Kenya is the latest country to say it wants to regulate its crypto industry. The government wants to tax transactions in digital currencies as the industry grows.

if Kenya’s parliament passes The Capital Markets (Amendment) Bill, the government will start taxing cryptocurrency traders on their income.

“Where digital currency is held for a period of less than twelve months, income tax laws apply, and where it is held for more than twelve months, capital gains tax laws apply,” the bill says.

The proposed law also wants to tax the increased market value of crypto when they are sold or used in a transaction.

Since at least four million people in the country invest in cryptocurrencies, the government wants banks to take a 20% excise duty out of all commissions and fees charged on digital asset transactions.

The Capital Markets Authority (CMA), which is the country’s tax authority, needs to know about crypto holders for tax purposes. The date the crypto was bought and the date it was sold are two pieces of information that need to be shared.

The Bill says, “A person who trades in digital currencies must keep records of digital currency transactions, including purchases and sales, and pay taxes on any gains made from digital currency transactions according to the law.”

If the bill is signed into law, it will be the first time the country regulates cryptocurrencies in a formal way. This will be a big step for the industry as a whole

“The amendment will set specific rules for digital currency transactions in Kenya, including what digital currencies are, how they are made (through crypto mining), and how they can be bought and sold,” the Bill said.

At the moment, there isn’t much regulation in Kenya’s crypto space. A previous government report said that at least 4 million investors have lost money because of the current bear market. In this case, the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) told Kenyans not to invest in things like Bitcoin (BTC).

https://altcoin.ng/kenya-plans-to-introduce-income-tax-for-crypto-traders/