¿Te preocupa whether records will satisfy HMRC if trading Bitcoin margin derivatives? Clear, compliant templates reduce risk and save time.
This guide delivers ready‑to‑use Crypto record‑keeping templates designed for UK taxpayers trading margin derivatives on Bitcoin (futures, options, CFDs) and shows exactly which fields HMRC expects, how to log margin calls and financing charges, and how to produce disposals-ready reports for Self Assessment.
Key takeaways: what to know in 1 minute
- Use templates that separate trades, financing and margin events. HMRC treats disposals, financing and gains differently; mixes cause errors.
- Record timestamps, trade type, counterparty and valuation in GBP. HMRC requires sterling valuations at disposal/receipt.
- Log margin calls and financing charges as separate entries with a clear link to the underlying trade. This prevents misclassification as income or capital.
- Choose a calculation method and document it (FIFO/HIFO). Templates must show which method was used for gains.
- Keep raw exchange CSVs and reconciliation tabs. Templates with an audit trail and checksum rows help if HMRC asks for evidence.
How HMRC treats margin derivatives on Bitcoin
For record‑keeping templates the starting point is HMRC’s position: derivatives that derive value from cryptoassets are generally treated according to their economic substance. If the derivative produces a capital disposal (for example, a non‑business investor closing a Bitcoin futures position and receiving net sterling), that event may produce a capital gain or loss. If the activity constitutes trading (frequent leveraged speculative dealing), profits may be trading income.
Templates should therefore capture: legal product (future, option, CFD), execution timestamp (UTC), notional size, direction (long/short), leverage factor, margin posted, margin calls, cash flows and settlement currency. This allows a tax reviewer to determine whether the outcome is capital or income.
Essential fields in templates for HMRC's assessment
- Date and time (ISO 8601)
- Exchange or counterparty name (with URL)
- Instrument type (futures / option / CFD / perpetual)
- Position id / trade id
- Notional amount in BTC and GBP equivalent
- Entry price and exit price (price basis)
- Leverage used
- Margin posted, margin returned, margin call events
- Financing/overnight funding charges (GBP)
- Net realised P&L (GBP)
- Notes / business purpose
Capital gains or income tax for crypto margin derivatives?
Templates should be explicit about how each disposal will be classified. Useful template columns: "Likely tax treatment" (Capital gain / Trading income / Other) and "Rationale". For example: a one‑off investor closing a single futures position for net sterling is likely a capital disposal; a high‑frequency leveraged trader with systematic profit extraction is more likely trading income.
Template guidance for capital gains vs income classification
- Keep a log of frequency and scale (monthly summary). HMRC considers regularity and scale.
- Record business structure: individual, partnership, limited company. Tax treatment differs and templates should include entity type.
- Retain supporting evidence of non‑trading intent (emails, strategy notes) if claiming capital treatment.
Tax rules for leveraged Bitcoin futures, options and CFDs
Templates must capture product‑specific details that affect tax treatment and calculation:
- Futures: record contract month, delivery or cash settlement instructions, and the daily mark‑to‑market if using exchange M‑to‑M. For capital gains, the disposal is the net cash settled on closing the position.
- Options: record premium paid/received separately, and whether options were exercised or sold. If an option is exercised into a cryptoasset, the exercise date and acquisition cost must be recorded for later CGT calculations.
- CFDs: since many CFDs settle in cash, record net cash flows and fees. CFDs can produce trading income for frequent leveraged speculators.
How templates should record leveraged product specifics
- Column: product identifier (e.g., CME:BTC-202606)
- Column: settlement type (cash / physical / crypto)
- Column: mark‑to‑market value per day (if applicable)
- Column: margin balance per day
- Column: realised vs unrealised P&L (GBP)
Reporting margin calls, financing charges and disposals to HMRC
HMRC expects accurate reporting of disposals and receipts in sterling. Templates must therefore convert every crypto‑denominated event to GBP using a reliable exchange rate and capture the source of that rate.
