The proliferation of retail trading has brought challenges as well as new opportunities for accountants. Because the tax rules surrounding day trading can be murky and complex, clients who day–trade as either a primary or secondary source of income may require the services of a tax professional. One important area in which this steadily growing group of clients may need advice is whether to make a Sec. 475 mark–to–market election.
In this article, we offer some thoughts on day trading from a tax planning perspective. Practical examples are provided to illustrate the tax difference between making the Sec. 475 election versus not making the election.
THE POPULARITY OF DAY TRADING
Day trading typically refers to active trading by retail or proprietary traders who take short–term positions in any of a broad class of financial assets, including traditional stocks, bonds, currencies (including virtual currency), commodities, futures, and, increasingly, options on these assets. Positions are typically held for as little as a few seconds (known as scalp trading) up to several days (known as swing trading). The day trader’s intent, of course, is to buy an asset for a low price and sell it at a higher price within a short time frame (in the case of a long position; a short position does the same in the opposite order).
An increasing number of online brokers provide software and platforms for day traders, who can use margin loans from the brokerage to increase their buying power to sometimes three to four times their own equity capital. With the recent advent of Robinhood, one of the first online trading platforms to allow its retail clients to place trades with $0 commissions, day trading became accessible globally to the general population. The popularity of this pursuit has driven several traditional banks and brokerages to follow suit and offer commission–free trading to their retail clients in addition to a more expensive alternative that charges commissions for enhanced services. In making commission–free trading available, these financial institutions see an opportunity to profit from extending margin loans to their trading clients.
In principle, day trading is like any other business in which inventory is purchased at a lower price and sold at a higher price (i.e., buy low, sell high). One difference, though, is that in the financial space, both a purchase and sale can be executed instantaneously, generating quick profits or losses. With the increased accessibility of day trading, training courses to educate anyone interested in how to trade financial assets have proliferated on the internet.
Just like with any business, trading in financial assets requires investment in equipment (e.g., hardware and software) and the payment of regular expenses including commissions, platform fees, data fees, interest on margin–based loans, and office expenses. Profit or loss from day trading has tax implications for the trader’s other income–generating activities.
TRADER IN SECURITIES
Typically, a day trader, because of the nature and extent of the trading activities, will for federal tax purposes qualify as a trader in securities (i.e., an individual who is in the business of buying and selling securities for his or her own account). If a day …….
Source: https://www.journalofaccountancy.com/issues/2022/jun/tax-advice-clients-day-trade-stocks.html