After we have seen Virginia pension funds start investing in Bitcoin, State of Ohio also appears to be taking cryptos seriously. Namely, this is the first state in the US to start accepting bitcoins as legal means for taxpayers.
Robert Sprague, Treasurer in the State of Ohio, has reportedly explained that companies can now pay taxes using bitcoin. Namely, the state launched the cryptocurrency platform www.ohiocrypto.com last December and hired the company Bitpay to collect the payments in cryptocurrencies and to convert them into fiat money before transferring it to the State. Therefore, the state of Ohio will not be storing actual bitcoins. On the other hand, Bitpay will hold a 1% commission on each transaction.
As for the companies interested in settling their taxes in bitcoin, they would need to register and create accounts on the above-mentioned platform. The next step would be to submit the information related to their tax obligations.
Sprague reportedly said: “We applaud the pilot that makes Ohio more business-friendly and sets us up as a leader in cryptocurrency. We will evaluate both currency and counter-party risk once we enter the office to see about the future.”
The authorities in Ohio believe that enabling the payments in cryptos is a big plus, considering exploration of new business opportunities and attracting the investments. Furthermore, they hope to go a step further and make Ohio the center of the blockchain and bitcoin industry.
Do you think this is a way to go?