Lost Your Bitcoin in California? You Might Get It All Back

Why It Matters

By slowing disposals and formalizing recovery procedures, the change could preserve value for owners and alter how unclaimed crypto contributes to state revenues and custody practices.

Summary

California has enacted a law barring the state from immediately selling abandoned Bitcoin, pausing escheat sales and creating a clearer path for owners to reclaim crypto assets. The measure obliges state agencies to hold digital assets rather than liquidate them, which could reduce legal and operational burdens on exchanges that previously handled forfeiture and sale. By slowing disposals and formalizing recovery procedures, the change could preserve value for owners and alter how unclaimed crypto contributes to state revenues and custody practices.