Texas has proven to be a frontline state within the Bitcoin and Blockchain ecosystem. Sam Castaneda speaks with Cointelegraph on the peculiar characteristics of the state and why they have led in breaking new grounds within the ecosystem and milestones that have been achieved by the people of Texas.
Sam Castaneda is the Co-Founder of UTXO, a Bitcoin company based in Texas. Sam was born in south Texas and moved to Houston to pursue economics at the university of Houston. Sam proudly says:
“I have been a Texan all my life.”
Texans are trail blazers
According to Sam, Texas has always been inclined to take a stance in monetary policies. Giving an example with Greg Abbot "texans governor" who signed house bill 483 which had an interesting proposal for a state run bullion depository. The Texas Bullion Depository, in essence a gold backed bank. Such would be a first of its kind in the nation. The policy would allow individuals and entities to be able to purchase goods and use assets in the vault the same way you would be able to use cash. Sam emphasized that Texans are on the front line of adapting new technology in the finance sector.
“Texas banking commission was the first state to come out and address virtual currencies. Now Bitcoin’s popularity in Texas is growing but I have no doubt that Texan culture will be among the first to adapt to the bitcoin technologies.” He said.
There is still room for growth
Sam did not hold back in making it known that there is still a lot of room for achievement. Despite insisting that Texas is one of the leading states in the development of the Bitcoin market, he believes that there is still a lot left to be achieved. To this he said:
“As Bitcoin grows and becomes more of a household name more people are wanting to use it, as well as merchants seeing the value it creates within the scope of running a business.”
One major aspect in the acceptance of Bitcoin as a currency in Texas is that fact that Bitcoin users do pay tax. According to Sam, there are a multitude of different scenarios that taxation comes into play, one of which is sales tax which falls under state regulation. In addition he notes that the comptroller has not come out to make any direct statement on sales tax and virtual currencies but different states have expressed different outlooks on the issue as well as countries having to recognize it. He also said that what interests him is that Bitcoin just came roaring into existence, forcing countries and states to define how it will be taxed. This is still being fought over through different agencies worldwide.
The technicalities of Bitcoin taxation
Mr. Castaneda analysed the taxation of Bitcoin by saying:
“As a person holding bitcoin, under IRS and Texas guidelines it is seen as property. The same procedures of property taxation will apply; so the important things are time and USD relative price to BTC. If you take a loss on your property you can record that, if you have a gain you report that as well. In no way is BTC not subject to tax.”
He noted though that the laws may not be as concrete as the tax laws that have always been in existence.
Sam didn’t end without saying that he and his company (UTXO) are confident that the Texas market is the best place to start a business in the revolutionary cryptocurrency industry, saying:
“As a Co-founder of UTXO and a native of Texas I see the similarities within both cultures, Texan and bitcoin culture align in many aspects.”
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