Australian court ruling could lead to $640M in Bitcoin tax refunds

Quick Summary:

A court decision in Australia could open the door to as much as $640 million in capital gains tax (CGT) refunds on Bitcoin transactions after a judge ruled that crypto should be treated as money rather than a taxable asset. On May 19, the Australian Financial Review (AFR) reported that the decision arose within a criminal case involving federal police officer William Wheatley, who allegedly stole 81.6 Bitcoin (BTC) in 2019.

New court ruling challenges Australian crypto tax lawsIn an AFR interview, tax lawyer Adrian Cartland said the verdict “totally upends” the Australian Taxation Office’s (ATO) current position. Since 2014, the ATO has classified crypto assets as CGT assets.

In the case, Judge Michael O’Connell of Victoria ruled that Bitcoin qualifies as a form of money rather than property, likening the digital asset to Australian dollars rather than to shares, gold or foreign currency.

Read Quick SummarySave Time

or

Article Details

Author / Journalist: Cointelegraph by Ezra Reguerra

Category: Crypto

Markets: United StatesAustralia

Topics: Money Australia Refunds Crypto Australian Bitcoin Case Million Ruling Transactions Cartland

Source Website Secure: Yes (HTTPS)

News Sentiment: Neutral

Fact Checked: Legitimate

Article Type: News Report

Published On: 2025-05-19 @ 12:49:01 (11 hours ago)

News Timezone: GMT -5:00

News Source URL: cointelegraph.com

Language: English

Article Length: 403 words

Reading Time: 3 minutes read

Sentences: 19 lines

Sentence Length: 22 words per sentence (average)

Platforms: Desktop Web, Mobile Web, iOS App, Android App

Copyright Owner: © Coin Telegraph

News ID: 28815385

View Article Analysis

About Coin Telegraph

Main Topics: Crypto

Official Website: cointelegraph.com

Update Frequency: 44 posts per day

Year Established: 2013

Headquarters: United States

News Last Updated: 7 hours ago

Coverage Areas: United States

Ownership: Independent Company

Publication Timezone: GMT -5:00

Content Availability: Worldwide

News Language: English

RSS Feed: Available (XML)

API Access: Available (JSON, REST)

Website Security: Secure (HTTPS)

Publisher ID: #11

Publisher Details

Frequently Asked Questions