New Louisiana Law HB1256 Addresses Unclaimed Crypto Holdings

[fullfitlarry]

https://x.com/BitcoinNews/status/2061528970529530097

So I did try to find out the official government links to understand more what this House Bill is, here is the link: https://www.legis.la.gov/Legis/ViewDocument.aspx?d=1469157

So from what I understand, an digital asset as per their definition is:

• Virtual currency
• Cryptocurrency
• Natively electronic assets, including stablecoins or non-fungible tokens (NFTs)
• Any other digital-only asset that confers economic, proprietary, or access rights or powers

Not included as digital assets:

• A security
• Game-related digital content
• A gift card
• A loyalty card

So crypto falls on the category, under its unclaimed property laws. And those can be considered as abandoned if it hasn't been touch for 3 years. And if that is the case, an exchange, being a custodian will have to report and transfer the assets to the state under Louisiana's unclaimed property system.

And this law will again reiterate the importance of having our crypto on a wallet that we have control with. Otherwise, the state can confiscate it in there are no activity on that said account.

I think 3 years is too short though. But in any case, what are your thoughts of this law? Its this confiscation or recovery?

In such cases that someone forgot that he has a account with an exchange and some crypto on it and remains dormant until it has been confiscated and then return it back to to the owners. Or cases that the owner has died and his heirs doesn't know about the crypto holdings?

[(BTC)]

Not included as digital assets:

• Game-related digital content

Phew, thank goodness my Genshin Impact waifus, Runescape gold, Maplestory cash shop accessories, and CS:GO2 skins are safe. Can the state have my balls if I haven't used them in 3 years, too?

As far as if it's confiscation or recovery, I think it's kinda...both? Obviously having this law is good for the government if they want free coins in exchange for their patience, but I also think this is in place to force people to move large amounts of coins intentionally left dormant on exchanges, as a means to track where they end up. You aren't exactly the brightest person in the world for intentionally having a large amount of dormant coin on an online exchange in the first place, but then again you could also just be forgetful.

[rat03gopoh]

Or cases that the owner has died and his heirs doesn't know about the crypto holdings?

It's the custody service's job to send several notifications to the account holder before reporting it to authorities as an abandoned asset. The service could create a new policy that encourages users to list relatives/heirs' contact as whitelisted contacts. So, when the asset is at risk of being liquidated by the state, the service sends a notification to the listed contact, either simultaneously or in multiple waves.

[ThemePen]

We should understand that in putting our online fortune in online exchanges we are sacrificing real ownership and we are entrusting our money to a middle man. Issue now obviously shows why putting money on an online platform is extremely dangerous in case we want long term.

I think this new law definitely represents disguised way of state seizure, not beneficial recovery strategy, since period of three years is nowhere near long-term investor. Mostly, individuals purchase online currencies with intention to keep it securely stored in five to ten years without logging in or conducting transactions. In order to safeguard your wealth against these hostile state regulations, it is crucially important to transfer your funds in personal digital wallet and have exclusive keys to them.

[FinneysTrueVision]

This also happened in California recently where it was portrayed as the government wanting to confiscate people’s property because they are woke communists. Louisiana is very different from California and so are other states with similar laws. These laws typically allow the original owner to reclaim their abandoned property. It’s not as overreaching as some may think, but it’s also not entirely ideal. If I forgot I had some coins that massively increased in value on Coinbase, I would hope it would be as easy as resetting my forgotten password to get my funds back.