Current Status and Issues of Accounting Principles for Crypto Currency: The Case of Wemix

Abstract

The cryptocurrency market has been expanding at a rapid pace and has been sharply contracting since the Lunar－Terra incident in May 2022, but Bitcoin’s market capitalization still exceeds that of Samsung Electronics. This shows that cryptocurrencies are gaining ground in the financial market as a new investment alternative, despite the ongoing debate about the futility of cryptocurrencies and whether they can be recognized as legal tender. Nevertheless, it is difficult to find a clear definition of cryptocurrencies and how they create value. Currently, IFRS requires that virtual assets be classified as inventories or intangible assets, which is expected to be difficult for listed companies to show the economic substance of virtual assets directly issued and distributed by listed companies. For example, IFRS classifies virtual assets as inventory if they are held for sale in the ordinary course of business or bought and sold by intermediaries, which is a view of virtual assets limited to the perspective of virtual asset exchanges. Recently, some virtual assets issued by domestic listed companies have been relatively clear about their use and method, but it is questionable whether their economic substance can be reflected in financial statements through existing inventory or intangible asset standards. This study considers the approach to establishing accounting standards for virtual currency issuers by examining a series of events that occurred in WEMIX, a virtual fund issued by WEMADE, to see why such events.