Roger Ver, widely known as “Bitcoin Jesus” for his pioneering advocacy of bitcoin, has reportedly reached a preliminary agreement with the U.S. Justice Department to resolve criminal tax fraud charges. This tentative deal, which awaits court approval, mandates that Ver pay approximately $48 million in back taxes. In exchange, prosecutors are expected to drop the case if he adheres to the terms of a deferred-prosecution agreement, signaling a notable shift in Washington's approach to digital assets and marking a significant turn for one of the crypto world’s most polarizing figures.

The U.S. government initially filed the case against Ver in 2024, accusing him of evading taxes linked to his extensive bitcoin holdings prior to his renunciation of U.S. citizenship in 2014. Subsequently, Ver was arrested in Spain last year as prosecutors pursued his extradition to face these charges in the United States.

According to the indictment, Ver allegedly furnished false or misleading information to both a law firm and an appraiser, effectively concealing the true quantity of bitcoin owned by him and his affiliated companies. This purported deception led to the submission of inaccurate tax returns that substantially undervalued both his companies and their substantial bitcoin assets.

By 2017, Ver’s companies were reported to still hold an estimated 70,000 bitcoins, which he later sold on various cryptocurrency exchanges for approximately $240 million. Despite not being a U.S. citizen at that time, Ver was still legally obligated to report specific distributions to the IRS and remit taxes on those proceeds. The indictment asserts that his failure to comply with these regulations resulted in an estimated $48 million loss for the IRS.

This potential settlement emerges amidst the Trump administration’s ongoing efforts to scale back a multi-year federal crackdown on cryptocurrency. Ver’s defense strategy leveraged these pro-bitcoin political sentiments, reportedly involving a $600,000 payment to long-time Trump associate Roger Stone and the retention of lawyers connected to the former president, including David Schoen and Christopher Kise, alongside the lobbying firm of GOP fundraiser Brian Ballard.

In January, Ver publicly appealed to Donald Trump for intervention, characterizing his case as politically motivated and expressing concerns about a potential 100-year prison sentence. As of now, neither the U.S. Justice Department nor Roger Ver has issued any public comments regarding the reported agreement.