Kalshi Bitcoin Perpetual Futures Face Tax Uncertainty After CFTC Approval

Bitcoin News said on X that traders face uncertainty over how to report gains to the U.S. Internal Revenue Service after the CFTC approved Kalshi's Bitcoin perpetual contracts as futures products. According to ChainCatcher, if the product is treated as a regulated futures contract under Section 1256 of the U.S. tax code, gains are generally taxed as 60% long-term capital gains and 40% short-term capital gains regardless of holding period. CME said Kalshi's perpetual contracts are actually swaps, which are explicitly excluded from Section 1256. The CFTC's classification supports the view that the contracts are futures, but it does not bind the IRS, leaving the tax treatment unresolved until the IRS, U.S. Congress, or a court directly addresses Bitcoin perpetual contracts.