The U.S. Treasury Department isn’t giving investors of exchange traded notes (ETNs) the break they were hoping for. Barclays financial products linked to currency exchange rates will not qualify for the tax savings which was originally advertised by the company as a key feature. Ryan J. Donmoyer for Bloomberg explains that these ETNs that are linked to currencies are debt for tax-related purposes and the interest is taxable to investors. Barclays says owners don’t owe tax on the notes’ distributions.
This government notice brings to attention a more general explanation for the tax treatment of ETNs. They are products that give investors tax-efficient access to a wide array of commodities, and assets ranging from oil to foreign stock indexes at a fraction of the cost of making direct investments.
The tax battle continues.
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