Individual-focused crypto tax guides are written for investors and traders who pay Capital Gains Tax. A UK limited company follows a different regime entirely, and applying the wrong rules, whether that means claiming the CGT annual exempt amount or assuming no tax arises until fiat is received, creates a material compliance risk. This guide sets out what actually applies to a company holding crypto: Corporation Tax, balance-sheet measurement, disposal timing, and the VAT wall.
The short answer: a company's crypto gains are Corporation Tax, not CGT
A UK limited company that disposes of cryptoassets accounts for the resulting gain or loss within its Corporation Tax computation. Capital Gains Tax is a tax on individuals; companies do not pay it. The 18%/24% CGT rates and the £3,000 annual exempt amount are individual entitlements and have no equivalent for companies. Every pound of gain a company realises on crypto enters its taxable profits without any exempt slice.
That single distinction separates the company regime from nearly every guide written for retail crypto holders, and it is the most common source of error when directors try to apply DIY individual-focused resources to a company holding.
Why companies are different: no annual exempt amount, no CGT rates, it runs through CT
For an individual, crypto gains fall under Capital Gains Tax. The first £3,000 of gains per year is tax-free. Gains above that are taxed at 18% within the basic-rate band and 24% above it for 2026/27. An individual with modest gains and unused basic-rate band pays a lower effective rate.
A company gets none of this. There is no annual exempt amount. There is no 18%/24% rate structure. Instead, the net gain on disposal is simply additional taxable profit, and Corporation Tax applies:
| Metric | Individual (CGT) | Company (CT) |
|---|---|---|
| Annual exempt amount | £3,000 (2026/27) | None |
| Tax rate on gains | 18% (within basic-rate band) / 24% (above) | 19% (profits up to £50k) / 25% (profits over £250k) / Marginal Relief between thresholds |
| Tax regime | Capital Gains Tax | Corporation Tax |
| Pooling rules | s104 pool (average cost, per token) | Follows accounting records and CT legislation |
| Same-day / 30-day matching | Yes (overrides the pool) | Does not apply in the same way |
The Corporation Tax rates that apply to a company's full profits (including any crypto gain) are: 19% where augmented profits are £50,000 or below, 25% where they exceed £250,000, and Marginal Relief for profits between those thresholds. The thresholds are reduced proportionately where the company has associated companies.
Getting it on the balance sheet: measurement follows the accounting standards
Before tax can be calculated, the crypto holding has to be recognised and measured in the company's accounts. This is where a single answer does not exist: the appropriate treatment depends on the accounting standard your company applies (for example, FRS 102, FRS 105, or full IFRS), on whether the holding is treated as a current asset, an intangible asset, or something else, and on the nature of the holding itself.
The general principle is that the accounts determine the carrying value, and the carrying value informs the tax computation. Questions that matter in practice include:
- Is the crypto held at cost, or is it marked to fair value at each reporting date?
- If held at cost, is there an impairment review, and is any write-down allowable for Corporation Tax purposes?
- If revaluation gains pass through the profit and loss account, do they give rise to a CT charge before disposal?
These questions are fact-specific and standard-dependent. The principle to carry away is that the accounting treatment drives the tax outcome, not the other way around. Speak to us about how your company's specific holding should be recognised and measured.
When the tax arises: gains and losses on disposal within the CT computation
A company's crypto gain or loss crystallises on disposal. Disposal events for a company include:
- Selling crypto for sterling or another fiat currency
- Exchanging one cryptoasset for another (a crypto-to-crypto swap is a disposal at the sterling market value at the point of exchange)
- Using crypto to pay for goods or services (a disposal at market value at the time of payment)
- Gifting crypto (a disposal at market value)
The gain is the sterling proceeds (or market value where no cash changes hands) minus the allowable cost recorded in the accounts. That net figure enters the Corporation Tax computation for the accounting period in which the disposal falls. There is no equivalent of the individual's same-day rule or 30-day bed-and-breakfast rule applying in the same form; the computation follows the accounts and the CT legislation.
One implication directors often miss: if a company's crypto rises sharply in value and then the company uses it to pay a supplier, Corporation Tax on the gain arises in that accounting period, even though the company never "sold" the crypto in a conventional sense.
Crypto accepted as payment vs crypto held as a treasury investment
How a company comes to hold crypto, and why, can affect how the tax treatment is characterised.
Crypto accepted as payment for goods or services may be treated as a trading receipt at the sterling value on the date received, entering the trading profit computation directly. The subsequent disposal of those tokens then gives rise to a further gain or loss against that receipt value as cost.
Crypto held as a treasury asset or investment sits differently in the accounts and may be characterised as a non-trading or chargeable gain, depending on the facts and the applicable accounting treatment.
The distinction matters because it can affect which part of the CT computation the gain or loss falls into and how losses are relieved. This is a fact-specific question. If your company holds crypto in more than one capacity, or if the position has changed over time, speak to a specialist about how each holding should be characterised.
The VAT wall: exchanging tokens is not a VATable supply, but goods and services still are
VAT on crypto operates differently from CT, and the HMRC cryptoassets manual at CRYPTO45000 draws a clear line:
| Transaction | VAT position |
|---|---|
| Exchanging exchange tokens (crypto for crypto, or crypto for fiat) | Not a VATable supply of the tokens. Outside the scope of VAT. |
| Goods or services paid for using crypto | VATable at the sterling value of the goods/services at the time of the transaction. VAT applies to the underlying supply, not to the token exchange. |
| Receiving crypto as payment for a VATable supply your company makes | VAT due on the value of your supply in sterling. The customer paying in crypto does not change your VAT liability. |
The practical point for companies: "we pay in crypto" does not remove VAT from a transaction. If your company buys services from a VAT-registered supplier and pays in Bitcoin, the supplier charges VAT on the sterling value of those services. If your company sells goods and accepts Ethereum as payment, you account for VAT on the sterling value of your supply at the time of delivery.
Do not conflate the VAT position with the CT position. They are separate computations. A disposal that generates a CT gain may be VAT-neutral if it is purely a token exchange; a payment for services may have VAT consequences even if the CT gain on the token used is small.
Records, Corporation Tax returns, and CARF for companies
Companies must keep adequate records to support their Corporation Tax return, including records of every crypto acquisition (date, sterling cost, description), every disposal (date, sterling proceeds or market value, gain/loss calculation), and the accounting treatment applied.
The Corporation Tax return (CT600) reports the company's taxable profits, including gains on crypto disposals, for each accounting period. Errors or omissions carry the usual CT penalties.
From 1 January 2026, UK cryptoasset platforms are required to collect user and transaction data under the Cryptoasset Reporting Framework (CARF). The first report to HMRC is due between 1 January and 31 May 2027, covering the 2026 calendar year. Company accounts held on UK platforms are included. This materially reduces the practical ability to overlook exchange-held positions in a CT return.
Getting company crypto accounting right
The combination of Corporation Tax (not CGT), fact-specific balance-sheet measurement, disposal timing across multiple event types, and the VAT wall means company crypto sits at the intersection of several disciplines. Applying individual-investor logic to a company position is the single most common error, and it is correctable only if caught before returns are filed.
If your company holds crypto as a treasury asset, accepts it as payment, or is considering either, visit our businesses hub for the full picture of how we help companies navigate this. You may also want to read our companion post on paying staff in crypto and the PAYE/NIC position.
To understand the individual CGT regime that applies to your directors and shareholders personally (as a contrast to the company position), see our investor hub.