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According to a statement from Ukraine’s Economic Security Bureau, the state treasury is missing at least $81 million that should be received in taxes from cryptocurrency companies between 2013 and 2023. The agency analyzed the activity of crypto exchanges founded by residents of Ukraine and found that their trading volume of BTC, ETH and USDT for the specified period of time amounted to more than $55 billion.
Taking into account trading commissions, which range from 0.1%-1.5% of the transaction amount, the average trading commission is 0.8%. Therefore, tentatively, the exchanges received commissions totaling $445.5 million over ten years. At the same time, trading platforms still do not pay taxes in Ukraine due to the lack of a regulatory framework.
“There are different points of view on how cryptocurrency transactions should be taxed, and we will act in accordance with the provisions adopted by lawmakers. However, the solution to this issue is delayed, and the state continues to lose tens of millions every month, which could have come in the form of taxes,” said Andriy Pashchuk, deputy director of the Economic Security Bureau.
He added that cryptocurrencies can be used to circumvent sanctions, withdraw funds abroad, illegal gambling and commit criminal offenses. In March 2022, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky signed the law “On Virtual Assets” regulating the circulation and use of cryptocurrencies in the country. The government has stated that it is working to amend the Ukrainian tax and civil codes on digital assets, but as of August 2023, no additions have been made to the existing requirements.
Mikhail Chobanyan, founder of cryptocurrency exchange Kuna, said that the authorities cannot levy taxes on crypto transactions until the relevant legal regulations are introduced. Chobanian said the Bureau of Economic Security “took these numbers out of thin air, and the department’s analysts lack business insight.”
Recently, the National Bank of Ukraine (NBU) required local cryptocurrency services to provide financial statements for the first two quarters of 2023.