[darksaints]

Gambling happens in real world markets as well, but that doesn't mean that real world markets are casinos.

Beaniebabies were effectively regulated and taxed like commodities. Commodities do not require a real-world use. All they are are tradable non-currency things which can result in capital gains.

The speculative (HODL!!) cryptocurrencies should probably be treated like commodities, and regulated as such by the CFTC. The cryptocurrencies that are actually being used like currencies (e.g. actually used to buy things) should be regulated like foreign currencies, which would also be regulated by the CFTC (this is essentially the same exact thing as Commodities trading, but with simpler accounting rules which reflect the much higher liquidity, divisibility, and likelyhood that a unit changes hands). Neither of these scenarios involve the SEC. The SEC should only be involved when coins are being issued like securities (e.g. as a way to raise funding and sell financial stakes in some kind of enterprise).

[ProjectArcturis]

IIRC beanie babies and similar are classified as "collectibles" and have different (worse) tax treatment than commodities.

[darksaints]

Collectibles are just a subclass of Commodities which can't be taxed using Mark To Market rules, but there are a whole host of commodities which are just like that. Precious metals, rare coins, cards, comics, etc., are all collectibles, but they are still commodities for regulatory purposes. For example, here is PR release of a CFTC enforcement action against some fraudulent coin dealers: https://www.cftc.gov/PressRoom/PressReleases/8694-23

IIRC, the IRS and CFTC have already issued rules to treat NFTs as collectibles.

[ForHackernews]

> The cryptocurrencies that are actually being used like currencies (e.g. actually used to buy things

So... none of them? How long are y'all going to carry on this charade?

[darksaints]

How long are you gonna bury your head in the sand? There are millions of ways to buy actual things with Bitcoin.