Freda D. CuevasJapan’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party approved a proposal on Thursday that exempts companies issuing cryptocurrencies from taxes on unrealized capital gains for tokens they retain on their books, Bloomberg reported, citing party member Akihisa Shiozaki.
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Fast facts
- The proposal reviewed by the ruling party’s tax committee aims to improve business conditions for companies issuing cryptocurrencies, Shiozaki told Bloomberg.
- Currently, Japan imposes a levy of around 30% on companies sitting on unrealized gains from cryptocurrency holdings.
- Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s administration is expected to finalize its annual tax policy guidelines before the end of this year, while tax code amendments are usually submitted to parliament in January.
- The tax legislation indicates the authorities are pursuing earlier announced plans to cut some of the red tape on the crypto industry to encourage innovation and investment, despite the collapse of the FTX.com crypto exchange, which had an operation in Japan.
- Japan’s Virtual and Crypto assets Exchange Association (JVCEA), the self-regulatory body that oversees local crypto exchanges, said in October it would relax its screening process for crypto token listings.
- Kishida, who became prime minister in September 2021, has been a supporter of digital finance and blockchain adoption, recently announcing further investments in the non-fungible token (NFT) and metaverse industry. He included crypto in plans to reinvigorate the economy, under his “new capitalism” mandate.
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