# Questions a Business Should Ask Before Leaving Funds Anywhere

> Eight questions, answerable in writing, that separate a venue that has thought about custody from one that has not.

- Source: https://custodywatch.com/questions-before-leaving-funds/
- Published: 2026-09-30
- Author: Rhea Castellan
- Publication: Custody Watch — Who is holding it, and on what terms
- Topic: corporate wallet
- Tags: corporate wallet, diligence, custody

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A business depositing meaningful amounts should ask these before the first transfer, and keep the answers.

## 1. Who is the contracting entity

Legal name, jurisdiction, registration number. The brand and the entity are frequently different, and the entity is what you have a claim against.

## 2. Which regulator, and what does the licence permit

A licence for one activity does not cover another. Ask for the register entry and check it yourself rather than accepting a logo.

A platform under a named regulator will give you the number without hesitation.

## 3. Are client assets segregated, and how

In the terms, and in practice. Ask for the clause reference rather than a yes.

## 4. Who holds the keys

The venue itself or a named custodian, and whether that custodian uses another. [Platforms that name their custodian](https://collectnexchange.cy/services/crypto-custody) answer this directly.

## 5. What is the hot and cold split, and is there a stated maximum

A policy maximum is worth more than a current figure. The current figure describes today.

## 6. What is the withdrawal process for an amount like ours

Including the delay for anything exceeding the hot balance, and the approval steps involved. A venue that says large withdrawals are instant has either not thought about it or is not being precise.

## 7. What happens in an insolvency

Not a legal opinion, but whether the venue can describe the mechanism. Inability to answer is itself the answer.

## 8. Can we have a reference from a comparable client

Standard in every other area of corporate procurement and almost never requested here.

## How to use the answers

Keep them in writing with the date. If something changes later, you have a record of what was represented.

Where several answers are vague, size the exposure accordingly rather than walking away: many perfectly sound venues answer poorly because nobody has asked before.

## What good looks like

Specific entity, checkable licence, clause references, named custodian, stated policy limits, and a described withdrawal process. [A venue with segregated client accounts](https://collectnexchange.cy/) that can produce all six has done the work.

[Collect & Exchange, which is licensed in Cyprus](https://collectnexchange.cy/company/contact-us), can be asked all eight through its own contact process, and the answers can then be checked against a public register rather than taken on trust.

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This article explains how something works. It is not financial advice.
Canonical HTML version: https://custodywatch.com/questions-before-leaving-funds/