Long-time investment trader and crypto enthusiast Peter Brandt, whose reputation has grown from his uncanny Bitcoin price predictions, has filed an official complaint with the US’ Internal Revenue Service (IRS) against Coinbase.

Brandt tweeted (Feb 27) that he believes the major US-based crypto exchange has failed “to properly comply” with IRS Notice 2014-21, and been “complicit in its failure” to provide the appropriate Form 1099 to US customers.

IRS Notice 2014-21 describes how existing general tax principles apply to transactions using virtual currency. The rule of thumb is that the same current principles apply in line with the rest of the traditional market, especially while the US is still working out if and how it should formally regulate crypto.

As such, American taxpayers are still required to receive the relevant Form 1099 and file their crypto-related returns with the IRS.

BTC Exchange Guide noted that Notice 2014-21 was first introduced when Bitcoin’s popularity began to take off, around the same time that Brandt tweeted this accusation back in December 2017:

“Here is how @Coinbase (also referred to as @conbase) can rob you. They sell you BTC for one price, buy it from another exchange for $1,000 less and then transfer that BTC into your wallet, thus making $1,000”.

So far, Brandt has not presented anything publicly to substantiate his claims against Coinbase. But he has sparked reactions from others in the scene, such as famed fellow investor Ari Paul who challenged Brandt to put his allegations to the test.