Asset hiding is something that has occurred ever since divorce itself became legal. What exactly is it, though?
More importantly, in today’s digital age, how do people attempting to hide assets use technology to try to get away with their crimes?
Why do people hide assets?
CNBC discusses the problem of divorcing spouses hiding assets via digital means. First, it is important to understand asset hiding as a whole.
This typically occurs because one spouse feels financially insecure, or because they want to get back at their partner. They will then hide the source of assets or income or an asset in its entirety. By keeping this asset hidden, it ends up exempt from the asset division process and they can keep the entire thing to themselves.
Naturally, this is illegal, along with being extremely unfair to the partner in question. Of course, this has never stopped people from making attempts.
Use of cryptocurrency in asset hiding
In the current digital age, people turn to cryptocurrency in order to hide their assets. These forms of digital currency, such as bitcoin, are often harder to track due to the lower amount of federal regulation surrounding them. Though this is changing, it is still a highly unregulated land.
Many people did not know about cryptocurrency until recently, either. This means most spouses will not even know where to look for potential hidden assets, and they thus cannot tip off any financial investigator who may work on the case.
Fortunately, it is easier to track digital footprints these days with a skilled investigator on the lookout, and thus possible to regain any lost or hidden assets.