Early Bitcoin investor and Defense attorney Roger Ver is close to reaching a deal on tax fraud charges with the U.S. Department of Justice, the New York Times reported Thursday.
Often known as “Bitcoin Jesus” because of his early evangelization of the cryptocurrency, Ver was indicted last April and arrested in Spain on allegations that he failed to file tax returns on capital gains he made after selling “tens of thousands” of bitcoins and renouncing his U.S. citizenship, the Justice Department charged at the time. Ver fought his extradition to the United States and filed a lawsuit earlier this summer.
According to the Times, the proposed deal is subject to change, but Ver would pay about $48 million in taxes he allegedly owes. It has not yet been filed or approved by the federal judge overseeing the case.
A spokesperson for the Los Angeles office of the US Department of Justice, which brought the charge, referred CoinDesk to the Department of Justice’s headquarters in Washington, DC. A spokesperson for the D.C. office did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Ver did not respond to a request for comment.
Ver told the Times he could not comment.
The court record shows that a hearing is scheduled for December 15, 2025.
Ver turned to Roger Stone, an associate of US President Donald Trump, to lobby for his help in resolving the case, according to a lobbying record Stone filed earlier this year.
Trump has pardoned other crypto figures since taking office as president earlier this year, including Ross Ulbricht, Arthur Hayes and other Bitmex founders, as well as Bitmex itself, after the company pleaded guilty to violating the Bank Secrecy Act.
Changpeng “CZ” Zhao, the founder of Binance, also requested a presidential pardon, after serving four months in prison after pleading guilty related to Binance’s anti-money laundering compliance.
