A study published in March in the academic journal Review of Accounting Studies estimates that only 32% to 56% of cryptocurrency holders in the United States reported their transactions to the federal government. The finding points to a large gap in crypto tax compliance in the US. The report comes as the Internal Revenue Service moves toward tighter reporting rules for digital assets. Starting with the 2025 tax year, the IRS requires brokers to send investors Form 1099-DA, which will list gross proceeds from digital asset transactions. Accountants cited in the report said tax calculations tied to digital asset trading have long been difficult to determine and are often more complicated than taxes on traditional financial assets such as stocks and bonds.

Documents obtained by 404 Media through a Freedom of Information Act request show that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission purchased access to a global airline ticketing database containing more than 1 billion records. The data came from Airlines Reporting Corporation, a clearinghouse co-owned by American, Delta, and United that sits between airlines and travel agencies and resells bookings made through platforms including Expedia and Kayak. The records included passenger names, credit cards used to buy tickets, departure and arrival cities, and flight numbers. The SEC subscription also included an alert tool that checked new bookings against a watchlist and flagged travel from the previous 24 hours, with the agency requesting between one and 25 alerts per day. According to the report, no court order was required because the government purchased the data instead of demanding it directly. The report links that practice to a broader concern around crypto oversight, noting that travel and payment trails can overlap with exchange-linked financial activity. It also points to similar data collection efforts by the IRS and references the SEC’s earlier Coinbase probe as another example of its interest in user information. Critics describe the arrangement as a “data broker loophole,” while ARC said the program was created after the September 11, 2001 attacks and likely helped prevent and apprehend criminals involved in money laundering and terrorism.

The U.S. Internal Revenue Service issued a fraud alert on July 30, saying scammers are mailing counterfeit IRS notices to cryptocurrency holders and urging them to register before an urgent deadline through a nonexistent "Digital Asset Compliance Portal." Each fraudulent letter includes a QR code that sends recipients to a website impersonating IRS.gov. According to the alert, the fake portal may ask for personal details, crypto wallet information, exchange login credentials, seed phrases, private keys, and other data that could be used for theft. Coinbase and cybersecurity firm Darktower traced the infrastructure tied to the scheme to a domain registered through a Hong Kong registrar shortly before the letters began circulating. Investigators also found that the site is hosted in Romania, on a network that had previously been linked to phishing pages spoofing financial institutions.

The U.S. Internal Revenue Service has issued a fraud alert saying scammers are mailing counterfeit IRS notices to cryptocurrency holders and pressuring them to register before an urgent deadline through a non-existent “Digital Asset Compliance Portal.” Each fraudulent letter includes a QR code that sends recipients to a website designed to imitate IRS.gov. According to the alert, the fake portal may ask for personal information, wallet details, exchange login credentials, seed phrases, private keys, and other data that could be used to steal funds or identities. Coinbase and cybersecurity firm Darktower traced the related infrastructure to a domain registered through a Hong Kong registrar shortly before the letters began circulating. Investigators also found that the site was hosted in Romania, on a network that had previously been linked to phishing pages impersonating financial institutions.

The Internal Revenue Service’s Criminal Investigation unit has warned that scammers are impersonating tax officials and mailing paper notices with QR codes to victims. The notices are designed to push recipients to fake websites that can steal cryptocurrency holdings as well as personal identity information. According to the agency, the scheme relies on public trust in government institutions to make the fraudulent materials look credible. A senior official in the IRS criminal investigation division said criminals are using that trust to build fake websites and lure people into handing over sensitive data. The IRS said it does not ask for financial information by email or text message and urged the public to stay alert to QR-code phishing attempts. Bloomberg Law was cited as the source of the report.

The U.S. Internal Revenue Service warned on Thursday that scammers are targeting cryptocurrency taxpayers with fraudulent letters that falsely claim recipients must register for a so-called "digital asset compliance portal." According to the agency, the letters are not legitimate and the portal does not exist. The scheme is designed to steal personal data or digital assets. The IRS said the scam uses QR codes included in the letters to prompt victims to scan and submit information. It urged taxpayers not to scan QR codes from unknown sources and to hang up immediately on phone calls demanding payment. The agency added that it is continuing to monitor this type of fraud. Bloomberg Tax was cited as the source of the report.

The U.S. Internal Revenue Service has warned crypto asset holders that scammers are sending fraudulent physical letters to some taxpayers in an effort to steal digital assets or personal information, according to Bloomberg. The IRS said some of the letters tell recipients to register for a so-called "Digital Asset Compliance Portal," which the agency said does not exist. It also urged taxpayers not to scan suspicious QR codes and not to engage with phone calls demanding payment. While phishing and digital fraud are already common in crypto, the use of mailed fake IRS notices appears to be a newer tactic. Bloomberg noted that the scam may be gaining traction because the IRS has previously sent legitimate letters related to digital assets, and notices tied to crypto tax reporting increased last year, leaving many taxpayers confused. As U.S. tax filings now require disclosure of crypto activity, communication between the IRS and digital asset holders has become more common, making counterfeit tax notices look more convincing. The report said crypto users should treat any supposed IRS letter involving portal registration, QR codes, wallet connections, or payment requests with caution and verify it through official channels.

CME Group Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Terry Duffy said U.S. approval of perpetual futures contracts could leave traders facing tax and regulatory uncertainty because the products may ultimately be classified as swaps rather than futures. Duffy said the periodic exchange of funding payments between long and short positions matches the statutory definition of a swap under U.S. law. He also said the Commodity Futures Trading Commission currently treats perpetual contracts as futures, and CME is challenging that approval in court. The tax outcome could differ sharply depending on classification: some institutional traders may qualify for the blended treatment under Section 1256 of the U.S. tax code if the contracts are treated as futures, while swap treatment could subject them to ordinary tax rules. The Internal Revenue Service has not issued specific guidance on the tax treatment of perpetual futures. Legal professionals cited in the report said perpetual futures resemble swaps in structure but function economically like futures, making judicial interpretation central to the dispute. Even if the litigation settles the product classification question, the IRS may still need to publish separate tax guidance.