Recap has a comprehensive integration with Bitstamp that makes it easy to manage your crypto tax calculations. Connect your Bitstamp account to Recap to import your full history and automate your taxes. From 2026, tax authorities are widening the automatic reporting of crypto under frameworks such as the OECD's Cryptoasset Reporting Framework (CARF), so keeping an accurate record matters more than ever.
Disclaimer
The information provided in this content does not endorse Bitstamp. Furthermore, it does not constitute tax advice. If anything financial or tax-related is unclear, speak to a qualified tax professional. You can also share your Recap account with your accountant or tax adviser directly.
Why Bitstamp tax can be difficult to calculate manually
Bitstamp is one of the oldest crypto exchanges, running since 2011, and that longevity is what makes its tax position fiddly. The job is rarely a handful of recent trades: it is often years of them, funded across several currencies. A few things tend to trip people up:
A long, multi-currency trading history
- Years of trades to reconstruct. A long-standing account can hold hundreds of buys and sells stretching back to the early days of crypto, including in coins that have since been delisted or renamed, and every disposal is measured against a cost-basis pool built from the whole history.
- More than one currency. Bitstamp settles in several fiat currencies, so purchases funded in pounds, euros or dollars all feed the same cost-basis pool and need converting to your reporting currency at the right historical rate.
Staking rewards and record gaps
- Staking rewards through Bitstamp Earn. Rewards from staking assets such as Ethereum are treated as income at their value on the day they arrive, and that same value becomes their acquisition cost, so only later growth counts as a gain. They land as a steady drip that is easy to overlook.
- Old records and gaps. The further back your activity goes, the more likely early statements are incomplete or scattered across exports, which makes an accurate cost basis harder to pin down.
How to import your Bitstamp data into Recap
Connect your Bitstamp account to Recap by API and we import your full history automatically, including trades, deposits, withdrawals and Bitstamp Earn rewards, however far back your account goes. Recap classifies and values every entry with our fair-market valuation engine, converting purchases made in other currencies as it goes, and applies the tax rules for your jurisdiction.
Auto Sync with Bitstamp How are Bitstamp transactions taxed?
Tax treatment depends on the transaction type and where you are tax resident. Here is how the main Bitstamp activities are generally treated:
| Transaction type | CGT disposal | CGT acquisition | Income |
|---|---|---|---|
| Deposits | CGT disposal: no. Fiat and crypto deposits generate no disposal or acquisition. Bitstamp reports the deposit fee in the deposited asset and Recap deducts it from the credited amount, so a fee on a crypto deposit is recorded as a fee disposal of that asset (a fee in fiat is not a chargeable disposal). | CGT acquisition: no | Income: no |
| Withdrawals | CGT disposal: no. Withdrawing the asset itself is not a disposal. The withdrawal fee is taken in the withdrawn asset, so a crypto withdrawal fee is recorded as a fee disposal of that asset. | CGT acquisition: no | Income: no |
| Buying crypto with fiat | CGT disposal: no | CGT acquisition: yes. The crypto bought enters the section 104 pool at the value of the fiat paid, plus the trade fee. Bitstamp charges the fee in the quote (fiat) currency, and fiat is never a chargeable asset, so the fiat side produces no disposal. | Income: no |
| Crypto to crypto | CGT disposal: yes. The crypto sold is disposed of at the trade value. Bitstamp charges the fee in the quote asset, so on a crypto-quoted pair the fee is also recorded as a separate fee disposal of that crypto. Recap's default: the quote side drives the valuation (for portfolios created after 2022-05-25). Configurable: valuation can be switched to the disposed side, and ‘Deduct fees from trades’ (off by default) nets a same-asset fee off the amount acquired instead. | CGT acquisition: yes. The crypto received enters the section 104 pool at the same trade value. | Income: no |
| Selling crypto for fiat | CGT disposal: yes. Disposal of the crypto sold at the fiat proceeds, less the trade fee. The fiat received is not a chargeable asset, so it creates no pool acquisition. | CGT acquisition: no | Income: no |
| Bitstamp Earn staking rewards | CGT disposal: no. Locking coins into Bitstamp Earn or having them released is not imported as a transaction: staked-asset credits, sends and recalls are skipped, so the principal movement produces no events. | CGT acquisition: yes. The reward also enters the section 104 pool at that same market value, so only growth above that cost is captured on a later disposal. | Income: yes. Recap records a Bitstamp staking reward as income at the market value on the day it is received. Recap's default: any fee on the reward is recorded separately as a fee disposal. Configurable: enable ‘Deduct fees from income’ to deduct a same-asset fee from the reward amount before valuing it. |
| Transferring between your own accounts | CGT disposal: no. Moving assets between your own Bitstamp accounts, or between Bitstamp and another account connected to Recap, is neither a disposal nor an acquisition. A transfer fee paid in crypto is recorded as a fee disposal, and a quantity mismatch between the two matched sides is treated as a transfer excess. | CGT acquisition: no | Income: no |
This table shows how Recap classifies each transaction type by default. Some treatments — such as the acquisition cost used for airdrops — are configurable in Recap. This is general information, not tax advice; consult a qualified tax professional about your circumstances.
This table shows Recap's default classification for common Bitstamp transactions. It is not an exhaustive schedule or a ruling. Treatment depends on your circumstances and jurisdiction, and you can recategorise any transaction where yours differ. Confirm your position with a qualified tax adviser.
Rewards from Bitstamp Earn are generally treated as income at the value you receive them, with any later disposal of those coins also potentially creating a capital gain. Where purchases were funded in different fiat currencies, each is converted to your reporting currency so the cost-basis pool stays accurate, and transfers between your own accounts are not disposals.
Refer to our tax guides for a more detailed look at crypto tax rules.
What's in your Bitstamp tax report
Recap turns your full Bitstamp history into a single tax report: capital gains, losses and income worked out under the rules for your jurisdiction, purchases in every currency converted and pooled correctly, staking rewards valued on the day they arrived, and a clear year-by-year summary you can file yourself or hand straight to your accountant.
Common Bitstamp tax challenges and how Recap solves them
Bitstamp accounts produce a few recurring tax problems, especially older ones. Here is how Recap handles each one:
Trading history and currency conversion
- A long trading history. Years of buys and sells are slow to reconstruct by hand. Recap imports the whole history and calculates the gain or loss on every disposal automatically.
- Multiple funding currencies. Trades funded in pounds, euros or dollars all belong in one pool. Recap converts each to your reporting currency at the correct rate so the cost basis is right.
Bitstamp Earn, delisted assets and old records
- Bitstamp Earn rewards. Staking rewards land as many small income events. Recap values each one at the point you receive it, so none are missed.
- Delisted and renamed coins. Older accounts often hold assets that no longer trade. Recap still classifies and values them so historic disposals are not left out.
- Scattered old records. Early activity can be spread across multiple exports. Recap combines them into a single tax position, so nothing from the early years is overlooked.
Why Bitstamp users choose Recap
Bitstamp users often choose Recap because a long-standing account can carry more than a decade of trades, funded across several currencies, with staking rewards on top. Rather than rebuilding all of that by hand, you can connect by API and see your gains, losses and income reconciled in one report, ready to file or share with your accountant.
Whether Bitstamp shares account data with HMRC is a separate question, and we answer it in does Bitstamp report to HMRC.
