Over the past decade, as crypto has gone from an abstract digital concept to a more accepted form of alternative investment, it’s become possible to invest in crypto inside your retirement accounts.
If you’re in it for the long haul on crypto, a tax-advantaged Crypto IRA could provide excellent tax advantages. But not every IRA provider allows you to engage with crypto inside retirement accounts. iTrustCapital Review
That’s why platforms like iTrustCapital provide an important service. The company allows you to buy, sell and stake crypto assets inside your retirement accounts. They offer Premium Custody Accounts (PCA) – their Non-IRA account that lets customers buy and sell digital assets with extra security and institutional-grade custody – all inside a secure closed-loop system. These aren’t retirement accounts, so they are taxable. Here’s how it works. iTrustCapital Review
Founded in 2018, iTrustCapital has a goal of empowering and providing secure access to millions of investors who would like to participate in the economic growth potential of crypto assets. The company has already supported more than $14 billion in transactions. iTrustCapital allows investors to buy and sell crypto in real time inside their tax-advantaged retirement accounts (Crypto IRA). And recently, they launched their non-IRA Premium Custody Accounts. iTrustCapital Review
With features including easy account creation, support for more than 80 crypto assets and precious metals (gold & silver), and articles that explain the ins and outs of crypto investing, iTrustCapital can be a strong consideration if you’re thinking about adding crypto to your long-term investing strategy. iTrustCapital Review
iTrustCapital is ideal for U.S. investors seeking a simple, affordable way to include crypto or precious metals in their retirement portfolio or even just buy and sell in a Secure Premium Custody Account (non-IRA). iTrustCapital Review
Investors have the choice between a Traditional Crypto IRA and a Roth Crypto IRA account. In a traditional IRA, contributions are tax-deductible, and withdrawals are taxed. On the other hand, Roth IRAs are funded with after-tax dollars, offering tax-free withdrawals, if certain conditions are met. The self-directed nature of Crypto IRAs means that investors have direct control over their crypto asset choices, but you have to go through a platform that allows this, like iTrustCapital. iTrustCapital Review
One of the most compelling benefits of a Crypto IRA is its tax advantages.
Example: Say you buy $100,000 worth of Bitcoin (BTC) on a crypto exchange. Over the next few years, the value of your BTC holdings increases to $1,000,000. If you decide to sell your BTC at this point, you’ll have capital gains of $90,000 ($1,000,000 – $100,000). The exact amount owed in taxes will depend on how long you’ve held the Bitcoin and your overall tax situation. iTrustCapital Review
Now, let’s consider the same transaction within an IRA, specifically a Roth IRA.
Again, you buy BTC at $100,000, this time within the Roth IRA using after-tax dollars, just like the non-IRA scenario. The value of Bitcoin grows to $1,000,000 over the next few years. If you sell the BTC within the Roth IRA, the $90,000 gain is not subject to capital gains tax. If you wait until you’re at least 59.5 years old and the account has been open for at least five years, you can withdraw the money tax-free. iTrustCapital Review
This highlights the main advantage of buying and selling within an IRA – the tax benefits.
This can provide you with exposure to an alternative asset and offer meaningful tax benefits, unlike other platforms or asset managers that typically only allow traditional assets (such as stocks and bonds).
Right now, iTrustCapital supports over 80 of the most popular cryptocurrencies.
Buy & Sell Precious Metals Within An IRA
In addition to giving you access to cryptocurrency investing, iTrustCapital allows you to buy and sell precious metals (physical gold and silver). iTrustCapital utilizes VaultChain™, a system where investment-grade gold and silver are stored at the Royal Canadian Mint and tracked on a secure blockchain ledger. Clients can buy and sell these metals at any time, with transactions processed with precious metals leader Kitco. iTrustCapital Review
Some Ability To Stake Crypto
Certain cryptocurrencies validate the blockchain through staking. Putting tokens into the blockchain allows it to show proof of validation. When you choose to stake your tokens, you may put your tokens at risk, but you will earn income for staking. You cannot buy or sell your crypto tokens while they are being used for staking. iTrustCapital Review
iTrustCapital allows you to stake cryptocurrencies, such as Ethereum (ETH) and Solana (SOL). iTrustCapital retains 22% of your earnings as a staking fee, but you get to keep the remaining 78%.
Crypto Custody With Well-Respected Names
Crypto assets are gaining traction worldwide, with more people getting involved every day. But as with anything digital, challenges such as hacks and scams remain common across the industry. iTrustCapital works with some of the most respected names in the industry, Coinbase Custody and Fireblocks, to help secure client assets. iTrustCapital Review
The way assets are secured depends on the type of investing account:
Crypto IRAs
- Assets are held with a regulated third-party chartered trust custodian, in compliance with IRS rules.
