Bitcoin's tender embrace [Linda Raymond/Moment via GettyImages]
Hey Snackers,
The most expensive home bought with crypto cost $22.5M — and of course, it's a penthouse in Miami Beach.
The S&P 500 closed just below its all-time closing high yesterday. Happy Friday, S&P 500.
Return of the coin... Earlier this week, crypto prices fell after US officials recovered $2.3M in Bitcoin ransom. Yesterday, Bitcoin surged 9% after El Salvador became the first country to approve the cryptocurrency as legal tender. El Salvador currently uses the US dollar as its official currency. Expect some cryptic changes:
A new idea indeed... El Salvador's President and his New Ideas party say the move will improve financial inclusion among the 70% of Salvadorans who don’t have access to traditional financial services. Introducing BTC as legal tender could also ease the "remittance fee" burden:
This could be a valuable experiment... for developing countries considering crypto as legal tender. But analysts are worried about the economic risks posed by BTC’s extreme volatility. El Salvador is one of Central America's poorest countries, and has struggled to manage its finances. It could benefit by converting BTC to $$$ when the crypto's price is high, to help cover its huge deficit. On the flip side, things could go sour if BTC moves the other way, as it has over the past month.
Bombshell... The nonprofit publication ProPublica dropped an investigation revealing how the 25 richest people in the US pay little to no income taxes compared to their net worth. The story is causing a stir, partly since leaking tax returns is a federal crime. ProPublica says it obtained IRS data from an anonymous source. The data = tax returns of thousands of America's wealthiest, spanning 15+ years. The Treasury Department is investigating the leak. From 2014 to 2018:
Here's how... In the US, income is taxed – net worth isn't. So while Elon's wealth grew by billions as Tesla stock rose, he wasn't taxed on investments that he didn't sell (aka: unrealized gains). ProPublica calculated “true tax rate” — taxes paid as a percentage of total wealth gains.
This scandal could help fuel Biden's policy... Many Americans are shocked to see billionaires' ultra-low tax rates. President Biden is seeking tax increases on the wealthy to fund proposed spending on infrastructure and social programs, including nearly doubling the capital gains tax rate to 39.6% for Americans earning $1M per year or more.
Authors of this Snacks own shares of: Tesla
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