HM Revenue and Customs has published its first standalone snapshot of taxable crypto gains in the UK, after adding a dedicated box for crypto disposals to the Self Assessment return for the 2024-25 tax year. The new figures show that 17,600 people declared £1.38 billion in taxable gains from cryptoassets.

The data points to a highly concentrated market for taxable profits. A small group of 240 people, each reporting more than £1 million in gains, accounted for £717 million of the total, while most taxpayers declared much smaller amounts.

A small minority captured most of the reported gains

The 240 filers with gains above £1 million represented less than 2% of everyone who reported a crypto disposal, yet they were responsible for more than half of the total gains. HMRC’s commentary also linked that group to more than half of the £13.8 billion in disposal proceeds recorded for the year.

At the other end of the range, 65% of crypto taxpayers reported gains below £25,000. That majority accounted for only 7% of total gains and 8% of disposal proceeds. Across the full group, the average gain came to £78,000, although that figure is heavily lifted by the much larger returns reported by the millionaire cohort.

New reporting box reveals who is filing

HMRC said these numbers are now visible as a separate category because crypto disposals were split out on the tax return for the first time. Before 2024-25, gains from cryptoassets were included within the broader property and assets capital gains category, making the segment harder to isolate.

The age profile of crypto taxpayers also stands out against the wider capital gains population. People aged 25 to 44 generated 71% of all proceeds from crypto disposals, but took 45% of the gains. HMRC’s figures show that 54% of crypto taxpayers fall in that age band, compared with 17% of capital gains taxpayers overall, while 81% of crypto taxpayers are aged 54 or under.

Men dominated both participation and profits

The first breakdown also shows a sharp gender skew. Men made up 87% of those reporting crypto gains, far above the 56% share seen across the broader capital gains population.

Their share of profits was even more concentrated than their share of filers. Male taxpayers booked 93% of the total crypto gains reported to HMRC for the year.

Compliance push is widening ahead of exchange data sharing

Alongside the tax data, HMRC said it sent 81,000 “nudge” letters to people suspected of underpaying over the past year. That was up 25% from roughly 65,000 such letters a year earlier. HMRC describes these letters as an opportunity to disclose issues before any formal move by the tax authority, rather than as investigations in themselves.

The next confirmed change is scheduled for May 31, 2027, when HMRC is due to begin automatically receiving information on UK residents from exchanges in 52 jurisdictions. A further 15 jurisdictions are set to follow in 2028, extending the reach of cross-border reporting on crypto holdings and transactions.

Source: Cryptopolitan