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I've had a Swan IRA since early 2022. I'm debating moving over to Unchained...especially while Unchained running their special (through Aug 15th) and waiving significant fees.

You look at review sites and Swan outranks Unchained. So I would like some first-person experienced input.

If you are an Unchained client...

- Would you happily make the same choice?

- Do you have an Unchained IRA?

- What other Unchained products do you use?

I am considering making this move because...

- Swan still doesn't allow you to hold your own keys for a Bitcoin IRA due to lack of "regulatory clarity" if the IRS comes after you due to unfettered access to your Bitcoin (McNulty case). FYI, that isn't completely true...Swan will allow you to do a Checkbook IRA, but Unchained seems to provide a better "design" with the 2-of-3 multisig to allow them to audit transactions without them having control.

- When Swan went through their layoffs, they got rid of a lot of people providing the main reason for me staying so loyal to Swan (Dante, Callahan, Livera, etc). I valued Swan because of their significant contribution to Bitcoin education.

- Love him or not, Cory also made some great calls on rug-pulling companies. He has also been a great ambassador on MSM as he was making those calls. I haven't noticed whether there has been fallout since Swan itself "got out over their skis" and gambled on price to the point they need to now make headcount/budget cuts.

I do think there are still some great people at Swan - Lubka is always great and responsive and their support team is outstanding and highly competent. Their IRA and transaction fees are also very reasonable (and no fees to move to self-custody for non-IRA BTC). They also have ACH! I can't believe Unchained still doesn't have that capability?

Anyway, I'd love some thoughts on the Unchained IRA and Unchained in general. I like several of their folks, also...although was disappointed when Parker moved on (but like what he is doing at Zaprite...although I can't afford it for the transaction level of my own business).

This is the first time I've tagged people to encourage their input in the conversation, but I know there are some strong opinions from the likes of nostr:npub1guh5grefa7vkay4ps6udxg8lrqxg2kgr3qh9n4gduxut64nfxq0q9y6hjy and nostr:npub1qny3tkh0acurzla8x3zy4nhrjz5zd8l9sy9jys09umwng00manysew95gx.

#bitcoin #ira #unchained #swan #multisig

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Discussion

cuban 1y ago

#asknostr

BitcoinBadger 1y ago

appreciate that extra tag - completely slipped my mind.

[ARCHIVED] Jay 1y ago

I took my ira out last year as on chain Bitcoin from swan and just paid the taxes/penalty. Now I have more Bitcoin and one less account.

BitcoinBadger 1y ago

I will admit to thinking that same strategy over the last year. I did do that with some tax-deferred annuities I had...but I couldn't afford to pay the taxes/penalty on the Bitcoin IRA, so I'd end up parting with some of my stack. Not prepared to do that right now, so I want in in-kind, no-penalty type of transfer.

ODELL 1y ago

MOVE ASAP.

NOT YOUR KEYS. NOT YOUR COIN.

Rand 1y ago

BitcoinBadger 1y ago

I knew I could count on your ALL-CAP enthusiastic, Bitcoin-fundamentals response.

Andy 1y ago

I use Unchained for part of my stack and am very happy with them. Excellent service. Not having ACH is a pain but they plan to roll it out in a few months.

BitcoinBadger 1y ago

I may still keep my LLCs…and my personal account…with Swan because I do sweep all of those into cold-storage and hold the keys. And wouldn’t even think about moving them until Unchained supports ACH and keeping low transaction fees.

Bobby Muldoon 11mo ago

What did you end up doing? I’m in the same boat. I only have part of my stack with Swan, but they seem shady these days

BitcoinBadger 11mo ago

I moved the IRA to Unchained...got multi-sig and I own 2 of the keys. Big sigh of relief.

I've purchased my last bitcoin through both River and Strike.

At some point, I'll probably engage Unchained's Sound Advisory - or the Bitcoin Way - for some tax and estate planning and perhaps consider splitting my stack to another multi-sig arrangement using something like Casa or OnRamp (would require more research before I could offer an opinion).

Looking at River and Strike to see if I can also move my small LLC Bitcoin treasuries over, too. I wish Strike had Bill Pay for businesses like they just added for individuals.

Bobby Muldoon 11mo ago

Hey, do you have opinions on Strike vs River yet? I’m trying to decide who to use for my normal DCA. Before, I was using Coinbase with custom limit orders since it was the cheapest I could find, but I want to support a Bitcoin only company moving forward

BitcoinBadger 11mo ago

I'm still good with both and would probably continue to support both as Bitcoin companies.

- Strike interests me because of the Direct Deposit and Bill Pay options that would allow me to live on a bitcoin standard

- River has the Savings account earning 3.8%, so that it way above banks and credit unions for that 6-12 month emergency fund. No bill pay, though.

- Would lean in favor of the one that eventually offers different loan/credit options.

Another platform that I'm not using for DCA or smash style purchases, but am trying to incorporate into my daily/monthly routine is Fold. If you are a CrowdHealth subscriber, they also cover your Fold+ membership. Also, both Strike and Fold have extra sats-reward bonuses if you purchase gift cards.

I'm also monitoring for the best providers for small business. I think both Strike and River have business accounts, but Strike doesn't have the Bill pay setup for business accounts yet (only personal). So rapidly changing landscape of offerings, but both...as well as Fold...have stellar reputations and people who give back to the community through education and innovation.

Bobby Muldoon 11mo ago

Very helpful, thanks! Is the River savings account for Bitcoin holdings as well, or just USD?

BitcoinBadger 11mo ago

You can have them custody bitcoin, of course. Otherwise, the only thing earning interest/yield is USD....they consider it a holding area for DCA funds, if you wanted.

Bobby Muldoon 11mo ago

Cool, I’ll check it out. Going to just set up DCA for both River and Strike. Might as well give both of them my business