Crypto Policy Trends for 2025

This year promises to offer a multitude of tax, regulatory and policy issues that CPAs and business advisors are going to need to analyze moving forward. It’s safe to say that crypto assets and crypto policy are going to return to the headlines even more so than during previous bull markets. Setting aside some of the more speculative ideas that have been floated   including the action by Pennsylvania to establish a strategic bitcoin reserve there are several policy areas that CPAs will need to watch as the crypto sector continues to move toward the mainstream. One indication that at least some of this speculation will become reality is the resignation of SEC chairperson Gary Gensler. Known for his strict approach to cryptocurrency oversight, his departure signals a potentially more crypto-friendly SEC.

Stablecoin Adoption

Stablecoins might have been initially thought of as a boring counterpoint to the more volatile bitcoin, but these crypto assets have rapidly expanded in both market size and influence. A specific example that might take some practitioners by surprise is the reality that PayPal   a payment processor that has more than 400 million customers   has not only issued and created its own stablecoin but, as of October 2024, is allowing merchant customers to buy, sell and hold crypto assets in PayPal wallets. In addition to these developments, virtually every major banking institution has implemented blockchain-based payments and tokenized products and services for customers.

What this means for practitioners is that customers, either business or individual, have a much higher likelihood of using stablecoins in 2025 versus prior years. Since these crypto assets are purposely built to have low volatility, there is also a risk that clients might not even realize another major crypto trend for 2025: crypto taxes will become a much more complicated and common issue.

Tax Complications 

The fact that crypto is going to be receiving significantly more positive attention from a regulatory and administrative perspective combined with the growing influence of stablecoins will result in more taxpayers becoming involved in the space. Crypto taxes are a complicated and nuanced subset of tax advisory services, and several changes are set to make it even more so in 2025 and beyond. In addition to the changes coming to IRS code sections 6045 and 6050I both of which have been the subject of thousands of comment letters, multiple IRS announcements and significant market conversations   there are two other changes that tax preparers should be aware of.

First, the creation and proposed issuance of IRS Form 1099-DA, for reporting digital asset proceeds from broker transactions, will not only be yet another form for advisors to discuss with clients, but it will also create tax complications when combined with the second change: IRS Revenue Procedure 2024-28. Without diving into the minutia of this Revenue Procedure, the accounting changes (universal to multiple wallet/account-based tracking) will cause several potential issues for clients and tax advisors. Combining the reporting changes will take time to adapt to from a broker perspective as well as client perspective, requiring adjustments to accounting records, basis tracking and decisions as to how transactions are treated. While the IRS has announced a safe harbor timeframe to allow taxpayers to make good faith efforts to adopt such changes, tax preparers with crypto clients are sure to be occupied with policy changes moving forward.

Client FOMO

Even with the reporting and tax issues that will cause client headaches (and practitioner opportunities) in 2025, the fact remains that crypto will continue to move into the mainstream. With exchange traded funds (ETFs) continuing to attract assets at record rates, non-fungible tokens (NFTs) staging a resurgence and stablecoins continuing to expand market presence and leadership roles, the fear of missing out (FOMO) for some clients will be significant. This FOMO needs to be addressed, but also will allow crypto-oriented CPAs to focus on policy awareness and client education to allow clients to make the best decisions.

Crypto and crypto policies will generate headlines in 2025 but will also generate opportunities for motivated and pro-crypto CPAs and practitioners. 

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Sean D. Stein Smith Dr. Sean Stein Smith, CPA, DBA, CMA, CGMA, CFE, is an associate professor at the City University of New York – Lehman College. He is a member of the NJCPA Board of Trustees, a New Jersey CPA Political Action Committee Trustee and participates on several interest groups. More content by Sean D. Stein Smith: Trends in Accounting Education Integrating Emerging Technologies into Accounting Education Protecting Yourself from Two-Factor Authentication Fraud Speaking with Clients about 2FA Fraud Prevention How Blockchain Can Improve Audit Accuracy Convention Conversations Taking the Mystery Out of Leadership Attracting Students to the CPA Exam Learn more from Sean D. Stein Smith: 3/11/25 - Key Considerations For Setting Up A Crypto Payment System 4/4/25 - Accounting Educators Workshop 4/23/25 - Key Considerations For Setting Up A Crypto Payment System 4/25/25 - AI & ChatGPT for Accountants 6/3-6/25 - NJCPA Convention & Expo