The article argues that US state unclaimed-property laws can allow authorities to take and sell seemingly inactive shareholdings without an owner’s consent. It says this matters because investors may be treated as having abandoned assets simply for not interacting with an account, even if they are alive, receiving statements and still receiving dividends.

The author advises shareholders to log in to their investment accounts periodically to show activity. The article presents inactivity, rather than proof of death, relocation or undelivered mail, as the key factor that can trigger state action; however, the supplied text ends before giving further examples, figures or legal detail.