Unchained IRA

Save bitcoin in an IRA & keep control of your keys

No third-party risk and no single points of failure—you hold the keys.

Get a bonus IRA deposit of 1% of the bitcoin you transfer from a competitor bitcoin IRA (up to $400)**

Tax-advantaged bitcoin savings

Combine the inflation resistance of bitcoin with the tax advantages of an IRA. Both Traditional and Roth IRAs are available so that you can choose the best setup to meet your saving goals.

Not your keys, not your coins

Most bitcoin IRA providers require that you give up control of your bitcoin. This exposes you to the risk of exchange hacks, frozen accounts, and other third-party risks. With an Unchained IRA, you get peace of mind by holding the keys to your bitcoin.

All-in-one bitcoin IRA solution

We help you set up your new IRA, fund it with a rollover or contribution, set up your vault, purchase bitcoin, and put the keys to your funds in your hand. We’re with you every step of the way.

New to bitcoin? No problem.

We’ll walk you through everything at your own pace, including: learning about bitcoin custody, best practices keeping your keys safe, inheritance planning, and more. Get started with confidence.
Unchained IRA

Flat annual fees

Our fees don’t increase with the value of your account. After a one-time setup fee, pay a flat annual fee instead of a percentage, and see more from your bitcoin in retirement. Learn more about our fees.
SETUP
$745
One-time setup fee
Annual fee due at time of setup.
Optional Additions
$750
Concierge Onboarding (optional)
1-to-1 guidance to get you started with a multisig vault.
$75
Per hardware wallet (optional)
You’ll need two, but you can use your own if you have them.
ANNUAL
$250
IRA account fee
Ongoing fees per IRA account.
TRADING
Tiered pricing
Bitcoin conversion fee
Applies to each U.S. dollar transfer, rollover, and contribution. See trading desk fees.
Available in US only. $2,000 minimum for each USD rollover or annual contribution. You are not required to make a rollover or contribution in any given year.

**All transfers must be initiated before April 15, 2024. Bonus-qualifying transfers must be direct IRA-to-IRA transfers in bitcoin, not dollars, bitcoin ETFs, securities, or any other investment. Your qualification for a bonus deposit is determined in Unchained's sole and absolute discretion. Unchained reserves the right to deny any otherwise-qualifying bonus deposit in its sole and absolute discretion. Please see the Unchained Terms of Service for details.

Clients trust us because they don’t have to

With an Unchained IRA, you secure your bitcoin. Our role is to provide you with guidance, support, and key recovery if and when you need it.

Learn about bitcoin IRAs

Our retirement and inheritance team host webinars to explain the basics of how bitcoin IRAs work and cover your questions. If you can’t make the next session, don’t worry, we have replays available on demand!
Webinar
An intro to bitcoin IRAs

Frequently-asked questions

How long does the process take?
If you’re motivated to go through the IRA onboarding as quickly as possible, it typically takes two weeks from the point of registration for bitcoin to land in your IRA vault. That timeline is contingent, however, on prompt responses from yourself and your current custodian processing your transfer request in a timely manner.
How does the IRA setup and funding process work?
The most common way to fund an Unchained IRA is by transferring tax-advantaged funds from an existing traditional retirement account, such as another IRA or a 401k from a former employer. You can also fund your Unchained IRA through an annual contribution in USD.
Watch a video explaining how funding works
Can I send bitcoin that I currently own to my IRA vault?
Unfortunately, you cannot make bitcoin contributions to an IRA, as per IRS guidelines. The Unchained IRA must be funded in USD.

The only exception to that rule is if you already have a bitcoin IRA with another provider, and would like to transfer that IRA bitcoin into an Unchained IRA. In this scenario, it is possible to process an “in-kind transfer” into your Unchained IRA, as long as your current provider supports bitcoin withdrawals.
How is the IRA bitcoin purchased and at what price?
Any USD rollover, transfer, or annual contribution sent to your Unchained IRA is converted into bitcoin through our trading desk. Once the funds have settled at Fortis Bank (our financial services partner), Fortis will convert your tax-advantaged USD into BTC through the Unchained trading desk the following business day, and that bitcoin will be subsequently deposited into your IRA vault. The USD is converted into BTC at prevailing market rates, and Unchained charges a fee in line with our trading desk fees.

Following the purchase, you will receive a trade summary from our team, and the bitcoin will be deposited into your IRA vault within two business days.
View IRA fees
Can I pay the fees using my retirement funds?
Only the trading desk fee for bitcoin conversion is paid with funds from your retirement account. The other fees must be covered separately. Below is a fee breakdown for the Unchained IRA:
View IRA fees
Is the Unchained IRA a checkbook IRA?
No, the Unchained IRA is not a checkbook IRA. It is a standard IRA account (we support Traditional, Roth, SEP, and Inherited IRAs) that is set up through Fortis Bank, our IRA financial services partner.

Unlike other bitcoin IRA providers, we have intentionally avoided using a checkbook IRA model due to the recent ruling in the McNulty case, which called into question the tax advantages of checkbook IRAs.
Learn more through our webinar on the McNulty case
If I set up multiple bitcoin IRAs do I need to pay multiple setup fees?
Each Unchained IRA you set up will require a separate setup fee and account fee. For example, if you set up three IRAs, the total amount due at the point of order would be ($745 IRA account setup + first year of $250 annual account fee) * 3 = $2,985, and each subsequent year you would pay $750 ($250 annual account fee * 3) in account fees.

Concierge Onboarding fees only need to be paid once—we’ll guide you through setting up multiple vaults, and two hardware wallets can be used to secure as many vaults as you need.

Save bitcoin in an IRA & keep control of your keys.