Swedish crypto miners have incurred a significant tax debt exceeding $90 million, following a comprehensive audit by the Skatteverket, Sweden’s Tax Agency.
The agency scrutinized 21 crypto-mining firms from 2020 to 2023, uncovering tax discrepancies in 18 of these firms.
The investigations brought to light various misrepresentations and omissions that enabled these firms to exploit tax incentives improperly.
The Skatteverket‘s findings indicated that several crypto firms manipulated their business descriptions to evade value-added tax (VAT) on eligible operations.
Additionally, some managed to dodge import taxes on their mining hardware and income tax on the revenues generated from mining activities.
The issues highlighted involve not only unpaid taxes but also improperly claimed rebates and underreported crypto assets.
The Tax Agency elucidated the situation, stating, “The described approach leads to tax disappearing from the country in the form of incorrect payments of input VAT, unpaid output VAT and unreported crypto assets.”
As a result, the implicated crypto mining firms have been collectively ordered to repay up to 990 million Swedish krona (about $90 million).
READ MORE: Stock and Crypto Sectors Face Potential Correction Amid Economic Uncertainty, Says Expert
This sum includes 932 million krona ($85.4 million) in VAT discrepancies and an additional 57.9 million krona ($5.3 million) in tax penalties.
Despite the hefty tax demand, several of these firms appealed the decision.
The administrative court reviewed these appeals, ultimately upholding the claims of two firms while dismissing the remainder.
Adjustments to the originally stated amounts were made based on these verdicts.
In a related development in November 2023, Hive Digital Technologies, a player in the crypto-mining industry, expanded its operations in Sweden.
The firm purchased a commercial property along with a data center in Boden. Johanna Thornblad, the country president for Sweden at Hive, remarked on this strategic move: “The new data center will enable HIVE to grow its regional footprint while further demonstrating its commitment to its ESG focus, sustainable practices, environmental responsibility, and energy efficiency with its newest ‘green’ energy powered data center.”
This facility is set to accommodate the latest generation of ASIC servers, thereby boosting the company’s Bitcoin production capabilities.
Hive Digital Technologies is known for its dedication to green energy solutions, operating data centers in Canada, Sweden, and Iceland to facilitate eco-friendly crypto mining.
To submit a crypto press release (PR), send an email to sales@cryptointelligence.co.uk.
