Wealth Recovery Solicitors (WRS ETL) has launched a new cryptocurrency tracing proposition for accountancy firms and solicitors. This service will not only help firms whose clients have fallen foul of scams but can also provide accountants with the detailed data required to calculate clients’ tax liability accurately in respect of their cryptocurrency assets.
WRS ETL, which last year recovered £10 million in lost assets for clients, is the UK leader in the use of specialist software to trace and prove ownership of crypto assets. This technology is more commonly used by national governments and law enforcement agencies, including the FBI, and is able to provide an authoritative record of crypto transactions.
The firm is now offering this service to accountants and law firms whose clients have fallen foul of cryptocurrency scams, to enable as many victims of scams as possible to benefit from the incontrovertible evidence that these trace reports provide. Where appropriate it is willing to do this on a “white label” basis
Josh Chinn (pictured), solicitor and co-founder of WRS ETL, said, “Our message to other firms is not to turn good business away. Let us deploy our expertise in crypto asset tracing for you, and then provide as much or as little support as you need in using that information to achieve redress for your clients.”
The technology produces reports that include the precise time and date at which cryptocurrency transactions took place, which can also be used by accountants to calculate the tax owed by their clients on crypto assets. This data relating to timing is particularly important for accountants in light of the guidance on the taxation of decentralised finance (DeFi) transactions issued recently by HMRC [see notes to editors].
Mr Chinn continued, “As the rules governing the taxation of crypto currency have matured, accurate record-keeping has become paramount. However, the nature of crypto transactions means this is not always easy, particularly in areas like decentralised finance.
“The same technology that we are currently using to prove ownership of assets belonging to victims of scams like the HyperVerse scheme, which provides trace reports accepted by banks and legal authorities worldwide, can also be used to provide the information required to produce accurate tax returns.
“This is an area in which accountants who work for crypto investors are going to face increased scrutiny, so I strongly recommend that they take a look at our proposition, which can provide them with the accurate, authoritative information they need to ensure that and tax advice they provide is both appropriate and compliant.”
In addition to providing accurate transaction tracing reports, because WRS ETL are SRA-regulated solicitors with an unrivalled reputation in this area, they are able to attend client meetings with accountants, providing both the benefit of their expertise and legal privilege, meaning accountants’ resulting advice to their clients can be based on comprehensive, frank discussions.
WRS ETL also plans to offer its crypto tracing services to private client law and family law firms that need to prove ownership of cryptocurrency assets either for purposes of estate administration or demonstrating the level of a divorcing spouse’s wealth.
WRS ETL was founded in 2021 and has quickly become the market leader in the recovery of assets lost to fraudulently and negligently sold investments, including cryptocurrency schemes. In 2022 it because part of the ETL GLOBAL group, an international network of accounting, tax, legal and audit professionals.
