Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong has denied accusations that the company is lobbying to prevent a tax break for Bitcoin, stating the claims are untrue.
This disagreement has involved Bitcoin supporters, tax experts, and crypto industry lobbyists, and it highlights a larger question: whose interests do the biggest crypto companies truly serve when they engage with lawmakers in Washington?
What the Accusations Said
On March 11th, Truth for the Commoner (TFTC), a popular Bitcoin news account on X with almost 100,000 followers, claimed that Coinbase told lawmakers Bitcoin isn’t being widely used as currency and that any attempt to create a small-value exemption for it would likely fail.
TFTC reports that Coinbase likely opposes a Bitcoin tax exemption because of its financial gains from stablecoins. They claim the exchange made $1.35 billion last year primarily through interest earned on U.S. Treasury bonds held as reserves for its USDC stablecoin.
TFTC believes that allowing small Bitcoin transactions to avoid certain fees, while still applying those fees to stablecoins, could encourage more people to use Bitcoin for payments. This, however, might lead users to leave Coinbase’s platform for earning rewards with stablecoins.
As a researcher following crypto legislation, I remember Senator Lummis of Wyoming proposed a bill last year that would have exempted small crypto gains – up to $300 – from taxes. However, the version of the bill currently in the House is different. It sets a lower limit of $200, and importantly, it only applies to stablecoins, not all cryptocurrencies, according to The Fiscal Times.
Armstrong directly responded to the accusations against Coinbase, saying:
I’m not sure where you heard that information, but it’s incorrect. I’ve dedicated a lot of time to advocating for the tax exemption for small Bitcoin transactions, and I plan to keep working on it.
However, TFTC co-founder Mart Bent didn’t back down, telling Armstrong:
“I have sources that say otherwise, not you personally but your team and/or lobbyists.”
He questioned whether Coinbase’s CEO would abandon the current market structure bill if it didn’t include a small exemption for Bitcoin, similar to what happened earlier this year with the CLARITY Act. He had previously withdrawn support for that bill due to disagreements about how stablecoins earn interest.
A Policy Debate With Numerous Moving Parts
Tax lawyer Jason Schwartz, who goes by “CryptoTaxGuy” on X (formerly Twitter), has attempted to clarify the conversation between Armstrong and the Tax Foundation.
He believes the conversation is confusing four different proposals: a small allowance for personal use, waiving gas fees, updated rules for reporting stablecoin transactions, and a plan to treat stablecoin profits and losses as having no impact on taxes.
Schwartz explained that it’s normal for different groups involved to strongly support their preferred parts of an agreement, and simply arguing for those parts shouldn’t be interpreted as an attempt to sabotage others.
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2026-03-13 01:15