The IRS wants your DeFi trades

Plus: Squid Game tokens rise – who’s getting played?

GM. The Daily Squeeze is like a fruit salad of crypto news – some bites are sweet, some a bit sour, but it’s all good for you.

📝 The IRS classifies some DeFi platforms as brokers.

🍋 News drops: El Salvador joins the 6K+ BTC club, Solana co-founder gets sued by ex-wife + more

🍍 Market flavor today

The crypto vibe rn is like opening the fridge for the fifth time in three minutes – you’re hoping for a snack to appear… but nope, it’s just the same eggs and a bottle of old salad dressing (that’s prolly a biohazard by now) staring back at you ☣️

The Fear and Greed Index decreased to 65, which still spells “Greed” but is getting closer to “Neutral.” Meanwhile, Bitcoin spent the entire weekend below $95K.

According to trader Skew, BTC is hovering around a key VAL (Value Area Low) – which is the bottom part of a price range that sees the most trading activity, so it tends to act like a support area. It’s also close to last week’s low and sitting on a key HTF (High Time Frame) trend line, so volatility might be on its way.

Trader Rekt Capital warned yesterday that if the $94,250 mark is lost on the daily chart (which it was), BTC might tumble into low-$90K territories (which it did).

And analyst James Van Straten says that if $90K support cracks, $75K might be the next stop. Yikes, but also… an opportunity for those waiting to buy cheaper?

On a brighter note, Santiment suggests that if large holders keep adding to their bags, there’s a chance of a final pop before 2025 arrives.

So what’s gonna unfold as the calendar flips? Well, it could be quiet… or it might not 😏

🥝 Memecoin harvest

These coins might be memes, but those gains are no joke 💪

	Name		24H Change
	Aped Monky APED		▲ 12K%
	dante DGPU		▲ 8K%
	aether collective AETHER		▲ 3K%
	Butthole Coin BUTTHOLE		▲ 343%

Data as of 06:45 AM EST.

Check out these memecoins and plenty more here.

The second you become an adult, it’s kinda the default setting to start disliking the IRS. If you’re new to adulthood and don’t feel it yet, go ask your uncle what he thinks about it – THAT’S how much the feeling grows as you get older.

Well, Uncle Terry, lemme tell ya – crypto’s right there with you today (btw, if you’re reading this, happy New Year – say hi to Aunt Leslie).

The IRS dropped some new reporting requirements for crypto brokers set to kick in by 2027. Basically, they’re trying to make sure people pay taxes on their crypto trades, and they’re targeting the platforms that help make those trades happen.

Who’s a broker, you may ask?

The IRS expanded the definition of “broker” to include front-end DeFi platforms like decentralized exchanges.

So, if the platform does anything to facilitate trades – like offering a website where you can connect your wallet – it might now count as a broker.

The IRS estimates this change will affect:

What will the brokers have to do?

Collect KYC info: names, addresses, and other personal details;
Report transactions: file a new IRS form with details about crypto sales and trades.

Why’s this a big deal?

DeFi wasn’t built to track identities or transactions like this. Does the IRS care, tho’?.. Make your own conclusions.

And, naturally, the crypto community went nuts:

The Blockchain Association even sued the IRS with claims that these regulations:

Go beyond the IRS’ legal authority;
Violate the Fourth Amendment (privacy rights);
Violate the Fifth Amendment (due process).

If the lawsuit flops and the rules do stick after all, head of research at Galaxy Digital Alex Thorn says DeFi platforms will have three options:

Play along: accept the broker label, collect all that user data, and hand it over to the IRS;
Block US users entirely;
Or go hardcore decentralized: ditch their websites, stop charging fees, and leave smart contracts unchangeable (making it unprofitable for devs = terrible for innovation).

Uncle T, I see that vein on your forehead popping. Same. But hey, 2027 is still ways off – maybe, just maybe, things will change before then… Less talking, more this: 🤞🙏

🍋 News drops

🎉 El Salvador joined the club of countries holding over 6,000 BTC. They’re behind only the US, China, the UK, Ukraine, and Bhutan on the BTC leaderboard.

💔 Solana co-founder Stephen Akridge is being sued by his ex-wife, Elisa Rossi, for allegedly profiting off her share of SOL tokens through staking rewards. Rossi claims he used his crypto expertise to keep control of the tokens despite their divorce agreement splitting them evenly.

🦅 Terraform Labs co-founder Do Kwon’s extradition to the US has officially been approved. This means his home country, South Korea, had its request for his extradition rejected.

💼 Beware, y’all – scammers are posing as job recruiters to trick people into downloading malware that lets them steal crypto. They’re hitting up LinkedIn, freelance sites, Discord, and Telegram and offering fake gigs with salaries of $200K to $350K.

🦑 Tokens inspired by Netflix’s Squid Game have popped up with the release of Season 2. But just like the games in the series, these tokens could be a deadly trap – community members are already warning about potential scams and rug pulls.