Big, Dumb Bitcoin Maxi Michael Saylor Decides He's Above Paying Taxes

Here in the real world we follow laws. Like, you know, paying taxes.

But, apparently the rules don't apply to bitcoin maximalist and former Microstrategy CEO, Michael Saylor (...and Shakira). 

In case you don't know who Satoshi Nakamoto is and have never climbed Mt. Gox, Michael Saylor is the kinda guy that aspiring crypto bros have posters of on their wall. He is a legend in the game and probably the only person that still has laser eyes in his Twitter profile pic. Oh, and he says shit like this...

Basically he's the guy you don't want to get stuck talking to at a party.

He rose to fame in the crypto community when he pivoted his run of the mill software company into what is essentially a bitcoin holding co. As of the end of June, the company owned almost 130,000 bitcoin. And as you might have gathered, it's down bad thanks to the current "crypto winter."

But now it appears that Mikey Blockchain may have neglected other parts of his life as he built a bitcoin collection the Winklevii would be jealous of. DC claims Saylor has stiffed it out of more than $25M dating back to 2014.

"Today, we’re suing Michael Saylor - a billionaire tech executive who has lived in the District for more than a decade but has never paid any DC income taxes - for tax fraud."

The DC AG is also suing MicroStrategy for aiding and abetting. Cheryl from HR done fucked up.

According to the complaint, Saylor lied about living in Florida to avoid paying income taxes. Friendly reminder: FL is one of only a handful of states that doesn't collect personal income tax. The catch? You need to have boots on the ground there most of the year. Per the suit…

Saylor lived in a penthouse in Washington, D.C. while "masquerading" as a resident of Florida or Virginia, by purchasing property and registering to vote in these states. However, he still lived in the district for at least 183 days per year, which is the minimum to be a "statutory resident."

But getting caught might not even be the worst part. Someone allegedly snitched on him. The AG said…

This was "the first lawsuit brought under [the district’s] recently amended False Claims Act encouraging whistleblowers to report residents who evade our tax laws by misrepresenting their residence."

You might recall that Dave talks about establishing residence in Miami ALL THE TIME, and takes it very seriously. Probably for this exact reason. 

Also, imagine living in DC instead of Miami when you're bitcoin royalty.

Snap necks and cash checks,

Tyler (@JPMorinChase on Twitter)

BTW, Large and I host a weekly podcast called The Family Office. We discuss the biggest finance and markets' stories and are taking you along for the ride as we invest our own money. Watch on YouTube. Or listen on Spotify or Apple.