The US Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is preparing for a significant increase in cryptocurrency tax crimes. This was stated by the head of the agency’s criminal investigations department, Guy Ficco, in an interview with CNBC.

The statements were made on the eve of the deadline for US citizens to file their tax returns (April 15).

According to the official, the IRS has increased its capabilities in combating cases of tax fraud and tax evasion involving digital assets. Ficco pointed to cooperation with Chainalysis and several other similar organizations.

The head of the department noted that previously digital assets were mainly used as a tool for committing financial offenses such as fraud, scams, and money laundering. Recently, the agency has seen a sharp increase in “pure crypto tax crimes.” The official expects the trend of their increasing share to continue in the near future.

“This could be simply a failure to report income from the sale of digital assets. It could be concealing the true basis of cryptocurrencies. In the latter area, I expect growth [in the number of cases],” he said.

Ficco mentioned IRS’s collaboration with Chainalysis and several other similar organizations.

It is worth noting that in December 2023, ForkLog reported that about half of the agency’s cryptocurrency investigations involved tax evasion cases, whereas three years ago, over 90% were related to money laundering.

In the same month, the Service named the largest cases of 2023 related to digital assets.

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