In order to prevent tax evasion within the cryptocurrency sector, the Malaysian Inland Revenue Board (IRB) has launched a special operation called “Ops Token.”
The operation, which was carried out with the help of the Royal Malaysia Police and CyberSecurity Malaysia, targeted several businesses in the Klang region suspected of under-reporting their cryptocurrency transactions.
Details of the ‘Ops Token’ Initiative
As reported by the local news agency, Malaysian Reserve, this operation involved a comprehensive raid in ten different locations, aimed at reducing the “leakage of tax money” linked to the exchange of digital assets found under the above allegations.
Notably, the “Ops Token” reflects the Malaysian government’s efforts to strengthen tax compliance among cryptocurrency traders and business entities.
According to a report by the Malaysian Reserve, the data collected during these raids revealed significant non-compliance, with many organizations failing to adequately disclose their cryptocurrency activities. The IRB noted:
The data obtained will be analyzed in detail to determine the amount of cryptocurrency assets sold and the profit received from the activity thus identifying the real amount of tax evasion that has not been released to the IRB.
Notably, this has prompted the IRB to warn all individuals and firms trading in digital currency to comply with Malaysia’s tax laws or face strict enforcement action.
According to IRB chief executive officer Datuk Dr Abu Tariq Jamaluddin, the project is expected to improve Malaysia’s “tax efficiency” and increase revenue by closing loopholes that previously allowed tax evasion.
Global Crypto Tax Strategies: A Series of Different Approaches
Notably, Malaysia is not alone in taking a closer look at tax evasion within the digital currency sector.
Early last month, the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) began closely monitoring 1.2 million crypto-related accounts to tackle “tax evasion,” a move that reflects Australia’s broader crackdown on tax avoidance amid growing interest in digital currencies in the region, as reported. by Bitcoinist citing Reuters.
On the other hand, Turkey has taken a different approach. The country’s Minister of Finance and Finance, Mehmet Simsek, recently revealed that the government has no plans to tax profits from stocks and cryptocurrencies.
However, the Turkish government is considering a small transaction tax on these goods, although the details have not been disclosed.
While some may see Turkey’s crypto tax approach as fair compared to other countries, Mehmet Gerz, CEO of Ata Portfoy, expressed concern about the proposed tax, suggesting that even a small tax on stock sales could cause “inefficiency in the market, increased commission. costs, and hinder commercial activities.”
The featured image was created with DALL-E, a Chart from Tradingview
Source link
