The elephant in the room

The elephant in the roomSorry, no pictures of elephants. Just one word: tax.Everyone who's scratching their eyeballs out over the medium term price movements needs to have a hard think about this complicated and boring, but critical, factor.The advent of tax regulations for bitcoin from 2017 onward has been a game changer.Tax was just not an issue for bitcoin users in most major jurisdictions up until 2017, and its unregulated and untaxed status was surely one of its key attractive points from the outset.Yes, hardcore hodlers in their bunkers gonna hodl and wait for the Fiat Apocalypse. But in the interim years (decades? forever?), aren't law-abiding stores and consumers meant to be "adopting" bitcoin as a peer to peer cash system?From 2017 onward, who in the major countries is going to adopt "cash" that's now "taxable" just by virtue of using it?It may be many years until tax regimes in the major jurisdictions become less punitive for users/traders.Take Japan: currently a bitcoin tax rate of up to 55%, and no offsetting against other losses etc. The Japanese tax agency issued its rules on bitcoin taxation in December 2017. US and Australian tax seasons are approaching.Isn't one reasonable medium term price outlook that since December 2017 we've entered a bitcoin tax winter? via /r/Bitcoin https://ift.tt/2pVlJwU

Sorry, no pictures of elephants. Just one word: tax.

Everyone who's scratching their eyeballs out over the medium term price movements needs to have a hard think about this complicated and boring, but critical, factor.

The advent of tax regulations for bitcoin from 2017 onward has been a game changer.

Tax was just not an issue for bitcoin users in most major jurisdictions up until 2017, and its unregulated and untaxed status was surely one of its key attractive points from the outset.

Yes, hardcore hodlers in their bunkers gonna hodl and wait for the Fiat Apocalypse. But in the interim years (decades? forever?), aren't law-abiding stores and consumers meant to be "adopting" bitcoin as a peer to peer cash system?

From 2017 onward, who in the major countries is going to adopt "cash" that's now "taxable" just by virtue of using it?

It may be many years until tax regimes in the major jurisdictions become less punitive for users/traders.

Take Japan: currently a bitcoin tax rate of up to 55%, and no offsetting against other losses etc. The Japanese tax agency issued its rules on bitcoin taxation in December 2017. US and Australian tax seasons are approaching.

Isn't one reasonable medium term price outlook that since December 2017 we've entered a bitcoin tax winter?

Sorry, no pictures of elephants. Just one word: tax.Everyone who's scratching their eyeballs out over the medium term price movements needs to have a hard think about this complicated and boring, but critical, factor.The advent of tax regulations for bitcoin from 2017 onward has been a game changer.Tax was just not an issue for bitcoin users in most major jurisdictions up until 2017, and its unregulated and untaxed status was surely one of its key attractive points from the outset.Yes, hardcore hodlers in their bunkers gonna hodl and wait for the Fiat Apocalypse. But in the interim years (decades? forever?), aren't law-abiding stores and consumers meant to be "adopting" bitcoin as a peer to peer cash system?From 2017 onward, who in the major countries is going to adopt "cash" that's now "taxable" just by virtue of using it?It may be many years until tax regimes in the major jurisdictions become less punitive for users/traders.Take Japan: currently a bitcoin tax rate of up to 55%, and no offsetting against other losses etc. The Japanese tax agency issued its rules on bitcoin taxation in December 2017. US and Australian tax seasons are approaching.Isn't one reasonable medium term price outlook that since December 2017 we've entered a bitcoin tax winter?