Crypto Assets

Cryptoassets and underpinning them distributed ledger technology
have attracted significant attention globally. Spread of transactions
with cryptoassets caused countries to develop their own strategies in the legal regulation and tax treatment of cryptoassets and dealings with them.

This article provides an overview of cryptoassets and the underlying
technology, represents the main activities with cryptoassets focusing
on cryptocurrencies, i.e. Bitcoin, Litecoin and equivalents. Despite the absence of their support by central banks or other central bodies
cryptocurrencies are commonly used as means of exchange or for
investment.

The nature of cryptocurrencies and the types of transactions with
them determine their tax treatment. The article considers the
position of HMRC that denies the recognition of cryptocurrency as of
currency or money and highlights the intangible nature of
cryptoassets.
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A Bit (Coin) of Luck: Cryptocurrency Tax Gains Find Enhanced Value In The Land Of OZ

Cryptocurrency continues to gain popularity both as an investment asset and as a means to pay for goods and services.  The growing ease with which a person can buy, hold and sell cryptocurrency has resulted in an explosion in crypto transactions – and, in turn, has left taxpayers needing to account to the IRS for their newfound cryptocurrency gains (and losses).

This powerful trend reached a new peak in 2020 when, as a result of COVID-19 disruption, related worldwide economic uncertainty and entry of companies such as PayPal into the consumer market (allowing more than 300 million users to easily buy cryptocurrencies), the crypto-market witnessed a dramatic run-up in the values of Bitcoin and many other cryptocurrencies.

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Bare Bitcoins — No Fourth Amendment Privacy In Virtual Currency Records

Virtual currency has been around for a number of years now, and yet many still believe virtual currency transactions provide a level of anonymity and privacy not afforded by other types of monetary transactions. That simply isn’t true. With the right tools and understanding, it is possible to uncover the identities of virtual currency users. Moreover, virtual currency has led to the evolution of financial regulations, tax regulations, and legal regulations. In July, the Fifth Circuit dealt with whether Bitcoin users had certain Fourth Amendment protections from unreasonable searches and seizures. In short, they do not.

Bitcoin Transactions, Generally

Virtual currencies may take many forms, but the “Bitcoin” is perhaps the most well-known. Furthermore, Bitcoin transactions function in a very specific way. Bitcoin users maintain an “address,” which is a string of alphanumeric characters, much like a bank account number. A company or organization may form multiple addresses and combine them into a separate, centralized address, known as a “cluster.”

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Bare Bitcoins — No Fourth Amendment Privacy In Virtual Currency Records

Virtual currency has been around for a number of years now, and yet many still believe virtual currency transactions provide a level of anonymity and privacy not afforded by other types of monetary transactions. That simply isn’t true. With the right tools and understanding, it is possible to uncover the identities of virtual currency users. Moreover, virtual currency has led to the evolution of financial regulations, tax regulations, and legal regulations. In July, the Fifth Circuit dealt with whether Bitcoin users had certain Fourth Amendment protections from unreasonable searches and seizures. In short, they do not.

Bitcoin Transactions, Generally

Virtual currencies may take many forms, but the “Bitcoin” is perhaps the most well-known. Furthermore, Bitcoin transactions function in a very specific way. Bitcoin users maintain an “address,” which is a string of alphanumeric characters, much like a bank account number. A company or organization may form multiple addresses and combine them into a separate, centralized address, known as a “cluster.”

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Myth No. 1

There is no need to report any gain or loss for exchanges between one cryptocurrency and another if the transaction occurred before January 1, 2018. That is not true. Every time when you sell a cryptocurrency, whether for fiat currency or another cryptocurrency (e.g. sell Bitcoin for Ethereum), you need to report the transaction and calculate gain or loss for tax purposes. Many people thought an exchange between two cryptocurrencies qualified for section 1031 like-kind exchange if it was done before January 1, 2018. Under the new tax law signed by the President on December 22, 2017, only real property qualifies for section 1031 like-kind exchange tax treatment starting 1/1/2018. However, it does not mean that cryptocurrency qualified for like-kind exchange tax treatment before the new law kicks in. There is no tax law, old or new, supports the conclusion that cryptocurrency ever qualified for like-kind exchange tax treatment. People taking such position are at risk for losing their battle with IRS.

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Over the last several years, virtual currency has become increasingly popular. Bitcoin is the most widely recognized form of virtual currency, also commonly referred to as digital, electronic or crypto currency.

While most smaller businesses aren’t yet accepting bitcoin or other virtual currency payments from their customers, more and more larger businesses are. And the trend may trickle down to smaller businesses. Businesses also can pay employees or independent contractors with virtual currency. But what are the tax consequences of these transactions?

Bitcoin 101

Bitcoin has an equivalent value in real currency and can be digitally traded between users. It also can be purchased with real currencies or exchanged for real currencies. Bitcoin is most commonly obtained through virtual currency ATMs or online exchanges.

