The United States is sitting atop a fiscal precipice. With the total U.S. debt surpassing $37.43 trillion as of September 2025, the nation faces a historic reality. Nearly one-quarter of every tax dollar it collects is consumed by servicing the interest payments on its debt burden.

The relentless march of U.S. debt

According to monthly updates from both the U.S. Treasury and Joint Economic Committee, the national debt has soared to $37.43 trillion. This marks an increase of $2.09 trillion in just the past year.

The interest payments alone for FY2025 exceed $478 billion year-to-date, up 17% from last year, according to CNBC.

This expense is projected to account for about 23 cents of every dollar collected by the IRS in revenue. This is a staggering proportion that has risen sharply as global interest rates normalize following years of quantitative easing.

Tariffs: big numbers, small impact

Recent years have seen the U.S. government rack up record-breaking tariff revenues, especially after a suite of new import duties imposed under the Trump administration.

These tariffs are expected to bolster Treasury coffers and could reduce the national deficit by $4 trillion over a decade.

Yet even such windfalls barely dent the mountain of national U.S. debt, with rising interest costs outpacing tariff collection gains. The IMF cautions that “the scale of the increase in tariff revenue is highly uncertain,” while Eliant Capital posted:

“Despite tariff revenues, the deficit for July was $291B with the U.S. spending $630B and collecting $338B meaning 46¢ was borrowed for every $1 spent.”

Nothing stops this train

Macro analyst Lyn Alden has popularized the “nothing stops this train” thesis, a phrase borrowed from pop culture but now synonymous with the U.S. debt dilemma.

Alden’s analysis argues that persistent deficits and relentless spending make for an era of fiscal dominance and that substantive fiscal reform is politically impossible. In her view, the relentless accrual of debt is structurally built into the system, and nothing but a paradigm shift (such as hard money) can break the cycle. Alden told Slate Sundays:

“Just structurally, it’s [U.S. debt] growing above target almost without any way to stop it.”

According to the Peterson Foundation, interest payments are now the third-largest spending category for the federal government. They surpass nearly every other program except Social Security and Medicare.

As a share of revenues, federal interest payments will rise to 18.4 percent by year’s end, a level not seen since the early 1990s.

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As interest payments consume ever-larger shares of federal revenue and traditional remedies like tariffs and spending cuts prove insufficient, the conversation around “hard money” intensifies.

Bitcoin and other cryptos are increasingly viewed as store-of-value alternatives in an era of persistent monetary expansion.

As Alden’s thesis warns, nothing stops this train, and this realization is fueling renewed attention to hard money solutions like Bitcoin and gold.

Investors seek alternatives like Bitcoin and gold

Both gold and Bitcoin have seen strong demand as alternative stores of value amid fiscal concerns and inflationary pressure.

As of mid-September 2025, gold had reached an all-time high, trading at over $3,600 per ounce, up more than 41% year-over-year.

Some analysts expect gold’s rally to continue, projecting prices toward $3,800 by the end of the year as global liquidity concerns drive investors into safe havens.

Bitcoin, dubbed by many as “digital gold,” is trading around $115,000–$118,000 after rebounding from its September lows near $108,000.

While Bitcoin’s price action has been volatile, many analysts, including Lyn Alden, expect to see it to hit at least $150,000 by the end of this cycle.

As fiscal pressures mount, these alternatives are increasingly seen as key safeguards in diversified portfolios, in a time when U.S. debt is spinning out of control.

Ukraine has begun formal steps to legalize the crypto industry, shifting from a largely unregulated market to one with a defined legal status.

On Sept. 3, Ukrainian lawmaker Yaroslav Zhelezniak revealed that he and his colleagues approved a bill that legalizes and taxes the use of digital assets in the country.

According to him, the draft bill introduces a tax framework that makes transactions subject to an 18% income levy and a 5% military contribution.

To encourage compliance, the bill offers a one-year window during which withdrawals converted to fiat currency would be taxed at just 5%.

He added that regulators for the space have yet to be named, with both the National Bank of Ukraine and the National Securities and Stock Market Commission being considered.

Meanwhile, he pointed out that new revisions would be made to the bill before the second reading.

Ukraine’s crypto industry

The legislative move comes as Ukraine faces mounting pressure to bring its crypto sector under tighter oversight.

A recent study by the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) suggested the country could recover up to $10 billion by building a more robust regulatory system.

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According to the report, the country’s thriving over-the-counter markets have become a focal point for illicit financial flows, including purchasing restricted military components, using money-mule networks, and gaps in donor verification rules.

The report linked these weaknesses to broader geopolitical risks, warning that they create opportunities for foreign actors to launder money into politics and undermine democratic systems.

