A Canadian-resident taxpayer deposits crypto-assets held on capital account with a custodial centralized crypto-asset trading platform (the “Platform”) that is compliant with the requirements of the Canadian Securities Administrators (CSA) including that crypto-assets deposited with a Platform are held separately from the Platform’s own assets and in trust for each respective investor. The taxpayer may also “stake” crypto-assets through the platform, i.e., validating transactions in respect of a crypto-asset and adding them to a publicly distributed ledger through proof-of-stake blockchain protocols.
In finding that neither such deposits nor staking entailed a disposition, the Directorate stated:
[I]t is our understanding that, as a crypto-asset trading platform that is compliant with the CSA’s requirements, the Platform does not acquire beneficial ownership of any of the Deposited Crypto or Staked Crypto. Instead, users retain beneficial ownership of the Deposited Crypto and Staked Crypto at all relevant times. Further, it is our view that, based on the facts submitted, none of the specific inclusions in the definition of “disposition” in subsection 248(1) would apply to trigger a disposition.