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Answers to common questions about cost basis, tax lots, and how different asset types are treated in your tax reports. For instructions on submitting cost basis data, see Cost basis.
Anchorage Digital does not provide financial, tax, or legal advice. Consult a qualified professional for guidance specific to your situation.
The original value of an asset at the time you acquired it, including any fees paid as part of the acquisition. It’s used to calculate capital gains or losses when you sell, trade, or dispose of the asset.
When you deposit assets from an external source, we don’t have visibility into when or at what price you acquired them. Providing this information helps ensure your tax reports are accurate. The cost basis you provide may be used in tax forms such as 1099-DA, for eligible US tax-paying entities — see the next question for what’s covered.
Covered assets are crypto assets acquired on or after January 1, 2026, and held at Anchorage Digital until sold. For these, we report both gross proceeds and cost basis to you and the IRS on Form 1099-DA — review your 1099-DA to confirm the cost basis is accurate.Noncovered assets are crypto assets acquired before January 1, 2026, or deposited from an external source. For these, we report gross proceeds but not cost basis to the IRS. If you provide cost basis for your deposits, we include it in the information we share with you, but you’re responsible for reporting it to the IRS on your tax returns.
It depends on how you originally acquired the assets. Common sources include:
  • Transaction history or tax reports from the original exchange or platform
  • Blockchain records for on-chain acquisitions
  • Brokerage or custody statements, or trade confirmations from OTC desks
  • Records from your tax advisor or accounting software
If you’re unsure where to find cost basis for your assets, we suggest confirming this detail with your Finance or Tax team.
A record of a specific acquisition, including quantity, date, and cost basis. A single deposit can have multiple tax lots if portions were acquired at different times or prices.
A cost basis method determines which tax lots are sold first when you dispose of an asset. Anchorage Digital supports:
  • FIFO (First-In, First-Out) — Oldest lots are sold first.
  • HIFO (Highest-In, First-Out) — Highest cost basis lots are sold first. This is the default method.
  • LIFO (Last-In, First-Out) — Most recent lots are sold first.
  • LOFO (Lowest-In, First-Out) — Lowest cost basis lots are sold first.
Contact your account team to change your cost basis method.
No. Anchorage Digital already has the acquisition data for assets purchased, traded, or received as rewards on the platform. Cost basis is only required for deposits from external sources.
Staking rewards are generally treated as income at the fair market value when received. That value becomes the cost basis for the asset. You don’t need to provide cost basis for rewards earned on Anchorage Digital.
Stablecoin rewards follow the same principle: they’re treated as income at fair market value when received, which becomes their cost basis. For fiat-pegged stablecoins, fair market value is typically near the peg (e.g., about $1.00 for USD stablecoins), subject to market deviations.
If you don’t provide cost basis, the system defaults to a $0 cost basis and uses the deposit date and time as the acquisition date. This may result in overstated gains or inaccurate tax reports. We recommend providing cost basis for all deposits as soon as possible after they’re completed.
  • Tax center — Supply cost basis information, manage tax documents, and certify tax information
  • Reporting — View statements and download balance and transaction reports

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