U.S. President Joe Biden has criticized tax loopholes for “wealthy crypto investors” in a tweet that sparked strong reactions on Crypto Twitter.
Biden accused “MAGA House Republicans” of supporting tax loopholes for crypto tycoons while opposing food safety inspections. He also noted that Republicans preferred to cut “programs critical to seniors and middle-class and working families” rather than changing tax codes “to ensure that the wealthy and big corporations pay their fair share.”
Biden’s tweet mentioned crypto, which led to responses from the crypto community questioning what tax loopholes he was referring to. In his budget plan, Biden explains that updating the tax codes “to apply to crypto assets just like they apply to stocks and other securities” would recover $24 billion. Currently, crypto investors are not subject to the same rules as investors in stocks or other securities, allowing them to report excessive losses.
For example, a crypto investor can sell a cryptocurrency at a loss, take a substantial tax loss to reduce their tax burden, and then buy back that same cryptocurrency the next day.
However, some members of the crypto community have asked Biden to back off a little. Peter Conradi, a community moderator for digital artist Beeple and community manager at Web3 creator platform Async Art, pointed out that many crypto users are not wealthy and are using crypto because they don’t feel like they have enough to make ends meet.
The U.S.’s lack of clear regulatory guidance on crypto has caused the country to face criticism from around the world, prompting crypto firms to expand overseas, lawyer up, and scuttle deals.
This lack of clarity may also inhibit the market itself. The SEC has stepped up its campaign against crypto companies selling unregistered securities, leading to criticism from some dissenting voices within the agency.
Meanwhile, the White House is building a case for a 30% excise tax on the energy used by crypto miners, and Republican lawmakers are opposing a U.S. central bank digital currency (CBDC). Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has called it a likely venue for Democrats to implement “Woke Politics.”