Senators Urge Treasury to Rethink Tax on Unrealized Crypto Gains
Pro-crypto lawmakers, Senators Cynthia Lummis and Bernie Moreno, have called for immediate action to address a Biden-era tax policy that risks imposing significant taxes on unrealized profits for U.S. crypto firms. They sent a letter to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, urging a reexamination of the Corporate Alternative Minimum Tax (CAMT) as it applies to digital assets. The CAMT, part of the Inflation Reduction Act, enforces a 15% minimum tax based on adjusted financial statement income, now affected by new fair-value accounting rules from the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB). This change counts unrealized crypto gains as taxable income, potentially forcing firms to liquidate assets to meet tax obligations. The senators argue this policy could disadvantage U.S. companies compared to foreign competitors and have requested Treasury to exclude unrealized gains from tax calculations. They emphasize the need for swift guidance to prevent negative impacts on digital asset holdings and have expressed willingness to collaborate with Treasury officials on this issue.
