In a major win for the crypto industry, U.S. President Donald Trump has officially scrapped a controversial IRS rule that aimed to extend tax reporting requirements to decentralized exchanges. The move, signed into law on Thursday, comes after weeks of pressure from industry leaders and crypto-friendly lawmakers.
The original rule was introduced at the tail end of the Biden administration. It expanded the IRS’s definition of a “broker” to include not just centralized crypto exchanges like Coinbase and Kraken, but also DeFi platforms—where users trade directly without a middleman.
Crypto advocates pushed back hard, saying DeFi platforms simply can’t follow the rule because they don’t collect personal data from users. “There’s no middleman, so how can they report like one?” many argued.
Trump, who has pledged to be a “crypto president,” seems to be delivering on that promise. This is just his latest move to embrace digital assets. Earlier this year, he formed a special working group to draft new crypto regulations, and he even signed an executive order to build a federal bitcoin reserve.
The bill passed Congress with support from both chambers, using the Congressional Review Act to cancel the IRS update. That law allows Congress to overturn new federal rules with a simple majority vote.
For the crypto world, this reversal sends a strong signal: under Trump, decentralized finance might finally get some breathing room.
As the 2024 campaign heats up, expect Trump to keep riding the crypto wave—especially as he tries to win over younger, tech-savvy voters and industry backers.
