The US Internal Revenue Service (IRS), the country’s tax collection bureau under the Department of the Treasury, has updated its guidance for cryptocurrency exchange traded products (ETP) to include a safe harbor for trusts to stake digital assets.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent wrote in a Monday x post that the agencies released The guide offers crypto ETPs “a clear path to stake digital assets and share staking rewards with their retail investors.”
According to the guide available On the IRS website, government agencies will allow crypto trusts to participate in staking, if they are traded on a national securities exchange, hold only cash and “units of a single type of digital asset,” held by a custodian, and mitigate certain risks to investors.
“The impact on adoption of staking should be significant,” said Bill Hughes, senior counsel at Consensys, in a Monday x post.
“This safe harbor provides long-awaited regulatory and tax clarity for institutional vehicles such as crypto ETFs and trusts, enabling them to participate in staking while remaining Hughes-compliant.
The guidance was followed by the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in September approval of standards in the list of commonexpected to result in funds exchanged by the crypto exchange. The IRS and Treasury cited the SEC rule change as part of the updated guidance.
Related: US lawmakers are mulling over crypto tax policy amid government shutdown
Guidance coming on the eve of the end of the government shutdown?
After more than 40 days, reports from Sunday said that many Democratic lawmakers in the US Senate have broken ranks and are ready to return Republicans to a Vote to end the government shutdown by passing a continuing resolution through January.
The Senate had not voted on the measure at the time of publication. Since the shutdown began on October 1, staff at many departments and agencies, including the SEC and IRS, have been furloughed.
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