A pair of crypto industry tax experts describe the problems with the tax agency’s new reporting proposals and suggest alternatives.
The IRS sparked a storm of controversy when it released proposed new rules for crypto transaction reporting earlier this year. The new rules seek to define who is considered a broker, what types of transactions need to get reported, and the kinds of digital assets that need to be included, but many in the industry consider them overly broad and ultimately unworkable.
Lawrence Zlatkin, VP of Tax at Coinbase, and Shehan Chandrasekera, Head of Tax Strategy at tax software firm CoinTracker, discuss the crypto industry’s specific objections to the proposed new rules, and what might be a better way forward. They also delve into how the regulations would apply to stablecoins and NFTs, potential blockchain-based solutions for the reporting requirements, and what the likely outlook and timeline for the proposals to come into effect are.
Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Stitcher, Castbox, Google Podcasts, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform.
Show highlights |
What the newly proposed IRS regulations around crypto are and when they are likely to go into effectWhat entities qualify as a broker and why this may pose a problemWhat the implications for the industry are if these regulations were passedThe number of additional reports the IRS is expecting to receive if these regulations are adoptedHow the regulations would apply to stablecoins and NFTsWhat the five types of brokers are under the proposed regulations and the three types that they exclude, according to ShehanThe unprecedented amount of comments submittedWhat suggestions Coinbase and CoinTracker have in mind for better tax regulationWhy Lawrence thinks that DeFi exchanges should be treated the same as centralized onesWhether people should have privacy concerns about the new proposalsWhat some blockchain-based solutions for tax reporting, such as attestation tokensWhat are the next steps for the IRS’s proposed regulation areHow long it will take to actually implement these regulations
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Guests |
Shehan Chandrasekera, Head of Tax Strategy at CoinTracker
Lawrence Zlatkin, VP of Tax at Coinbase
Links |
Previous coverage of Unchained on crypto taxes, with appearances from Shehan and Lawrence:
Everything You Need to Know About Filing Your 2022 Crypto Taxes
Your 2021 Crypto Taxes: How to Handle NFTs, DAOs, Airdrops and More
Everything You Need to Know About Your 2020 Crypto Taxes
Why You Shouldn’t Trust Crypto Exchange Reports for Your Taxes
The IRS Is Cracking Down on Crypto Taxes: What You Need to Know
Could the Bank Secrecy Act Harm Crypto? Coin Center Thinks So
Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (117th Congress)
Proposed rule:
IRS proposed rule text: Gross Proceeds and Basis Reporting by Brokers and Determination of Amount Realized and Basis for Digital Asset Transactions
CoinDesk: How the Crypto Industry Responded to the IRS Proposed Broker Rule
Twitter thread from Ji Kim of the Crypto Council for Innovation
IRS issues guidance, seeks comments on nonfungible tokens
Coinbase second comment letter
Unchained Podcast is Produced by Laura Shin Media, LLC. Distributed by CoinDesk. Senior Producer is Michele Musso and Executive Producer is Jared Schwartz.
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