Accountant for Crypto Investors: DeFi, Staking, NFTs & Multi-Wallet Taxes in 2026
Kimberly Green | 2025-05-12
Short answer: crypto investors benefit most from a specialist when the transaction history is harder than the tax form. DeFi, staking, NFTs, perps, self-custody, multiple exchanges, missing basis, and broker forms that do not match your records can require transaction-level reconciliation before the return can be prepared accurately.
The IRS treats digital assets as property and requires taxpayers to report digital-asset income, gains, and losses whether or not a broker form captures the full history. Start with the IRS’s current digital-assets guidance.
Featuring
Matthew Walrath
Founder, Crypto Tax Made Easy
Matthew’s work centers on complex individual crypto histories: DeFi, staking/restaking, liquidity positions, perps/Hyperliquid, high transaction volume, multiple wallets and exchanges, missing basis, and tax-software cleanup. CTME can also reconcile the crypto layer for a client who wants to keep an existing CPA.
When a crypto investor should consider specialist help
| Situation | Why it gets difficult |
|---|---|
| Multiple wallets and exchanges | Basis and transfer history can become detached from the asset if records are incomplete. |
| DeFi and liquidity protocols | Imported labels may not capture the legal/economic substance of each protocol interaction. |
| Staking and restaking | Income timing, valuation, basis, and later dispositions must be tracked. |
| Perpetual futures / high-volume trading | Software may struggle with borrowed assets, closing transactions, or unsupported venues. |
| NFTs and airdrops | Creator/investor status, receipt timing, later disposition, and collectibles issues can differ by facts. |
| 1099-DA does not match your history | Broker-reported proceeds and basis may not include everything needed to file accurately. |
What a strong crypto accounting workflow looks like
- Collect every wallet address, exchange export, broker form, and prior-year report.
- Normalize the data and identify transfers between accounts you control.
- Investigate unmatched transactions on-chain rather than forcing generic categories.
- Reconstruct missing basis and preserve the audit trail.
- Separate clearly supported tax treatment from positions that depend on unsettled facts.
- Deliver reconciled reports to the return preparer or handle filing within the agreed professional scope.
Related guides
- Best Crypto Tax Accountants & Services in 2026
- Crypto taxable events
- Crypto staking taxes
- Form 1099-DA explained
- Per-wallet cost basis rules
This is general information, not tax advice. Digital-asset treatment can be fact-specific and continues to evolve.