Cryptocurrency Tax Calculator Released By Coinbase

Cryptocurrency startup Coinbase has launched a new gain/loss calculating tool as part of an effort to help its user base keep up with U.S. tax requirements.

Coinbase has created a new gain/loss calculating tool as part of an effort to help its user base to follow with U.S. tax requirements.

On Tuesday there was published a blog post, in which the firm explained that the calculator can be used to generate a report which outlines their capital gains (or losses) on its platform, using a first-in-first-out (FIFO) accounting method.

The startup cautioned, that the tool provides a preliminary gain/loss calculation to assist our customers, but should not be used as official tax documentation without validating the results with your tax professional.

The release follows an earlier move in January by Coinbase, when it reminded to users that they are liable for U.S. capital gains, even going as far as posting a consistent banner about the issue.

The issue of taxation and cryptocurrencies has always been someone of a contentious topic, ever since the U.S. Internal Revenue Service announced in 2014 that it would treat such assets as a taxable form of property rather than, say, a currency.

Coinbase itself writes in a new blog, that they understand that taxes for digital currency can be complicated. Concerns over the ambiguity of the IRS guidance have fueled compliants from professional circles.

The topic also carries an added degree of weight for Coinbase specifically, which was the target of a lawsuit by the IRS as it sought information on U.S.-based users in an effort to sniff out potential tax avoiders.

The startup commonly would send information to nearly 13,000 users who had transacted on the platform between 2013 and 2015 after being ordered to by a U.S. district judge in November 2017.