Law Commons^™

Searching For A Compromise: A Case For The Crypto Like-Kind Exchange, John Paul Boyter

Arkansas Law Review

In recent years, cryptocurrencies, cryptoassets, electronic coins, tokens, non-fungible tokens, and other various terms for electronic assets have gained prodigious attention in the financial world. From the spike (and subsequent drop) in value of Bitcoin, to people spending millions of dollars on pixelated pictures of punks, the market for these assets has been extremely active despite its ups and downs. However, in addition to potential financial success via crypto markets, the development of crypto technology has allowed for a transformation of how individuals and institutions think of currency, financial security, and access to information Part I of this Comment explains …

Tax Events In The Life Cycle Of Digital Tokens, Vincent Ooi

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

Digital tokens, or crypto assets, are digital financial assets based on distributed ledger technology. They come in a considerable variety of forms and have been used in a large number of different ways. Yet, relatively few tax laws of any jurisdiction mention digital tokens specifically. It is therefore necessary to consider how orthodox tax rules can be applied to transactions involving digital tokens. Given the broad range of forms which digital tokens and transactions involving them can take, this may appear to be a daunting task. A framework providing a rough guide on how to navigate this somewhat new area …

Report On The Challenges Which Digital Assets Pose For Tax Systems With A Special Focus On Developing Countries, Vincent Ooi

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

The paper highlights the need for governments to carefully consider the implications which the rise of crypto assets can have on tax systems, noting that the absence of a deliberate policy position would be a policy decision in itself, with consequences for the tax base. It discusses four main classes of tax risks which crypto assets pose.Firstly, crypto assets and crypto transactions can act as ‘functional substitutes’ for traditional assets and transactions. As existing tax laws are drafted without crypto assets in mind, this can produce a host of unintended tax consequences and produce opportunities for tax arbitrage.Secondly, the values …

Crypto Assets And The Problem Of Tax Classifications, Eric D. Chason

Faculty Publications

To date, Internal Revenue Service (I.R.S.) guidance on cryptocurrencies has been thin. When the I.R.S. has issued guidance, it occasionally mishandles the technical details (such as confusing air drops and hard forks). More personnel (and personnel with greater technical expertise) would allow the I.R.S. to keep pace with the explosive growth of cryptocurrency. Nevertheless, the I.R.S. could better leverage its existing resources by focusing on select issues and seeking enabling legislation from Congress. Specifically, the I.R.S. should focus on crypto issues occurring on a system-wide basis and not requiring taxpayer-specific considerations.

For example, determining whether Bitcoin is a “security” under …

A New Framework For Taxing Cryptocurrencies, Reuven S. Avi-Yonah, Mohanad Salaimi

Articles

This Article explores the tax law challenges associated with the taxation of cryptocurrencies and offers proposals to address such challenges. The Article addresses the proper tax treatment of different cryptocurrency transactions and activities. It examines various aspects associated with the taxation of cryptocurrency through its life cycle, starting from earning cryptocurrency, through its disposal or exchange. The Article also examines the tax treatment of two special crypto events, hard forks and airdrops. Specifically, this Article describes a proposal to tax cryptocurrencies based on their unique features. It argues that various ways of earning or receiving crypto tokens (for example, mining …

Made Crypto Losses? Don't Assume The Taxman Will Subsidise You, Vincent Ooi, Vincent Ooi

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

The key points we made in the article are as follows:1) One might think that because income from transactions involving cryptocurrencies is taxable, the losses from such transactions would also be deductible. Unfortunately, the situation is not quite so straightforward.2) The key question is whether it is possible to establish that there was a trade or business (in trading cryptocurrencies). If so, then the deduction rules are a lot more generous. Otherwise, there will be quite a few restrictions:a) Losses from cryptocurrency transactions are unlikely to be useable to be set off against income from other sources.b) The losses will …

New Assets, (Largely) Same Old Rules: The Taxation Of Digital Tokens, Vincent Ooi

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

In this blog post, I highlight the fact that across jurisdictions, tax provisions specifically drafted to address the taxation of digital tokens are still quite rare, meaning that existing orthodox tax rules will have to be applied. However, care must be taken when applying tax provisions and one must be aware of the limits of "reasoning by analogy".Some tax provisions make reference to specific assets or asset classes and it cannot be assumed that digital tokens which look very similar to these assets will inevitably fall under those provisions. For example, no matter how much a digital payment token looks …

The Taxation Of Cryptocurrency Gains, Vincent Ooi

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

Taking Singapore as an example, this article lays out a series of tests for determining whether gains arising from the disposal of cryptocurrencies are trade or business income, “all other income” or capital gains. It also considers the possibility of a presumption that individuals engaging in such transactions are gambling.

A Tax On The Clones: The Strange Case Of Bitcoin Cash, Eric D. Chason

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Cryptocurrency Hard Forks And Revenue Ruling 2019-24, Eric D. Chason

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Taking Back Bitcoin, Zachary Segal

Touro Law Review

No abstract provided.

A Conceptual Framework For The Regulation Of Cryptocurrencies, Omri Y. Marian

Omri Y Marian

This Essay proposes a conceptual framework for the regulation of transactions involving cryptocurrencies. Cryptocurrencies offer tremendous opportunities for innovation and development but are also uniquely suited to facilitate illicit behavior. The regulatory framework suggested herein is intended to support (or at least not impair) cryptocurrencies’ innovative potential. At the same time, it aims to disrupt cryptocurrencies’ criminal utility. To achieve these purposes, this Essay proposes a regulatory framework that imposes costs on the characteristics of cryptocurrencies that make them especially useful for criminal behavior (in particular, anonymity) but does not impose costs on characteristics that are at the core of …

A Conceptual Framework For The Regulation Of Cryptocurrencies, Omri Y. Marian

UF Law Faculty Publications

This Essay proposes a conceptual framework for the regulation of transactions involving cryptocurrencies. Cryptocurrencies offer tremendous opportunities for innovation and development but are also uniquely suited to facilitate illicit behavior. The regulatory framework suggested herein is intended to support (or at least not impair) cryptocurrencies’ innovative potential. At the same time, it aims to disrupt cryptocurrencies’ criminal utility. To achieve these purposes, this Essay proposes a regulatory framework that imposes costs on the characteristics of cryptocurrencies that make them especially useful for criminal behavior (in particular, anonymity) but does not impose costs on characteristics that are at the core of …

Are Cryptocurrencies Super Tax Havens?, Omri Marian

Michigan Law Review First Impressions

Virtual currencies are online payment systems that may function as real currencies but are not issued or backed by central governments. As demonstrated by recent events, virtual currencies present regulators with significant challenges. On May 23, 2013, the U.S. federal government brought an indictment against the operators of Liberty Reserve, a popular virtual currency, charging the operators with money laundering and operating an unlicensed money-transmitting business. The same month, the Government Accountability Office ("GAO") made public a report exploring the potential tax-compliance risks associated with virtual currencies and economies. Legislators have also taken particular interest in one type of virtual …