able to learn about logic along with things that naturally happen. Especially in the case of banks, because banks also have special reasons when they keep things secret from their clients so that they are not suspected by clients and can still be trusted by their own clients. Actually this kind of thing is also not much different from the goals of business people in this world where business people also will not reveal all the processes and things they want to achieve to everyone.

Because if all things are disclosed to the public by the bank or the businessmen, the path they take will be easier for their opponents to read in terms of business. So they are likely to find it difficult to succeed when there are more of their opponents who already know their ultimate goal in this matter, so it is only natural that banks keep something secret from their clients in order to achieve their desired goals very smoothly without anyone suspecting them or in the form of other disturbances that might come at any time without them knowing.

Bitcoin is definitely a good choice more than any centralized bank. However, in cases like for seniors who have been trusting bank for so long, I think they have all the right to know about POD because that will make them benefit their money even after they have gone. The families left will surely be grateful knowing that they won’t struggle for the expenses anymore when their parents have finally rested in peace.

Real smart and thanks for the tip. This is just some of the things that most people miss out on or are not aware is something that's already existing so they never bother to ask, and for the most part they thought that the tedious process is the only way around the system. While I see this being very helpful for people who are so indignant with choosing banks over bitcoin, this just goes to show how powerful bitcoin is in the right hands and when used correctly. Saves the people from all the legal troubles of claiming their parent's money that's saved from the bank after they pass on provided that their parents gave them the key and all that.

in any case, I hope this reaches more people so at the very least people don't get duped by the bank over their own money.

Debt settlement can have the potential for disputes and it is no longer a matter for the bank, I think it will not be detailed in the POD and the handling process will be separate which must involve attorneys.

In common practice, depositing money in a bank doesn't require submitting sources of income statements or debt records either in the first place. However, banks and customers are still bound by a legal agreement where such documents can be requested at a later date.