Seattle might be the most crypto-dense metro in the country outside of San Francisco.
The numbers start with income: 1.6 million households with a median of $125,000. That’s among the highest in the nation. About 29% earn over $200k, which means roughly 464,000 households at that level.
Around 213,000 of those high-earning households have no advisor.
Seattle’s Digital Asset Wealth Concentration #
Big tech runs this city. Microsoft, Amazon, countless startups. The concentration of engineers and product managers who understood crypto early is massive.
Crypto ownership here almost certainly exceeds 40% among high earners. These are people who bought Bitcoin in 2013. Who got Ethereum early. Who understood DeFi before most people knew what a Smart Contract was.
Seattle crypto holders often understand the technology better than most advisors ever will. But understanding technology doesn’t mean understanding tax code, Estate Planning, or how to structure a financial life that includes significant digital assets.
A lot of wealth in Seattle is locked in crypto that’s never been properly planned around.
The Appreciation Problem #
If you bought Bitcoin at $500 or Ethereum at $50, congratulations. You also have a tax problem you’ll need to deal with eventually.
Unrealized gains become realized when you sell. The federal government wants up to 20% plus the 3.8% net investment income tax on long-term gains. Washington has no state income tax, which helps, but the federal bill on highly appreciated crypto can be substantial.
When do you sell? How much? How do you plan around it? These are questions about financial strategy, not technology.
And it gets more complicated. If you’ve been Staking, those rewards are taxable as ordinary income when received. If you’ve used DeFi, each swap may have triggered a taxable event. If you’ve received airdrops, those are income too.
Seattle tech workers are good at accumulating crypto. They’re often less good at tracking the tax implications as they go.
Why Remote Crypto Wealth Management Works #
You live in Seattle. You work remotely at least some of the time. Your team might be distributed globally. You’re already comfortable with video calls and Slack and digital collaboration.
Why would your financial advisor need to be local?
The advisors who specialize in crypto have built remote practices because their clients are everywhere. They’ve developed secure systems for document sharing and communication. They understand that a relationship built through video calls and encrypted messaging works just as well as in-person meetings.
More importantly, they’ve gone deep on digital assets specifically. They can handle:
- Cost basis tracking across exchanges, wallets, and DeFi protocols
- Tax optimization for highly appreciated positions
- Coordination with stock compensation (RSUs, ISOs)
- Estate Planning for self-custodied assets
- Security reviews and Custody recommendations
The general financial advisor in Bellevue who added “Cryptocurrency” to their website is not the same as someone who’s built their practice around it.
Digital Asset Custody and Planning Help #
Digital Wealth Partners focuses exclusively on crypto holders and works remotely. If you’re in Seattle with significant Digital Asset holdings, they understand the specific situation you’re dealing with. Learn more at digitalwealthpartners.net.
The 213,000 high-income households here without advisors include some of the earliest and largest crypto holders in the country. Understanding the technology isn’t the same as having a plan. At some point, you need both.
