Can a payable-to-trust account be paid to beneficiaries instead? | NC

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Q: If a brokerage account is listed as payable to a trust, can the money ever be distributed directly to the beneficiaries instead? A: Usually no — if the account names the trust as the death beneficiary, the financial institution generally has to transfer the money to the trust, not straight to the individual beneficiaries. The trustee must receive and manage those funds under the trust terms…