Template rules for conversion and evidence
- Use a reputable exchange rate source for the exact timestamp (e.g., CoinDesk, CoinMarketCap, or the exchange where the trade occurred). Include a column: rate source URL with timestamp.
- Record both the crypto amount and GBP equivalent at the time of the event.
- For financing/overnight charges (common with margin and perpetual swaps), log each charge as a separate line with reason code (funding fee, interest) and link to the associated position id.
Example: how a margin call should appear in the template
- Date/time: 2025‑11‑12T09:15:00Z
- Event type: margin call
- Position id: 12345
- Amount crypto: 0.5 BTC
- GBP value (@rate source): £15,750
- Funding reference: funding_20251112
- Notes: margin top‑up to maintain 2% maintenance margin
Record‑keeping essentials for crypto margin derivative traders
This section provides the specific downloadable template structure and instructions for use. Templates should be available in CSV, Excel (no macros) and Google Sheets (for convenience). Templates must contain reconciliation tabs and an evidence vault index.
Template package contents (recommended)
- Trades.csv — every executed trade or amendment
- Margins.csv — margin postings, returns and calls
- Funding.csv — financing, funding rates and fees
- Holdings.csv — snapshot of positions with timestamps
- Reconciliation.xlsx — summary, exchange imports and checksum rows
- Settings.json / Method.txt — declared calculation method (FIFO/HIFO/Specific ID), GBP rate provider and rounding rules
- Audit.log — links to raw exchange CSVs and wallet export filenames
Downloadable CSV/Excel column lists (core template)
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trade_id, date, time, timezone, exchange, instrument_type, product_id, side, size_btc, price_btc, fee_btc, fee_gbp, gross_value_gbp, net_value_gbp, margin_posted_gbp, margin_returned_gbp, funding_gbp, realised_pl_gbp, unrealised_pl_gbp, tax_treatment, notes
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margin_event_id, date, time, exchange, position_id, event_type, amount_crypto, amount_gbp, rate_source, notes
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funding_id, date, counterparty, instrument, amount_gbp, funding_rate, fee_gbp, notes
Reconciliation and checksum rows
Each template should include an automated checksum row (sum of column totals) and a reconciliation table that compares: sum(imported exchange CSV) vs sum(template totals). Provide a column for "difference" and "investigation note".
Practical CSV import and mapping guide for non‑technical users
- Step 1: export exchange CSV (Trades) and wallet transaction history.
- Step 2: open the template and map exchange column names to template columns (template includes a mapping tab).
- Step 3: run the reconciliation tab by copying raw totals into the "raw_import_totals" cells. The template flags mismatches > £1.00.
A short CSV mapping example (shown as text):
- Exchange CSV header: "executed_at","side","size","price","fee","fee_asset"
- Template header mapping: executed_at → date/time, size → size_btc, price → price_btc, fee → fee_btc (then convert fee asset to GBP using rate source).
Claiming losses and allowable deductions from derivative trades
Templates must make it straightforward to compile loss claims and allowable deductions. Record realised losses as separate disposal lines and keep funding and borrowing costs as support entries with cross references.
How to show an allowable deduction in the template
- Record the expense (e.g., margin interest) with: date, payee, amount_gbp, related_position_id, invoice_or_receipt (filename), description.
- Sum deductible trading expenses in a monthly expenses tab for trading income cases. For capital gains, only allowable incidental costs (e.g., transaction fees) may be deducted from the disposal proceeds.
