Coinbase execs deny lobbying against Bitcoin de minimis tax exemption

Executives at Coinbase have denied allegations that the crypto exchange is blocking a de minimis tax exemption for Bitcoin (BTC) transactions below a certain threshold to push for stablecoin tax exemptions.

Several Bitcoin advocates speculated on social media that the exchange told US lawmakers that a BTC tax exemption is not needed because BTC is not widely used as a medium of exchange.

Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong responded by calling the allegations “totally false” and a form of misinformation.

“I’ve spent a bunch of time lobbying for Bitcoin’s de minimis tax exemption, and will continue doing so. It’s obviously the right thing,” he said.

In separate posts, Paul Grewal, chief legal officer at Coinbase, said, “We’ve never lobbied against BTC,” while Faryar Shirzad, the crypto exchange’s chief policy officer, echoed the statement.

Cointelegraph reached out to Coinbase, but the company declined to comment beyond the responses made by its executives.

Tax policy is one of the main impediments to Bitcoin’s use as a payment method, according to advocates for the biggest crypto, as every sale or transfer would trigger a taxable event, prohibiting its use as an electronic cash system.

Related: Wyoming Senator revives crypto tax exemption debate amid market structure talks

BTC advocates and pro-crypto lawmakers push for BTC tax exemption

In July 2025, US Senator Cynthia Lummis introduced a bill proposing a de minimis tax exemption for cryptocurrency transactions of $300 or less, with a $5,000 annual exemption cap.

However, the bill failed to gain traction, and the de minimis exemption for BTC transactions is not included in the CLARITY Act draft legislation, according to advocacy group the Bitcoin Policy Institute. 

Instead, the tax exemption will apply only to US dollar-pegged stablecoins, according to Conner Brown, the managing director for the Bitcoin Policy Institute. 

Washington, DC-based crypto advocacy group Blockchain Association also outlined a crypto tax proposal and submitted the plan to US lawmakers in February.

The proposal called for exemptions on “low-dollar” crypto transactions, but did not specify a dollar amount.

“A meaningful de minimis exemption for digital asset transactions would eliminate disproportionately onerous reporting for individual taxpayers,” the proposal said.

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