eprivateclient quotes Richard Honey and Charlotte Hill on how the Property (Digital Assets) Act in the UK is impacting private clients

The Property (Digital Assets etc) Act, initially introduced in 2024, came into effect in December 2025. The Act recognises cryptocurrency and non-fungible tokens - among other digital assets - as legal property. What does this mean for succession planning and the administration of estates containing such assets?

The new law means that digital assets can now form part of an individual's estate, and can be gifted, held within a trust, or administered on death by executors, in the same way as 'traditional' assets. However, the act does not list which digital assets count as property or define the exact rights they confer - providing a framework, rather than a full rulebook. This will mean that disputes, custody models and cross-border issues will still be worked out through the courts and wider regulation going forward.

Beneficiaries will be able to access mediation and litigation to enforce probate claims, for which digital assets will be accounted for alongside traditional wealth. Courts are also given a stronger foundation to apply already familiar property remedies in the case of fraud, theft, misappropriation and insolvency.

Richard Honey, Partner in our Private Client team, and Charlotte Hill, Partner in our Financial Services Regulation & Funds team, comment in eprivateclient on the implications of this new legislation.

Charlotte Hill comments:

That means greater scope for freezing and proprietary injunctions to prevent dissipation, clearer routes to tracing claims, and more robust court orders directed at intermediaries such as custodians and exchanges.

Richard Honey adds:

Clients need to ensure the right individuals are appointed to access and distribute those assets on death, particularly where private keys or platform credentials are involved, so we may see more professional executors being appointed for that purpose.

Read the full article in eprivateclient here.