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The IRS is distributing approximately $2.4bn to taxpayers who missed claiming the Recovery Rebate Credit on their 2021 tax returns. By the end of January, around 1m taxpayers will receive special payments of up to $1,400. IRS Commissioner Danny Werfel stated, “Looking at our internal data, we realized that 1m taxpayers overlooked claiming this complex credit when they were actually eligible.” Eligible individuals will receive automatic payments without needing to file amended returns. The IRS will notify recipients via letters, and payments will be sent by direct deposit or check. Taxpayers who have not yet filed their 2021 tax returns can still claim the credit by the April 15th 2025 deadline.

 

Al.com

The Columbian

The IRS has announced the allocation of $6bn in tax credits to more than 140 projects aimed at funding infrastructure projects that add to U.S. clean energy and critical materials production and industrial decarbonization capacity. The new allocations are funded by the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), and are the second round of IRA tax credits being made through the Qualifying Advanced Energy Project Credit (48C) program, which provides investment tax credits of up to 30% for advanced energy projects that meet prevailing wage and apprenticeship requirements.  Projects selected spanned areas ranging from clean hydrogen electrolyzers, fuel cells and subcomponents, grid equipment and electric vehicle components to batteries, nuclear power, solar PV, and wind energy. The awards also included $1.5bn in allocations made to projects supporting the objective to expand critical materials processing and refining capacity, such as facilities that refine and process lithium, copper, and rare earth elements.

 

ESG Today

Individuals and businesses in Southern California impacted by wildfires and straight-line winds starting January 7th now have until October 15th to file federal tax returns and make payments. The IRS has announced that relief is available for areas designated by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, including Los Angeles County. Affected taxpayers can also claim uninsured disaster-related losses on their returns for either the year the loss occurred or the previous year. Taxpayers should include the FEMA declaration number 4856-DR on any return claiming a loss.

 

Bloomberg Tax

Accounting Today

CPA Practice Advisor

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Venture capitalists are increasingly focusing on accounting firms, with Bessemer Venture Partners, General Catalyst and Thrive Capital among those investing in such companies. Marc Bhargava, a managing director at General Catalyst who leads the firm’s Creation strategy, covering venture buyouts and incubations, commented: “We do think there’s a huge opportunity to roll up accounting firms and automate a lot of the workflow and let the same accounting firms take twice as many clients.” He continued: “The idea is not to cut people with AI, the idea is to enable them to do two to three times the work."

 

Wall Street Journal

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) expects to see steady global growth and continuing disinflation in 2025, according to its latest World Economic Outlook. IMF managing director Kristalina Georgieva suggested that governments need to cut fiscal spending and adopt reforms to boost growth. She said: “Countries cannot borrow their way out. They can only grow out of this problem.” In October, the IMF raised its 2024 economic growth forecasts for the U.S., Brazil and Britain but cut them for China, Japan and the euro zone. It also left its forecast for 2024 global growth unchanged at the 3.2% projected in July. The IMF also lowered its global forecast for 3.2% growth in 2025 and warned that global medium-term growth would slip to 3.1% in five years.

 

Reuters

The proceeds from U.S. initial public offerings will probably rise in 2025 in the wake of monetary easing that helped boost total total IPO valuations 47% last year compared with 2023, according to EY. Mark Schwartz, EY Americas IPO and SPAC advisory leader, said that total proceeds  from U.S. IPOs will likely increase this year beyond $40bn from $32.8bn in 2024, and that the total number of transactions this year will likely range in the historical average between 125 and 150 compared with 183 last year. “The market is in the process of figuring out who will be the winners and losers based on how policy changes play out” under President-elect Donald Trump, he explained. “Ultimately though, a pro-business environment would be expected to be a meaningful tailwind for the IPO market.”

 

CFO Dive

Robinhood Markets has agreed to pay $45m to settle charges from the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) regarding multiple violations, including inadequate record keeping and trade reporting. The SEC's acting director, Sanjay Wadhwa, said Robinhood's firms "failed to comply with a broad array of requirements," which included accurately reporting trading activity and filing timely reports of suspicious activities.

 

Reuters

Former WWE chief executive Vince McMahon has signed settlements on his and the company’s behalf for two harassment claims against him without telling the company, the SEC has reported. Mr. McMahon will pay a $400,000 fine and disgorge $1.3m to the company for the portion of his earnings based on the revenue the company reported that was higher than it should have been for two periods. “Company executives cannot enter into material agreements on behalf of the company they serve and withhold that information from the company’s control functions and auditor,” Thomas Smith, the SEC’s associate regional director in New York, said in a statement.

 

Accounting Today

Legal Dive

As taxpayers increasingly manage their sensitive information online, tax fraud has surged, with the IRS reporting a staggering $5.5bn lost to scams in 2023. Criminals employ various tactics, including tax avoidance scams promising unrealistic rewards, refund scams that trick victims into sharing personal information, and violation scams that instill fear by posing as IRS officials. The IRS warns that "if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is," and urges taxpayers to be cautious. To protect against fraud, individuals should file early, set up verified IRS accounts, and avoid responding to unsolicited communications. Good cyber hygiene, such as using strong passwords and secured connections, is also essential.

 

Missoulian

Lawyers representing 73 Swiss banks seeking to avoid a tax-evasion probe by U.S. authorities wrote a letter to the U.S. Department of Justice raising questions over a dozen demands, including the banks' cooperation with other nations. The letter, dated December 21st, asks the U.S. to discuss issues which present substantial obstacles to their clients’ ability to "cooperate fully with . . . any other domestic or foreign law enforcement agency designated by the Department,” among a wide range of other changes. "This requirement is not found in the Program and, indeed, turns a Program specifically focused on U.S. tax issues into a global cooperation agreement without any safeguards or guarantees of appropriate consideration of the banks’ cooperation," the document argued.

 

Reuters