Image
© UnknownA new taxation on investment funds has been introduced in Belgium, effectively allowing the government to repossess funds from its citizens.
In the past, Belgian citizens and customers of French bank BNP Paribas had purchased an investment called Fortis B FIX 160 Equity. Because the investment was entirely made up of Belgian stocks, the capital gains on it were tax free.

But because of new tax laws passed by the government, these investments are no longer immune from capital gains taxes.

This law is retroactive back to July 2008, which means Belgian investors are now on the hook for a handful of new capital gains taxes about which they were never informed.

The investment was originally priced at 1000 Euros. During the economic crisis, the fund dropped to 815 Euros, and when it expired, it was worth 1004 Euros. But beause of the Belgian government's new rules, the fund's investors are being taxed for capital gains of 189 Euros.

But the real issue here is the fact that BNP Paribas has allowed Belgian authorities to automatically remove their new taxes, something which can only happen in a centralized banking system.

Although government authorities could put pressure on Bitcoin banking institutions to surrender the funds of their customers, ultimately the bank could say no, and there isn't much the government can do about it in that case.

This event comes only shortly on the heels of the British government's new powers which essentially allow them to seize the assets of any British citizen right out of their bank account.

Bitcoin is looking like a better option every day.