- iTrustCapital works with leading institutional storage providers such as Coinbase Custody and Fireblocks to secure clients’ crypto holdings in a fully secure, audited, and stress-tested institutional environment using Cold Storage, Multi-Party Computation (MPC), and Hardware Security Modules (HSM). iTrustCapital Review
Premium Custody Accounts (PCA)
- PCAs Ooperate within iTrustCapital’s closed-loop system (USD and eligible crypto in, but only USD out; crypto withdrawals to external wallets are not permitted. reducing one of the leading causes of fraud and asset loss from malicious actors.
- Clients’ USD is secured by U.S. -based, bank-regulated third-party U.S. Qualified Custodians.
- Clients’ crypto is stored with the same institutional storage providers in a fully secure, audited, and stress-tested institutional environment using Cold Storage, Multi-Party Computation (MPC), and Hardware Security Modules (HSM). iTrustCapital Review
Are There Any Fees?
The fees that iTrustCapital charges are based on transactions (buying and selling). It costs nothing to open an account and store assets at iTrustCapital. You incur charges only when you buy and sell. These are the fees you can expect when buying and selling crypto and precious metals with iTrustCapital: iTrustCapital Review
- 1% Crypto Transaction Fee (when buying and selling)
- $125.00 over the spot price per ounce of gold
- $10 buys and $5 sells over the spot price per ounce of silver
How Do I Contact iTrustCapital?
iTrustCapital prides itself on excellent customer service, without relying on AI bots and automated responses. What’s unique with iTrustCapital is that they are the only company with an award-winning US based customer service team. Many crypto companies mainly rely on AI bots, automated responses, and overseas customer service representatives. iTrustCapital Review
The company’s headquarters is based in Southern California.
You can also submit a help request through the company’s help website or call a support representative at 562-600-8399.
How Does iTrustCapital Compare?
iTrustCapital is one of only a few companies that allows you to buy and sell crypto inside your IRA. Of course, you can find much lower crypto transaction fees on dedicated crypto sites like Binance or Coinbase. The trouble with crypto brokerages is that they don’t offer IRAs.
iTrustCapital specializes in investing in crypto inside your IRA and secure non-IRA crypto custody accounts. That comes with a higher transaction fee, but the fee iTrustCapital charges is on par with other IRA providers. For example, AltoIRA also charges a 1% transaction fee, though it supports more than 100 tokens. iTrustCapital Review
is a self-directed IRA and i401(k) provider. It charges a setup and monthly maintenance fee along with transaction fees.
Investors may find that iTrustCapital is a less expensive alternative. However, RocketDollar allows you to invest in a wider range of assets, not just crypto and precious metals like iTrustCapital.
How Do I Open An Account?
To create an account, visit the iTrustCapital homepage and select “Create Account” in the upper right corner. You’ll need to provide a username, an email address, a password, and a cell phone number. Once you complete that, it’ll ask you to verify your email address.
After that, you can log into your account and start an account application by hitting the application button on the top of the screen. The application requests information such as your legal name, Social Security Number, current and former addresses, and other applicable details. iTrustCapital Review
Once those details are complete, decide what type of account you want to open up; either an IRA (traditional, SEP IRA, or Roth IRA) or a Premium Custody Account (non-IRA). It depends on the type of account you’re opening, but the process typically takes between one and two weeks. To set up a non-IRA it should take less time, but for an IRA the start time depends on the funding type and how quickly it can get funded.
Is It Safe And Secure?
Investing in crypto always carries a risk, and the risk profile associated with crypto investing may not be appropriate for your retirement investments. Your information could be stolen at any time, which is a risk of doing business anywhere online.
But iTrustCapital has several layers of security in place to keep your investment safe and secure. While the assets could go down in value, you are unlikely to lose them to theft, hacking, or other major problems because of the decure closed-loop ecosystem. iTrustCapital Review
Is It Worth It?
Overall, iTrustCapital has a unique product that makes crypto investing more accessible to everyday investors.
The big problem that I see with iTrustCapital is that it focuses exclusively on alternative assets. Most of the time, a retirement investment portfolio should be designed around classic growth and income assets like stocks and bonds.
Alternatives like crypto or precious metals will typically comprise a small portion of the portfolio. If you choose to invest retirement funds in crypto, iTrustCapital makes it easy.
But you need to manage your crypto holdings with your more traditional holdings. Don’t tip too far in the direction of crypto holdings simply because iTrustCapital makes crypto investing easy. iTrustCapital Review
