Two shareholders sign a buy-sell agreement requiring the surviving shareholder to purchase the deceased shareholder’s shares at fair market value. What planning tool most directly funds the death-triggered purchase obligation?
A.
A shareholder RRSP.
B.
Corporate-owned or cross-owned life insurance.
C.
A personal line of credit in the surviving shareholder’s name only.
A death-funded buy-sell arrangement requires cash at the precise time a shareholder dies. Life insurance on the shareholders is commonly used because the death benefit provides liquidity when the obligation is triggered. Ownership may be corporate-owned or cross-owned, depending on tax, control, creditor, and agreement design. Option A is irrelevant because an RRSP is a personal retirement account and does not fund a contractual share purchase. Option C is weak because credit may be unavailable or expensive after a shareholder’s death, and it shifts the funding risk to the survivor. Option D is too narrow because it pays only for accidental death, not death generally. A properly designed buy-sell plan coordinates the insurance amount, valuation formula, beneficiary or owner structure, agreement wording, tax treatment, and corporate cash flow. The planner should involve legal and tax advisers because insurance funding must match the binding shareholder agreement. References/topics: buy-sell agreements, business insurance, shareholder planning, liquidity at death.
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