May 18, 2022Is the Tax Code a Mystical Text?How can you tell a sacred text from a regular old book? Often, it jumps out at you from the very first line. For example, the Bible doesn’t waste a moment, it launches you right into the divine action: In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth (Genesis…Mysticism6 min readMysticism6 min read
May 12, 2022The Secret Ingredient for IRS Audits — Make a CholentNobody wants to be audited. But if you receive that fateful IRS notice in the mail, here is a tip: DO NOT panic and start rifling through your tax records. I know you want to find all your receipts for your charitable donations. …Irs4 min readIrs4 min read
Apr 10, 2022Can the Government Regulate DeFi?A key feature of financial regulation in the 20th century was the custodian. For example, if a company wanted to buy or sell stock, it often did so through a broker, who may also act as custodian (if self-clearing) or through a clearing broker. The broker took custody of its…Blockchain7 min readBlockchain7 min read
May 11, 2020The Halving in 2141: Imagining Bitcoin Monetary Policy in the Future“Total circulation will be 21,000,000 coins…. It’ll be distributed to network nodes when they make blocks, with the amount cut in half every 4 years. first 4 years: 10,500,000 coins next 4 years: 5,250,000 coins next 4 years: 2,625,000 coins next 4 years: 1,312,500 coins etc… When that runs out…Cryptocurrency10 min readCryptocurrency10 min read
Feb 14, 2020Ignoring IRS crypto guidance is legal. But is it smart?Nobody likes paying taxes. But when the IRS says you must calculate your income a certain way, you have no choice. You simply must do what the IRS says. Right? Not so fast. This week, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) took the IRS to task for muddying the water on…Cryptocurrency Investment4 min readCryptocurrency Investment4 min read
Jan 30, 2020Crypto-to-Crypto Exchanges — Continued Confusion“Does the IRS really want to go around bankrupting cryptocurrency investors who never even saw any fiat gains from these trades?” In an ideal world, tax rules would be simple for everyone to understand. But unfortunately we are far from such a world. As a case in point, former Secretary…Cryptocurrency6 min readCryptocurrency6 min read
Aug 6, 2019Reading Between the Lines of the IRS Cryptocurrency Warning LettersA couple weeks ago, the IRS began sending letters to more than 10,000 taxpayers, warning them to report income and pay taxes on cryptocurrency transactions. This is probably the opening shot in what promises to be a long battle to encourage taxpayers to voluntarily report cryptocurrency gains. Why does the…Taxes5 min readTaxes5 min read
