4 ms·
That doesn't sound right. The authorities in Finland specifically tax gains made with cryptocurrencies. You only pay tax if you make profit on any individual tr
by hedgew 8y ago
That doesn't sound right. The authorities in Finland specifically tax gains made with cryptocurrencies. You only pay tax if you make profit on any individual trade. But you can not deduct trades that made a loss.
It's not exactly a wealth tax, but it's also hard to consider a capital gains tax because you can't deduct losses. Treating other investment products this way would probably have horrific results, because it heavily disincentivizes taking on any risk.
- mcny 8y agoThis does sound strange. My understanding is that here in the US if you win a huge jackpot at a casino but then spend it all on slots (I don't know how or why anyone would do that but this is a thought experiment) over the year, you effectively don't owe any income tax on that jackpot.
- doikor 8y agoOn casinos and jackpots the individual doesn’t owe any taxes made by gambling winnings as they are paid by the casino/whatever in Finland.
- gamblor956 8y agoIf you win a huge jackpot, the casino withholds taxes on your winnings. However, you may be able to deduct gambling losses from your gambling winnings up to the amount of gambling winnings for that year, assuming you itemize your deductions.
- mvindahl 8y agoIf you buy stocks in a publicly traded Finnish company, then you're taking on a risk in the hope of making a profit. But you are also putting your money at work in the Finnish economy, stimulating job creation and growth. Everybody wins, hopefully. If, on the other hand, you put down your money in bitcoin or at the online blackjack tables then you're gambling, not investing. Win or lose, your gamble creates zero domestic growth. Why should any government incentivize that?
- trinitry3 8y ago> Why should any government incentivize that? Well maybe they shouldn't, but it's shitty to apply this kind of policy retroactively. (I don't know when they actually announced the fact that you can't deduct losses.)
- brlewis 8y agohttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ex_post_facto_law#Finland https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ex_post_facto_law#Finland "Generally, the Finnish legal system does not permit ex post facto laws"
- zokier 8y agoStrictly speaking I don't think this thing is a law, but rather a policy. Also the same paragraph continues > In civil matters, such as taxation, ex post facto laws may be made in some circumstances.
- 21 8y agoWhat if you were to invest in a publicly traded non-Finnish company, let's say Apple? How do you think the government should treat that?
- charlesdm 8y agoApple might be a bad example, but I can't imagine them treating investing in, say, a German company different than a Finnish one. That would be discriminatory and would not be allowed under EU law.
- yunesj 8y agoStocks aren't really a direct investment in a company like you're assuming. Instead, investing in stocks and cryptocurrencies benefit the economy in very similar ways. In both cases, companies hold on to these assets, and can sell them to raise money for doing projects, buying companies, hiring employees, etc. But government's probably shouldn't be incentivizing or de-incentivizing any investing. Saving money is sometimes the best thing to do with it.