Experts at the institute also cautioned that Russian intelligence may be exploiting Ukraine’s wartime distractions to channel illicit funds through local intermediaries.

Considering this, the report argued that Ukraine risks being perceived as a hub for crypto-based money laundering without stronger oversight, which would damage its financial stability and international partnerships.

The report comes at an exciting time, as Ukraine ranks among the world’s most active crypto users. Data from Chainalysis placed the country in the global top ten for adoption and first in Eastern Europe.

That high level of retail and institutional activity has given lawmakers added urgency, as crypto regulation is now seen as necessary to capture tax revenue and shield the economy from illicit activity.

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Buenos Aires has switched on “BA Cripto,” a policy package that lets residents and businesses settle city taxes and administrative fees using cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin. Rolled out on Tuesday, August 19, 2025, the program covers municipal levies such as ABL (property tax), Patentes (vehicle tax), and Ingresos Brutos (turnover tax), as well as non-tax procedures like driver’s licenses and traffic fines, payable via a city QR flow.

Buenos Aires Goes Crypto

City Hall’s move is broader than a payments toggle. Officials unveiled four measures: adding crypto-linked activities to the city’s economic-activity nomenclator to simplify filings; excluding virtual-asset service providers (PSAVs) from certain bank-collection regimes under the turnover tax; shifting the taxable base for crypto trading from gross transaction value to the net spread; and enabling QR crypto payments for both taxes and administrative services. The government framed the package as a regulatory tune-up that reduces frictions while aligning taxation with how digital-asset markets actually operate.

Mayor Jorge Macri presented the initiative as an institutional modernization designed to attract investment and make compliance easier. “The goal is for the City to be a world leader in crypto,” he said, adding: “We already have the human capital, and now we are building the tools by reducing bureaucracy to make taxpayer compliance easier and to support the arrival of new companies setting up here.” The remarks were delivered at The Slow Kale in Colegiales, a venue that accepts crypto payments.

Macri also argued the package signals a friendlier posture toward the sector: “These measures ensure the crypto world sees that the City is increasingly friendly. The digital economy compels us to update and adapt with a modern, agile, efficient and intelligent State. We want talent to find a place to grow, innovate and lead without obstacles.”

The backdrop is growing usage. According to city data cited at launch, roughly 10,000 people in Buenos Aires receive income from abroad via crypto or PayPal, and the use of PIX rails has been rising. Nationwide, Argentina counts “more than 10 million” crypto accounts—about 22% of Latin America’s total—figures the city says justify tailored rules and public-service rails that natively accommodate digital assets.

For firms, the classification update matters because it gives crypto activities an explicit slot in the tax nomenclator, improving clarity “without fiscal cost” and easing cross-jurisdiction information matching. Excluding PSAVs from bank-collection regimes is intended to curb automatic withholdings that can tie up working capital, while the new spread-based tax base acknowledges the mismatch between high-volume, low-margin trading and a gross-receipts framework. Together, these steps amount to what the city calls a more “agile” and “transparent” environment for digital-asset businesses to operate in the capital.

On the consumer side, the payment experience is meant to be straightforward: scan a city QR and pay the selected tax or fee with a compatible wallet. Officials said only some wallets currently support crypto payments, but a Buenos Aires–provided “aggregator” is in the works to let “neighbors and companies” pay “from any wallet, directly, faster, and simpler.” The government did not publish a technical spec or list of supported assets at launch.

Hernán Lombardi, the city’s Economic Development Minister, cast the reforms as a recalibration of legal and tax treatment for digital assets. “These reforms mark a change in the legal and tax treatment of digital assets. Less bureaucracy, greater legal certainty, and clear rules will translate into more investment,” he said, noting the updated nomenclator will help “determine and clarify the activities of companies and individual crypto-asset users, and thus avoid withholdings that compromise the sector’s working capital.”

At press time, the total crypto market cap stood at $3.77 trillion.

Featured image created with DALL.E, chart from TradingView.com

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The following article is a guest post and opinion of Maksym Sakharov, Co-founder and CEO of WeFi.

Last month, Japan’s Financial Services Agency proposed a wholesale reclassification of cryptocurrencies that would introduce a flat 20% tax on digital asset income and help introduce crypto exchange-traded funds.

For a long time, the country’s progressive tax system has imposed levies on crypto gains at rates of up to 55%, a factor many feel makes investing in crypto quite unattractive.

Institutionalized Inertia

However, this is not the only obstacle in the path of a potential Bitcoin ETF approval in Japan; it’s not even the most pressing. Late last year, Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba seemingly dismissed the idea of crypto ETFs, questioning whether the government should promote digital assets like it does traditional investments.

