IRS chief asks Congress for authority and resources to regulate cryptocurrencies

Internal Revenue Service Commissioner Charles Rettig on Tuesday asked Congress for new authority and resources in order to regulate cryptocurrencies for better tax collection and to avoid frauds and scams.

Rettig asked for the new measures during a Senate Finance hearing Tuesday to examine President Joe Biden's 2022 budget proposal, which calls for $41 million to expand anti-cybercrime efforts and $32 million for cryptocurrency-related enforcement operations and additional tax information reporting for businesses that receive cryptocurrency that has a fair market value of over $10 million.

“I think we need congressional authority. We get challenged frequently and to have a clear dictate from Congress on the authority of us to collect that information is critical," Rettig said in response to a question from Republican Sen. Rob Portman of Ohio.

“The most recent market capitalization in that world, the crypto world, exceeded $2 trillion and more than 8600 exchanges worldwide,” he added.