Cryptocurrency, such as bitcoin, is a decentralized digital currency that's gained popularity over the past few years as a potential alternative to paper currency like the U.Due south. dollar. Recently, in an effort to close the “tax gap,” the The states Treasury Department issued new rules for reporting large cryptocurrency transactions to the IRS. The American Families Plan Taxation Compliance Agenda was released on May twenty, ane twenty-four hours afterwards the Chinese government reissued restrictions on crypto transactions in the country.
Some online users are claiming the move is an effort by President Joe Biden’s administration to make his ain crackdown on cryptocurrency.
THE QUESTION
Tin the government shut down cryptocurrency?
THE SOURCES
- The Department of the Treasury
- Professor David 50. Yermack, New York University Stern School of Concern
- Joe Carlasare, partner and co-chair of the Cryptocurrency, Blockchain and FinTech group at SmithAmundsen LLC
- Eric Fogel, partner and co-chair of the Cryptocurrency, Blockchain and FinTech group at SmithAmundsen LLC
THE Answer
No, the U.South. government can’t shut down cryptocurrency markets, but they tin regulate information technology.
WHAT WE Plant
“The only manner to ‘shut down’ cryptocurrency is to disconnect the Internet,” Professor David 50. Yermack told VERIFY.
“Crypto lives in cloud storage and is operated by software that runs continuously in global networks across thousands of redundant ‘nodes.’ These projects are usually decentralized, with no leadership or primal node that can exist approached in order to enforce any sort of ‘ban.’ A government might just equally well attempt to ban the sun rising.”
The American Families taxation plan would require transactions over $10,000 in cryptocurrency to be reported to the IRS. U.S. law already requires trades and businesses to study greenbacks payments of more than $10,000.
Cryptocurrency is considered “property” for federal income revenue enhancement purposes and it is treated as a capital asset and ane has to continually tape whatever applicative capital gains, even for pocket-size transactions, attorney Joe Carlasare said.
“I do not view the requested proposal to report transfers of at least $x,000 of cryptocurrency to the IRS every bit a move to tiresome down the market,” he told VERIFY. “The Biden Administration’s master business organisation is underreporting of revenue enhancement obligations. In that location is public data showing significant underreporting of tax obligations relating to realized gains from cryptocurrency trading. My view is that the IRS is trying to capture that revenue.”
He also said if the government wanted to shut down or slow down the market place, “the most callous steps they could take would be to close downwards public cryptocurrency exchanges.”
“Past controlling the entrance and exit ramps to exchange local currencies for crypto, it would make it difficult for citizens to purchase crypto. However, this is not the approach that most governments are taking. Well-nigh governments let exchanges to operate so long as ‘Know Your Customer’ (KYC) procedures function to assess customer take a chance and there is compliance with Anti-Money Laundering (AML) laws,” Carlasare said.
Carlasare said we should pay attending to how governments outside the The states are regulating or adopting cryptocurrencies, particularly Communist china and the European Marriage. The Chinese government recently restated their regulations on cryptocurrency, banning businesses from crypto transactions. A Chinese citizen can still buy or own virtual currency.
“This is a developing industry and there remains legal dubiousness in the infinite. Cryptocurrencies are here to stay, but we should fully wait that regulators volition continue to provide appropriate guidance as this new nugget class matures,” Carlasare added.
VERIFY
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