His ruling coalition lost its majority in the upper house following a bruising contest that saw them fall three seats shy of the 50 needed to maintain their advantage. Yet, even as political control hangs in the balance—and Ishiba vows to stay regardless of the election outcome—one thing has remained consistent: Japan’s deep-rooted caution.

Ishiba’s noncommittal stance on ETF approvals is merely a symptom of a deeper malaise. The country’s regulatory reflex isn’t about consumer safety alone—it’s about an entrenched culture of compliance that resists risk at all costs. This mindset, not the much-maligned 55% crypto tax, is what’s truly stifling innovation.

The irony is that Japan was once ahead of neighbors like South Korea and Hong Kong. It recognized crypto as a means of payment back in 2017 and built some of the world’s earliest regulatory infrastructure. Furthermore, in the second quarter of 2024, Metaplanet kick-started a wave of Bitcoin buying by Japanese listed companies, amassing a treasury worth almost $2 billion in BTC at last count. And that’s not all. Progress has also been made in the development of stablecoins and crypto payments infrastructure, with Sumitomo Mitsui signing an MoU with Ava Labs and Fireblocks in preparation to issue fiat-pegged cryptocurrencies.

Yet, beneath these seeming success stories lies a bureaucratic labyrinth killing businesses. Under the current framework, small startups with dreams of offering virtual asset services have found it hard to meet the stringent requirements that include extensive documentation, a local bank account, a Japan-based compliance team, and at least 10 million yen in capital, among others.

Some may argue that the rules are there to protect users, and that’s valid. But couldn’t there be a happy balance between consumer protection and leeway for innovation? It almost feels like the FSA is isolating regulators from builders, with pencil pushers designing rules without stress-testing them against real-world tech constraints.

If taxes were the real barrier for Web3 innovation, the FSA’s proposed reforms would ignite a boom.

Reform Roadmap

To pivot from compliance to competitiveness, Japan needs to rewire some of its long-held approaches. For starters, the government must sunset the pre-approval model and adopt a quicker system that lets exchanges release tokens with post-launch audits. Here, tokens just need to meet baseline disclosure and security attestation requirements to be listed. Full regulatory and technical audits can then be conducted within 30 days of the launch. This way, investor protections are still preserved through enforceable audit sanctions and delisting authority, while at the same time dramatically reducing listing lead times.

The country’s regulators also have to launch dynamic sandboxes that could use zero-knowledge proofs for privacy-safe verification. There’s also a need for state capital injection. Japan could create a $500 million FSA-matched fund directly backing Web3 startups that meet security benchmarks, effectively giving it some skin in the game.

Finally, to foster cooperation and shake off its bureaucratic isolation, the financial regulator could seat tech founders on its advisory boards. This would give it a firsthand look at industry pain points, allowing it to shape policies with the end user in mind rather than to be defensive, status quo-preserving tenets.

These are not radical demands. They’re already standard in the jurisdictions that are now leading global crypto adoption.

Builders are watching. With populist parties like Sanseito gaining traction on “Japan First” rhetoric, the political winds are shifting. If Ishiba’s coalition falls, a new administration could usher in a more innovation-friendly era. But only if Japan’s regulators pivot away from their risk-averse DNA. Without that shift, tax reform will be cosmetic, ETFs will remain in limbo, and Japan’s early advantage in crypto will fade into history.

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Most Japanese say they would buy more Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), and altcoins if the government agrees to reform the nation’s strict crypto tax rules.

This was the main takeaway from a survey of 1,500 adults conducted in April and commissioned by the Japan Blockchain Association (JBA).

Japanese Crypto Tax Reforms Would Drive Volumes Up, Says JBA

In response to the question: “Do you own BTC or other cryptoassets?” 13% of respondents responded in the affirmative.

However, their response to the follow-up question was telling. The question was: “Would you buy crypto/more crypto if the government were to set a flat 20% tax rate on crypto profits?”

To this, 84% of the 191 respondents who said they hold crypto answered “yes.”

And 12% of the 1,309 non-crypto holders also agreed that they would start buying coins if Tokyo green-lights tax reforms.

Capital Gains Tax Request

The JBA suggested that the survey shows that tax reforms would have a very noticeable effect on the trading volumes of domestic exchanges.

At present, Japanese investors must declare their crypto-related profits on income tax returns, in the “other income” category.

That means that depending on their tax brackets, crypto investors may have to pay taxes of up to 55% on their profits.

In many other nations, crypto is instead subject to capital gains tax. That means that, after a certain threshold, traders are taxed at a flat rate of (typically) 10-20%.

Reform advocates want Tokyo to approve a plan to scrap crypto income tax laws. In their place, they want a flat 20% capital gains levy.

The JBA supports this proposal, as do many key members of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, in addition to opposition lawmakers.

