Laurie Havelock, Money & Business reporter at thei newspaper today reports that in the age of smartphones and social media, there are many ways to keep things secret from your partner. But deciding to start a whole TikTok channel promoting what you are doing is probably a good way to get caught. Aaron’s partner did not know he had invested hundreds of pounds into cryptocurrency until she stumbled across his social media channel.

These stories are becoming increasingly common. Mike LaCorte is the chief executive of Conflict International, a professional intelligence and security agency which helps people and companies trace assets, among other services. He says the company has “seen an uptick in enquiries relating to individuals fearing that their partner has invested joint funds in higher-risk crypto assets without their buy-in or permission”. LaCorte adds that there has been a significant increase in clients who are undergoing a divorce and suspect their ex of hiding assets in a digital wallet, and want to find out if this is the case. “Ultimately, the growth of virtual currencies has been a game-changer for complex high-value divorce cases with some individuals believing that these types of assets are fair game when it comes to avoiding full financial disclosure,” he explains.

Harriet Errington, a family lawyer at Boodle Hatfield, has also seen a “dramatic increase” in the number of cases that she has worked on featuring hidden crypto assets, and estimates that around 25 to 30 per cent of divorce cases in the departments roster involve them in some way. “The very nature of cryptocurrency attracts investors who are seeking anonymity and are prepared to accept a certain degree of risk in their approach to investments,” she adds. “It isn’t a great surprise that we are seeing an increase in the use of such assets by parties embarking on divorce proceedings. The two main hurdles in these cases tend to be, first, proving that the assets actually exist, and secondly, their value, which can fluctuate wildly with the market. It is this rapid growth and fluctuation that may often lead spouses hiding assets to claim that they were not worth disclosing at the time of investment.”

Read the full article at inew.co.uk