> **This article is informational only and is not financial, tax or legal advice.** UK crypto rules are changing quickly and your situation will be specific to you — speak to a qualified accountant or solicitor before acting.
Why Crypto Accounting Got Harder in 2026
Three things converged this year that make the 2025-26 self assessment cycle (deadline 31 January 2027) materially different from previous years for anyone holding, trading, staking or earning cryptoassets in the UK:
1. **HMRC's dedicated cryptoasset section** on the Self Assessment return is now in its second year, meaning HMRC have a much clearer expectation of what they want disclosed and where.
2. **The Cryptoasset Reporting Framework (CARF)** — the OECD's international standard — is being implemented by HMRC, with UK-resident exchanges and custodians beginning data collection from 1 January 2026 ahead of first reporting in 2027. In short: HMRC will soon get your transaction data automatically.
3. **The FCA's stablecoin and crypto financial promotions regime** continues to mature, changing how UK businesses can hold, accept and account for stablecoin balances.
The result: the days of "I'll just not mention it" are functionally over.
How HMRC Actually Categorises Crypto
Despite the headlines, HMRC's framework is conceptually simple. For **individuals**, cryptoassets are normally treated as **property for Capital Gains Tax (CGT) purposes**, not as currency. That means:
For **businesses** (limited companies, LLPs, sole traders trading as a business activity), crypto generally falls under either trading income or the corporation tax chargeable gains regime depending on the activity pattern. The dividing line between "investor" and "trader" is judgement-heavy and one of the most common areas where professional advice is essential.
The Numbers That Matter for 2025-26
A few figures worth knowing for the year ending **5 April 2026**:
These figures are accurate to the best of our knowledge at time of writing (April 2026); always verify against current HMRC guidance.
The Share-Pooling Rule (a.k.a. Section 104 Pool)
UK crypto cost-basis is **not** FIFO, LIFO or HIFO by default. HMRC requires share-pooling for individuals:
1. **Same-day rule** — disposals are matched against acquisitions on the same day first.
2. **30-day "bed-and-breakfast" rule** — then matched against acquisitions in the next 30 days.
3. **Section 104 pool** — everything else is averaged into a single running pool per token.
This is per-token (one pool for BTC, one for ETH, one for each ERC-20, etc.) and is one of the most-misunderstood mechanics in UK crypto tax. Off-the-shelf tax software made for the US will get this wrong unless explicitly switched to UK rules.
DeFi: Still the Murky Bit
HMRC's published guidance on DeFi lending, liquidity provision and staking has improved but remains an area of active interpretation. The current direction of travel:
If your DeFi activity is non-trivial, this is exactly the area where professional advice pays for itself many times over.
CARF: The Game-Changer Quietly Landing
The **Cryptoasset Reporting Framework** is the single biggest structural change. From 1 January 2026, UK-based reporting cryptoasset service providers (RCASPs) — exchanges, custodians, certain wallet providers and brokers — must collect detailed customer data and transaction information. The first automatic exchange of information between HMRC and other CARF-participating jurisdictions is scheduled for 2027, covering 2026 activity.
The practical effect: HMRC will increasingly be matching your declared crypto activity against data the exchanges have already given them. Discrepancies will trigger nudge letters at minimum, enquiries at worst.
The Voluntary Disclosure Facility for cryptoassets that HMRC opened in 2023 remains open, and is the cleanest route for anyone with historic under-reporting to get straight before CARF data starts flowing.
Stablecoins, Businesses & Payments
For UK businesses considering accepting or holding stablecoins:
A Practical Record-Keeping Checklist
Whether you're an individual investor or a business, the records HMRC expect (and that any decent accountant will need from you) are:
1. **Type of cryptoasset** (BTC, ETH, USDC, specific NFT collection, etc.).
2. **Date of every transaction.**
3. **Number of units in / out.**
4. **GBP value at the time of the transaction** (use a consistent, defensible source — the exchange rate at the moment of the transaction is the gold standard; daily averages from a reputable source are usually acceptable).
5. **Cumulative running total per pool.**
6. **Bank statements and wallet addresses** showing the on/off ramps.
7. **Records of any income events** (staking rewards, airdrops, employment income paid in crypto) with their GBP value at receipt.
Start each tax year with a clean export from every exchange and wallet you use — retroactively reconstructing this is genuinely painful.
Common Pitfalls We See
Where to Get Real Advice
For anything beyond a handful of straightforward disposals, you want one of:
Many general-practice accountants still defer crypto work to specialists; that's a feature, not a bug — better than a confident wrong answer.
How Smart Path IT & Regulas Fit
We are not accountants and this article isn't tax advice. Where we *do* help is the **infrastructure and bookkeeping** side that supports good crypto accounting:
Our MTD-ready bookkeeping platform [Regulas](/portfolio/regulas) covers the conventional sole-trader and landlord side of UK compliance today. Cryptoasset bookkeeping — share-pool tracking, exchange-export ingestion, GBP valuation at transaction time and CARF-aligned record retention — is on the Regulas roadmap as the UK regulatory picture stabilises. If that's something you'd want early access to, drop us a line and we'll add you to the pilot list.
For the actual tax calculation in the meantime: please speak to a qualified accountant. [Get in touch](/contact) if you'd like a chat about the infrastructure side.
> **Reminder: this article is informational only and is not financial, tax or legal advice. Rules change frequently and individual circumstances vary. Always verify current HMRC guidance and consult an appropriately qualified professional before acting.**