Maine Crypto Unclaimed Property Rule Takes Effect July 29 With Manual Conflict

For a business holding customer crypto, the remittance duty applies when it has private keys, credentials, or other information needed to transfer presumed-abandoned assets. The holder must report the property and deliver the crypto in native form within 30 days before filing, following the unclaimed-property administrator’s directions. A holder without sufficient transfer information must retain the assets until a transfer becomes possible. Assets controlled only by an owner using their own wallet are not part of that third-party transfer process.

For virtual currency worth at least $1,000, a holder must send certified U.S. mail at least 60 days before filing when it has a sufficient owner address its records do not identify as invalid.

Liquidation is not automatic. The administrator may direct a holder to liquidate within 30 days before filing, decline certain assets, exempt classes by rule, or direct another disposition when liquidation is not reasonably possible. An owner cannot recover gains that occur after an administrator-directed holder liquidation.

That pre-filing process differs from native crypto delivered into state custody. The administrator generally may not sell those assets for one year. If the state sells within that period and the owner files a qualifying claim before the year expires, the statute allows the greater of sale proceeds or claim-time market value, plus applicable increments.

July 29 does not itself liquidate or transfer every account. The five-year dormancy, notice, and reporting conditions still must be met. The Treasurer’s manual leaves holders without an answer on the first report cycle or the transition from its three-year VC02 entry.