Coinbase account after a death

Coinbase has a published, official procedure for accounts of holders who have passed away. It is a paperwork process, not a technical one, the funds are held by Coinbase, and the estate follows the platform’s rules. No intermediary is needed.

How it works

1. Confirm the account exists. Coinbase asks you to identify the account, including the email address associated with it. Evidence usually comes from the email of the person who passed away, bank statements or documents, see how to find someone’s crypto after they passed away.
2. Use Coinbase’s Executor Services form on the official help centre, the link above, typed by you, never clicked from a message.
3. Provide the required documentation. Coinbase’s published requirements include the death certificate, proof of the lawful representative’s authority (probate, letters testamentary, letters of administration or the local equivalent), identification, and a signed letter instructing Coinbase what to do with the balance.
4. Receive into another Coinbase account. Coinbase transfers the assets to an account in the same name as the lawful representative; if you do not have one, you create one as part of the process.
5. Follow their timeline. Verification is slow by design. That is normal.

What heirs should know

• No beneficiary designation exists. Coinbase accounts do not have a transfer-on-death setting; inheritance runs through the estate process.
• Never log in without lawful authority. Unauthorised access to the account can freeze the process and has legal consequences.
• Coinbase never asks for your password or for a transfer to a “safe” wallet. Anyone claiming to represent Coinbase who asks for this is not Coinbase.
• Requirements vary by jurisdiction. Coinbase’s help centre is the authoritative source; check it for your country before sending anything.

What this page is not

This page provides no paid services. The official procedure is the route, direct and without intermediaries. If the account cannot be located, the search steps in how to find someone’s crypto after they passed away still apply, and authority questions are covered in legal authority vs technical access.