Template fields important for loss claims
- loss_event_id, date, position_id, amount_gbp, reason (closed at loss / forced liquidation), supporting_document_filename, tax_period
Comparative template table: basic investor vs active margin trader vs accountant pack
| Template pack |
Best for |
Key included tabs |
Price / availability |
| Basic investor |
Occasional disposals, CGT |
Trades, Holdings, Reconciliation, Settings |
Free / downloadable |
| Active margin trader |
Frequent leveraged trading, possible trading income |
Trades, Margins, Funding, Daily MTM, Reconciliation, Audit log |
Paid / premium |
| Accountant pack |
Advisors preparing client returns |
All above + client summary, batch export for SA107/CT600, printable reports |
Subscription / agency licence |
Record keeping flow for a margin derivative trade
Margin derivative record flow
📥
Step 1 → Export trade & margin CSVs (raw files)
🔄
Step 2 → Map columns into template (Trades.csv, Margins.csv)
💱
Step 3 → Convert to GBP with time‑stamped rate and save rate source
🧾
Step 4 → Reconcile totals and note differences
📤
Step 5 → Export HMRC‑ready reports (CGT schedules or trading P&L)
✅ Keep raw files, checksums and method declaration for HMRC audit
Advantages, risks and common errors
✅ Benefits and when to use each template
- Basic investor template: use when only occasional crypto disposals occur and trading frequency is low. Low complexity and easy HMRC reporting.
- Active margin trader template: use when positions are leveraged, frequent and funding charges occur. Captures daily MTM and funding flows.
- Accountant pack: use when multiple clients or corporate structures require consolidated reporting and batch exports.
⚠️ Errors and risks to avoid
- Failing to value events in GBP at the correct timestamp.
- Mixing margin calls with disposals in a single column (leads to misclassification).
- Not storing raw exchange CSVs — HMRC commonly requests original source files.
- Omitting the rate source or rounding rules — creates doubt in calculations.
Example practical workflow for a closed Bitcoin futures trade (short)
- Import exchange trade CSV to Trades.csv.
- Import margin movements to Margins.csv and link margin_event_id to trade_id.
- Convert entry and exit prices to GBP using timestamped rate provider and log rate_source.
- Compute realised_pl_gbp = (entry_price_gbp - exit_price_gbp) * notional_btc - fees_gbp - funding_gbp.
- Reconcile totals and copy the disposal line into a CGT schedule or P&L tab depending on classification.
Questions HMRC commonly asks and how templates prepare answers
- "Show the GBP value at disposal time": templates include rate_source and time for each disposal.
- "Provide original exchange records": templates keep an Audit.log with filenames and checksum.
- "Explain classification as capital or trading": templates include a "Rationale" field per disposal and a monthly activity summary.
Preguntas frecuentes
What are crypto record‑keeping templates?
Templates are pre‑formatted CSV/Excel files that capture trades, margins, funding and reconciling totals with GBP valuations to create HMRC‑ready reports.
How long should records be kept for HMRC?
HMRC requires records for at least 6 years for Self Assessment and company records. Templates include a retention column for file names.
Which valuation rate should the templates use?
Use a reputable, time‑stamped market rate from the exchange where the trade occurred or a recognised provider. Record the URL and timestamp in the template.
Do templates solve the capital vs income classification?
Templates do not decide classification but provide the necessary evidence (frequency, scale, margin use) so an adviser or HMRC can assess whether gains are capital or trading income.
Can templates handle DeFi funding and perpetual swaps?
Yes — include funding.csv and per‑instrument funding rate columns. Capture chain transaction IDs when wallets are involved.
Are macros allowed in templates?
Prefer no macros. Provide an Excel version without macros and a Google Sheets version. Macros increase security risk and hinder auditor review.
How to present templates to an accountant or HMRC?
Export a PDF summary (totals, methodology, key reconciliations) and provide raw CSVs alongside the template. Include an "Audit.log" listing file hashes and filenames.
Your next step:
- Download the basic template and import one month of exchange CSVs to test reconciliation.
- Declare a calculation method (FIFO/HIFO) in the Settings tab and save as Method.txt inside the audit folder.
- Keep raw CSVs and take screenshots of reconciliation checksums in case HMRC requests evidence.