I remember those high flying altcoin days. So much speculation about who was using the currency in bulk: drug dealers, crime syndicates, investors, gamblers...I was curious how it would shake out, and it seems the main interest of the IRS is to grab those who used BTC (bitcoin) as a tax evasion vehicle. I can only wonder if they will go after sales tax. Sales tax on black tar heroin or stolen IDs bought from Silk Road would tip the scale, and define the line on how the Feds feel about drug sales tax. However, simple point of sale retail transactions (like pizza or a haircut in Brooklyn) could implicate merchants and penalize seemingly innocent early adapter bitcoin users.
I will add the request is for a three year period of records. There is more in the docket at the bottom of this post.
Happy (Early) Thanksgiving.
- Chad
'The IRS further justifies its request by claiming it is targeted toward a specific group of people; namely, US taxpayers who have conducted transactions with virtual currency.'
Vice Motherboard - http://motherboard.vice.com/read/irs-demands-identities-of-all-coinbase-traders-over-two-year-period?utm_source=mbtwitter