However, the regulatory Financial Services Agency (FSA) effectively has the final say on all Japanese crypto policy.

Thus far, all of the FSA recommendations to the Cabinet have been enshrined into law.

The association said: “Cryptoassets are changing from a means of payment for the public to a means of asset accumulation.”

This is in line with the FSA’s own plans to reclassify crypto as a payment tool to an investment vehicle.

The industry body says it is “stepping up its efforts” to convince Tokyo to approve tax reform starting next year.

The JBA is an industry group that comprises some of the nation’s biggest crypto exchanges and blockchain firms.

JBA Submits Petition

The association also announced on July 18 that it has submitted a petition to the FSA calling for it to approve tax reform for crypto profits.

The survey was conducted on April 24 and April 25 this year. Respondents were all Japanese residents aged 20 to 69. Respondents were 60% male and 40% female, with an average age of 38.

The JBA also asked further questions. And 75% of respondents said they would prefer tax bodies to withdraw their payable taxes at source, rather than make separate tax declarations.

The JBA has also asked Tokyo to let crypto traders choose how they want to pay taxes: at source when they sell coins, or after filing declarations.

The survey’s authors also asked the respondents who do not currently hold any coins why they have not invested yet.

To this, 8% of respondents said that they thought that tax levels were too high. But 61% said they thought they lacked sufficient understanding of crypto.

The Japanese media outlet CoinPost reported that the FSA is now “deliberating a proposal to transition cryptoassets to the framework of the Financial Instruments and Exchange Act.”

“If the transition is approved, cryptoassets will be officially classified as financial products,” the media outlet explained.

Most of the respondents said they work in the private sector. Students made up 5.3% of the respondent pool. And 213 unemployed individuals also submitted responses.

At the time of writing, ETH trading accounts for almost half of the trading volume on bitFlyer, one of the nation’s biggest crypto exchanges.

On July 4, President Donald Trump signed the “big, beautiful bill” into law, marking his largest legislation to date. The law includes many provisions, including some that affect Social Security recipients.

One aspect that has received a lot of attention is the impact on Social Security taxes. Trump campaigned on eliminating federal taxes on Social Security benefits and has touted that this law does that, but that’s not quite accurate.

The new rules don’t eliminate the federal tax on Social Security, but do offer a deduction to eligible individuals. Let’s take a look at how the new changes will work.

Image source: Getty Images.

How federal Social Security taxes work

The IRS uses your “combined income” to calculate your tax bill. This includes the following:

• Adjusted gross income (AGI): Your total income from all non-Social Security sources.
• Nontaxable interest: Interest income not subject to federal tax, such as from U.S. Treasury and municipal bonds.
• Half of your Social Security benefits: 50% of your total Social Security benefits for the current year.

Once the IRS calculates your combined income, it uses the following to determine how much of your benefits are eligible to be taxed:

Data source: IRS.

The federal tax process for Social Security can be confusing

The percentages in the above table aren’t how much your benefits are taxed, just how much is eligible to be taxed. The amount that’s eligible to be taxed is added to other income you have and then taxed at your normal income tax rate.

To see it in action, let’s assume you’re married and filing jointly, and the following are true:

• Your combined AGI is $40,000.
• You earned $1,000 in Treasury and municipal bond interest.
• Your Social Security benefits for the year add up to $20,000.

In this case, your combined income would be $51,000 ($40,000 + $1,000 + $10,000). This means up to 85% of your benefits for the year ($17,000) are eligible to be taxed and will be added to your other income to be taxed normally. 

How does the new law affect federal Social Security taxes?

The law that Trump signed doesn’t eliminate the federal Social Security tax, but it does offer a temporary deduction for some people 65 and older.

From now until 2028, qualified people 65 and older will receive a $6,000 deduction ($12,000 for couples). To qualify for the full deduction, single filers must have a modified adjusted gross income (MAGI) below $75,000, and couples must have a MAGI below $150,000.

Single filers with a MAGI between $75,000 and $175,000 and couples with a MAGI between $150,000 and $250,000 are eligible for a reduced deduction. Anybody earning over those thresholds isn’t eligible.

Unlike other types of deductions, you can claim this one whether you take the standard deduction or itemize your deductions.

Who will benefit from the new deduction?

Most low-income individuals already don’t pay federal taxes on their Social Security benefits, so this new deduction doesn’t really affect them. High-income folks aren’t eligible for the deduction, so it doesn’t help them, either. Middle-income people stand to benefit. 

It’s important to note that the federal tax rules on Social Security don’t affect state-level taxes on benefits. There are currently nine states that tax Social Security benefits, so if you’re living in one of those, make sure you’re aware of your state’s specific tax rules.