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Topic: Bitcoin deemed a commodity not a currency in Finland (Read 780 times)

legendary
Activity: 1148
Merit: 1008
If you want to walk on water, get out of the boat
Funny how people totally outside of the bitcoin world think they can "categorize" it.
full member
Activity: 154
Merit: 100
As long as it is being mentioned it doesn't really matter what they classify it as  Wink
legendary
Activity: 2184
Merit: 1056
Affordable Physical Bitcoins - Denarium.com
This is not news, this has been the stance in Finland since the beginning. Hasn't changed.
legendary
Activity: 4424
Merit: 4794
well a commodity sounds good. it sounds like my bank-fold getting bigger, my coins gaining value.

an asset sounds better as its better fitting of a description, but also officiates bitcoin into a category that government and taxmen can use, to then allow transactions and holdings to happen without bans.
sr. member
Activity: 280
Merit: 250
IIIIII====II====IIIIII
I'm Finnish, so I know this is what will happen: We wait until Swedes make some decision about it, and then officially decide the same. This is how its always been and will be.

Smiley

you like cats on fire?
newbie
Activity: 29
Merit: 0
I'm Finnish, so I know this is what will happen: We wait until Swedes make some decision about it, and then officially decide the same. This is how its always been and will be.
full member
Activity: 192
Merit: 100
well a commodity sounds good. it sounds like my bank-fold getting bigger, my coins gaining value.
full member
Activity: 195
Merit: 100
Selling Coupons Babie
It would be shame if Bitcoin is called currency, the same way as dept based fiat
sr. member
Activity: 364
Merit: 250
Countries labeling it a "commodity" and not a "currency" seems to be a growing trend and I don't expect it to stop.  Also I see nothing wrong with that, nothing wrong with having it in a certain category and then applying applicable tax and other laws to it as a commodity.  Also there's a lot of truth about the commodity aspect of bitcoin since it's so volatile and still not something most people accept or most people actually spend.

Anyway, I think it's a step in the right direction to have it classified as SOMETHING , that way businesses know how to stay in line with the law and governments know how to properly regulate it.
legendary
Activity: 1260
Merit: 1029
Guys, cmon...they are thinking about it, they are categorizing it. This is not bad at all. It's not like it's illegal or something. What i can read out of it: "right now it doesnt fit to any category defined by law"...who sais they wont change law to fit it in there if they see that they can get tax out of it?
For bitcoin, anything official that is not banning is good thing.
legendary
Activity: 4424
Merit: 4794
Paeivi Heikkinen needs to learn economics.

bitcoins features and usage resembles an asset, in no way is bitcoin anywhere near a commodity.

and also this is just Paeivi Heikkinen unofficial opinion based on a telephone call. not the official stance of Finland. so please do not meander/chinese whisper this guys unofficial opinion into something the media will pick up as european fact.
sr. member
Activity: 476
Merit: 250
Bitcoin deemed a commodity not a currency in Finland

Bitcoin doesn't meet the definition of a currency or even an electronic payment form in Finland, where the central bank has instead decided to categorize the software as a commodity.

"Considering the definition of an official currency as set out in law, it's not that. It's also not a payment instrument, because the law stipulates that a payment instrument must have an issuer responsible for its operation," Paeivi Heikkinen, head of oversight at the Bank of Finland in Helsinki, said in a Jan. 16 phone interview. "At this stage it's more comparable to a commodity."

http://www.sfgate.com/technology/article/Bitcoin-deemed-a-commodity-not-a-currency-in-5160291.php
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