DISCUSSION: US Crypto Taxes Are a Nightmare. Could These Proposals Help?
Nobody likes taxes but for U.S.-based blockchain users things can be particularly awful. This week we discuss U.S. tax treatment of "virtual currencies" and how scams find a home wherever opportunity exists, at least for a while.
Feb 9, 2020 at 4:00 p.m. UTC:format(webp)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/coindesk/PLKQZV6HA5BAXP3ITOYIYFAJLA.jpg)
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The best Sundays are for long reads and deep conversations. Earlier this week, the Let's Talk Bitcoin! Show gathered to discuss the U.S. tax treatment of "virtual currencies" and how scams find a home wherever opportunity exists, at least for a while.
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During our first segment, we'll discuss:
Virtual Currency Tax Fairness Act of 2020: The proposed legislation would exempt capital gains taxes if any individual transaction results in a capital gain of $200 or less. Previous versions of the bill proposed a $600 cap. If passed, it would take effect in the 2020 tax year. Link - H.R. 5635
The IRS has a question for you: Tax filers in the U.S. are being asked if At any time during 2019, did you receive, sell, send, exchange or otherwise acquire any financial interest in any virtual currency? Link -IRS Form 1040
Yang proposes "Digital Asset Regulation": U.S. Democratic presidential candidate Andrew Yang wants to clarify the tax implications of owning, selling and trading digital assets. Yang says clear policy will allow businesses to invest and innovate in the area without fear of a regulatory shift. Link - Yang 2020
Later on, we'll dig into the "why" of scams as we begin a longer conversation on the topic.
Three main points on scams:
- Ponzi schemes thrive in disrupted spaces with uncertainty, poor credentialing and poorly understood complexity
- The crypto currency space has these attributes
- The underlying appeal of ponzi scams (and bitcoin) comes from the mythology of redemption, getting something from nothing, the genie in the bottle, etc.
Links:
Photo by Fernando Venzano on Unsplash
This episode was produced by AP's Don and Ned. It featured discussion by Adam B. Levine, Stephanie Murphy, and Jonathan Mohan.
Music for today's episode was provided by Jared Rubens, From Ether and Gurty Beats, with editing by Jonas.
Would you like to Sponsor a future episode of the Let's Talk Bitcoin! show? Do you have any questions or comments? Email adam@ltbshow.com
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