SMSFs and Cryptocurrency – Lexology

By now, many of us have heard stories akin to that of Mr Laszlo Hanyecz, an early adopter of Bitcoin.

Back in 2010, when Bitcoin was in its infancy with minimal value, Mr Hanyecz decided to spend all of his 10,000 coins on two large pizzas. If he had only held on to all of those Bitcoins instead of spending them, he would now be worth over four hundred and fifty million Australian dollars.

Such stories of substantial gains in the value of cryptocurrency have piqued the interest of mainstream and amateur investors, leading some to consider cryptocurrency as an option for their portfolios.

While not yet mainstream, cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin are now recognised by the Australian Taxation Office as a legitimate form of investment for self-managed super funds (SMSFs).

While cryptocurrency may be an option for a SMSF, clients often wonder if they should introduce such investments into their fund’s portfolio, and if they do want to invest, what legal…