KPMG Australia and Independent Reserve, the largest Australian cryptocurrency exchange, today announced the launch of a new tool to help the traders of cryptocurrencies better understand their tax liabilities.
The Crypto Tax Estimator developed by KPMG is a digital tool that plugs directly into Independent Reserve’s user interface, allowing traders to estimate tax obligations on their portfolio all with just the click of a button.
Initially conceived during a KPMG Hackathon, the technology was developed based on the combined expertise from KPMG’s tax technology, tax, risk and compliance, and blockchain specialists.
“It is estimated that hundreds of thousands of Australian companies and individuals are trading crypto assets. But in this complex and fast-emerging area, there are few sources of guidance that can help people easily understand the potential tax implications of trading, such as capital gains tax. The possibility of being non-compliant is a major source of legal risk, and we want to provide an easy-to-use tool that may assist participants in the newly emerging token-based economy to understand their tax obligations. Cryptocurrency markets are growing at a rapid rate across the world, and it is important both for the crypto traders and governments that taxation rules and tools evolve to keep up with this fast-emerging area. We are excited to be helping IR launch this new tool here in Australia. This is another example of how KPMG is continuing to expand our portfolio of crypto asset services globally.”
The Crypto Tax Estimator is an Application Programming Interface (API) that enables Independent Reserve to provide their users an estimate of their potential tax exposure in real-time, based on the users’ buy/sell transactions on the exchange. The tool covers all cryptocurrencies exchanged on Independent Reserve, including Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, Ethereum, Litecoin, and XRP.
“The rollout of the Crypto Tax Estimator tool is a huge leap forward for guidance on tax implications within crypto trading. The Australian Tax Office (ATO) has made it clear that anyone involved in acquiring or disposing of crypto assets needs to be aware of the tax consequences, this tool provides our customers for the first time with a simple way to view this information. While there are other websites and tools available, this is the first bespoke API to plug directly into a crypto exchange that is backed by a global professional services firm. As the first exchange to be regulated by the Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre (AUSTRAC), we are firmly committed to making the crypto market more attractive for local retail and institutional investors. This tax tool is a piece of critical infrastructure that will help our users understand and help manage their risk.”
KPMG has also just released a new report, “Institutionalization of cryptoassets” that looks at how institutionalizing cryptoassets is necessary to facilitate scale and drive growth for crypto.
