Audits are inevitable
The IRS treats high-net-worth digital asset portfolios with deep skepticism. We build structures anticipating an audit on day one.
PRACTICE · CRYPTO & DIGITAL ASSETS
Crypto Tax & Corporate Structuring
High-net-worth positions in decentralized finance generate closely scrutinized, complex tax events. Staking rewards, airdrops, and illiquid token portfolios call for thorough, defensible valuation methods that can withstand IRS scrutiny. We work closely with CPAs to build corporate entities and tax structures that protect capital, harvest losses where it makes sense, and account for shifting regulatory classifications.
- Discipline
- Crypto & Digital Assets
- Engagement
- Per matter or retainer
- Counsel
- Christopher Moye
CRYPTO & DIGITAL ASSETS
Audits are inevitable
The IRS treats high-net-worth digital asset portfolios with deep skepticism.
The problem
Crypto creates taxable events most holders never see coming — and the IRS treats large positions with suspicion.
Staking rewards, airdrops, token swaps, and transfers at death each carry tax consequences, and illiquid tokens raise the hard question of defensible valuation. The structure and the records have to be built before a filing or an audit, not reconstructed after — which is why this is legal-structuring work done alongside your accountants.
Principles · 01
How we draft the matter.
Every engagement is composed against these commitments. They shape the protections we add, the questions we ask, and the document that leaves the file.
Entity architecture matters
Holding crypto in your own name is a liability. We use specific corporate wrappers to isolate risk and optimize tax treatment.
Valuation requires defense
When transferring illiquid tokens, the appraisal must be mathematically sound and legally defensible.
What we watch · 02
What can break the matter.
These are the terms, structures, and practical risks that usually decide whether the work holds when the file is tested.
FOUNDERWHALE
Illiquid Token Valuation
Developing defensible, historically sound appraisal methodologies for low-liquidity NFTs and governance tokens to satisfy IRS scrutiny during estate transfers and charitable giving.
PATRIARCHFAMILY OFFICE
Tax-Loss Harvesting & Charitable Trusts
Using advanced instruments, including Charitable Remainder Trusts, to offset large capital gains from early crypto investments while preserving philanthropic intent.
INNOVATORDEGEN
Staking & Airdrop Structuring
Designing the corporate entity structures needed to manage the substantial tax realization events associated with staking operations, liquidity pools, and protocol airdrops.
The work · 03
Four steps. One engagement.
Each step is concrete; each step has a deliverable. The scope is defined, the matter moves, and the file closes.
- 01
Asset Profiling
We categorize your portfolio by tax treatment—differentiating long-term holds from active staking operations and governance tokens.
- 02
Entity Formation
We establish the domestic or offshore corporate vehicles necessary to hold the assets efficiently.
- 03
CPA Integration
We coordinate directly with your accountants so the legal structure and the technical tax filings line up cleanly.
- 04
Audit Defense
If the IRS initiates an inquiry, we stand as a shield between the agency and your private records.
Proof
What stands behind the work.
What stands behind the work — credentials and representative engagements, stated plainly.
Crypto tax-structuring matters are handled by Christopher Moyé, Esq., who authors the firm's published writing on digital-asset planning.
Entity and holding structures, defensible valuation methodology for illiquid tokens, charitable and loss-harvesting trusts, and audit defense — coordinated with your CPA.
We build every structure to be explained to an examiner: documented valuation, clean entity records, and a paper trail that anticipates the audit.
Common questions
Questions clients ask.
Plain answers to the questions that come up most. If yours is not here, send the facts — we answer in writing.
- Is staking income taxable?
- The IRS has taken the position that staking rewards are taxable as income when the taxpayer gains control of them, with later gain or loss on disposition. The treatment of some activities remains contested. We structure and document the activity to the current guidance and coordinate the reporting with your accountant.
- How is crypto taxed when it passes at death?
- Digital assets are part of the taxable estate at fair market value, and heirs generally take a stepped-up basis. The hard part is valuing illiquid or thinly traded tokens defensibly. We build the valuation record and the structure so the estate's position can withstand scrutiny.
- Why hold crypto in an entity instead of my own name?
- A corporate or LLC wrapper can isolate liability, clarify ownership for succession, and create cleaner reporting — depending on your goals and the assets. It is not right for everyone; we assess whether the structure earns its cost for your situation.
- How do you value illiquid tokens or NFTs for tax purposes?
- With a documented methodology, not a guess — comparable sales, liquidity adjustments, and qualified appraisals where the value warrants. A defensible valuation is itself a legal argument, and the documentation is what holds up if the IRS challenges it.
- Do you handle the tax filing?
- No — we are counsel, not your accountant. We build the legal structures and valuation record and coordinate directly with your CPA, who prepares and files the returns. The two have to fit together, which is the point of doing them in tandem.
SCHEDULE A CONSULTATION
Review your tax posture.
Ensure your tokenized assets and staking operations are structured to withstand intense regulatory scrutiny.
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