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Britain's crypto gains are concentrated in very few hands, according to the first official figures HMRC has published on the sector.
Some 240 people declared more than £1 million each in cryptoasset capital gains during the 2024-25 tax year, the tax authority said Thursday, reporting £717 million between them. That group is fewer than 2% of the 17,600 individuals who declared crypto disposals, yet HMRC's statistical commentary credits it with over half of both the £1.38 billion in gains and the £13.8 billion in disposal proceeds.
At the other end, 65% of crypto taxpayers reported gains under £25,000. Between them they accounted for 7% of gains and 8% of proceeds.
The figures appear for the first time because the Self Assessment return now carries a dedicated section for cryptoasset disposals, which were previously lumped in with other property and assets.
Crypto taxpayers look nothing like the rest of the capital gains population. Some 54% are aged between 25 and 44, against 17% of capital gains taxpayers generally, and 81% are 54 or under.
That cohort trades hardest and earns least from it. People aged 25 to 44 accounted for 71% of all crypto disposal proceeds but only 45% of the gains.
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Men made up 87% of those reporting crypto gains, against 56% across capital gains as a whole, and booked 93% of the gains.
For all the attention, crypto remains marginal to the wider picture. Total capital gains hit a record £127 billion in 2024-25, generating £24.2 billion in tax. HMRC cannot say how much of that came from crypto, because cryptoasset liabilities are not separated from other assets taxed at the main rates.
Under the OECD's Cryptoasset Reporting Framework, which the UK began implementing in January, service providers must hand customer information to tax authorities. HMRC starts receiving that data in 2027, and providers that fail to comply face penalties of up to £300 per user.
"Taxes are due on cryptoasset gains just like any other gains," said James Murray, Financial Secretary to the Treasury.
Other rules are moving the other way: the Treasury plans to defer capital gains tax on DeFi lending and liquidity pool deposits until assets are genuinely disposed of. Gains above the allowance for 2025-26 must be reported by 31 January 2027.
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