Proposals Regarding Accounting for Cryptocurrencies in Accordance with Romanian Accounting Regulations

Abstract

Romanian legislation does not include concrete regulations on the accounting treatment of cryptocurrencies. They are not recognized as currencies traded on a regulated market and cannot be categorized as “classic” currencies under the laws in this field. Moreover, given the lack of rules and supervision regarding virtual currencies at global level, as well as their diversification, these new types of amounts are classified as speculative assets by the National Bank of Romania. In the laws of other states, according to accounting regulations, these virtual currencies are often classified as inventory or intangible assets. Romanian professionals often face uncertainties regarding the correct way of accounting for cryptocurrency transactions, especially since the accounting treatment has tax implications as well. Therefore, in this article we aim to propose a number of accounting treatments for the most frequent cryptocurrency transactions, in accordance with the Order of the Minister of Public Finance No. 1802/2014 for the approval of the Accounting regulations regarding the individual annual financial statements and consolidated annual financial statements, as subsequently amended and supplemented. In addition, we propose amending the Chart of Accounts so that such elements can be easier to identify in the accounting records of firms that use this type of assets.

Keywords

• cryptocurrency
• speculative asset
• accounting treatment