Goods or services can be paid for using “bitcoin wallet” software. When a purchase is made, the software digitally posts the transaction to a global public ledger. This prevents the same unit of virtual currency from being used multiple times.

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We are in the midst of a “Fourth Industrial Revolution” in which technology is advancing at an exponential pace, bringing us mostly digital tools and processes. In the tax world, “digital” translates to: “how do rules designed for a tangible world apply?”

Cryptocurrency is a great example to remind us that tax as well as other laws and compliance processes need to be fluid to keep our economy moving ahead. Inaction or inappropriate responses can shut down or decelerate advancements that benefit society and lead to further technological progress.

From the late 1960s, when software was decoupled from hardware, to the birth of bitcoin nearly a decade ago, what have we learned that can help us deal with this asset and its uses as we encounter even more new forms of technology, uses and ways of doing business? This article suggests four tax lessons.

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John Stancil, Tax Advisor, Florida

Bitcoin… Most likely you have heard of it. Maybe you have an idea about what it is. But what if a member of your church asks you, as Pastor or Treasurer, if they can contribute bitcoin to the church. How do you reply? Can it even be done? Most smaller churches are not set up to receive donations of stocks or other securities, much less something as new as bitcoin. Obviously, one does not want to turn away a legitimate contribution with no strings attached, but what is the process? To get the big question out of the way, yes, your church can accept bitcoin contributions, but it is not as simple as a member dropping a check in the offering plate or making an online contribution with a credit card.  The church must be prepared to receive such contributions.

But let’s take a step back and look at what bitcoin is. Bitcoin is the most well-known virtual currency now in existence. It is sometimes referred to as cryptocurrency. It not the province of any government, but is a virtual currency used in commerce. Since it is essentially a “private” currency the value of bitcoin changes much as the value of stocks or other securities change value. In fact, the IRS does not recognize bitcoin as cash for purposes of charitable contributions. Therefore, it must be treated as a noncash gift similar to the handling of contributions of other securities. Consequently, the church should not assign a value to the contribution but simply issue a letter acknowledging the contribution.

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What is money? Money is a measurement unit for the purpose of exchange. Money is used for valuation of goods, settling debts, accounting for work performed, and standardizing the measurement of production. Money has to be divisible, portable, stable in value, easy to obtain, durable over time and must be trusted by all parties using it.

Imagine money that is too large to divide into pieces, heavy to carry, spoils after 2 days, gets damaged easily or can be eaten by animals? If these are the characteristics of the currency, it would not be that useful and many business deals would not happen.

The most important element of money is trust. If you work for someone and you are not sure if you will get paid, would you do the work? If you did the work, and you got paid for something that was not accepted in many places, is it a valid payment? The economy and money system are built on trust, and it can be broken by a lack of trust by the majority of people.

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What is a reserve currency? This is the currency in which all other currencies are standardized against, and this measure is used for global trade, asset valuation, and account settlement. The current reserve currency is the U.S. dollar since it was the strongest currency after World War 2. The strength of the currency was based on its trade position, political influence, military might, resources available and liquidity/recognition in the investment world.

In the cryptocurrency world, Bitcoin serves this function as other cryptocurrencies are converted into Bitcoin to access most exchanges. Since Bitcoin has the brand recognition of being the first known cryptocurrency, it has the advantage of breaking milestones first.

Bitcoin was the largest cryptocurrency by market cap at the time of writing (January 2018), the first coin to be created in 2009 and the first currency to be utilized for futures trading around the world. Bitcoin is also the first decentralized currency in recent time, as there have been digital and electronic currencies created before and after Bitcoin that are not decentralized.

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With the price of Bitcoin hitting record highs in 2017, many Bitcoin holders cashed out not realizing the impact it could have on their tax bill. Many people, for example, did not understand that it was a reportable transaction and found themselves with a hefty tax bill–money they may have been hard-pressed to come up with at tax time. Others may have been unaware that they needed to report their transactions at all or failed to do so because it seemed too complicated.

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With virtual currencies like Bitcoin becoming more mainstream in recent years, we often get asked if revenue from the sale or exchange of these digital dollars is taxable. The simple answer is, YES – income (or profit) from virtual currency transactions is reportable on your income tax return. However, because this is still a relatively new phenomenon, there are a few things you should be aware of to make sure you don’t get caught with a huge tax bill!

Virtual currency, as generally defined, is a digital representation of value that functions in the same manner as a country’s traditional currency. Bitcoin is one example of a convertible virtual currency which can be digitally traded between users and purchased for, or exchanged into, U.S. dollars, Euros and other real or virtual currencies. There are currently more than 1,500 known virtual currencies. Because transactions in virtual currencies can be difficult to trace and have an inherently anonymous aspect, some taxpayers could be tempted to hide taxable income from the IRS. Read More