Trading Firm & Market Maker CPA for Prediction Markets, Perpetual Futures & Digital Assets

Recognized by Forbes as a Best-in-State Top CPA in 2025 and 2026

Featured in Forbes for "Leading the Charge on Crypto Accounting": Read the Forbes Feature

Camuso CPA provides accounting and tax services for professional market makers, proprietary and quantitative trading firms, and high-volume trading businesses operating across prediction markets, perpetual futures, digital assets, and related derivatives. We help firms bring trading activity into reconciled books, maintain transaction-level subledgers and period-end reporting, document material tax positions, and carry supported treatment through planning and compliance.

As Seen In:

Federal & Global

Published Research

Prediction Market Event Contracts: A Tax Classification Analysis

Co-authored with the former head of the IRS Office of Digital Assets and co-author of the §6045 digital asset broker reporting regulations. A federal tax classification analysis examining how prediction market event contracts may be treated under §165(d) wagering rules, §1256 contract treatment, and general capital or ordinary income rules. Published in Tax Notes Federal and Tax Notes Global.

Read in Tax Notes → Read All Publications →

Accounting and Tax for Professional Trading Firms

Professional trading firms can operate highly automated strategies, provide liquidity across multiple venues, process substantial transaction volume, maintain material open positions, and generate fees, rebates, funding payments, or other trading-related activity with relatively small teams.

As the operation grows, the accounting and tax requirements can extend well beyond ordinary investment reporting. Different venues may produce materially different source records, and the firm may need transaction-level accounting, cash and position reconciliation, subledger and general-ledger reporting, period-end close, and entity and owner reporting across prediction markets, perpetual futures, and digital-asset activity.

The federal tax issues can be equally significant. Relevant questions may include instrument characterization, transaction timing, trade-or-business status, entity and partner reporting, available elections, state filing obligations, and the treatment of fees, incentives, funding payments, and other trading activity.

Camuso CPA provides specialized accounting and tax services for professional trading firms. Our engagements may involve historical transaction reconstruction, trading subledgers, general-ledger integration, recurring financial reporting, tax position analysis, tax planning, and entity and owner compliance. Firms can engage us for accounting, tax advisory, or integrated ongoing services, including work coordinated with their existing finance team or outside advisers.

Related pages in this practice: Prediction Market CPA.

Our Process for Professional Trading Firms

Step 1: Trading Activity, Entity & Records Review

We review the firm’s trading activity, venues, strategies, transaction volume, entity and ownership structure, existing books, prior filings, and current reporting process. This establishes the scope of the accounting, tax, and compliance work and identifies any immediate filing, election, or reporting issues.

Step 2: Accounting, Reconciliation & Period-End Reporting

We address the accounting required to support the firm’s trading activity, including transaction-level records, reconciliation, subledger and general-ledger reporting, and period-end close where applicable. The scope is based on the firm’s actual trading model, venues, transaction volume, and existing accounting process.

Step 3: Federal Tax Analysis, Planning & Compliance

We evaluate the federal tax treatment of the firm’s trading activity and related entity and owner considerations. Depending on the engagement, this may include written position analysis, estimated-tax planning, available elections, partnership and owner reporting, state filing obligations, and preparation of federal and state tax returns.

Step 4: Ongoing Accounting & Advisory

For recurring engagements, Camuso CPA can maintain the accounting and reporting process throughout the year, including reconciliations, period-end close, financial reporting, tax projections, book-to-tax workpapers, and planning as the firm adds venues, strategies, owners, or other business activity.

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Prefer to reach us directly? Email info@camusocpa.com or call (704) 249-3179.

Who We Help: Market Makers, Proprietary Trading Firms & Quantitative Trading Businesses

Camuso CPA advises professional trading businesses managing substantial transaction volume, complex trading strategies, multiple venues, or entity-level accounting and tax obligations.

Our clients include proprietary trading companies, market makers, quantitative and algorithmic trading firms, and trading partnerships operating across prediction markets, perpetual futures, digital assets, and related derivatives. We work with both established operations and smaller founder-led firms whose accounting and reporting requirements have grown alongside their trading activity.

Accounting & Tax for Professional Individual Traders

Camuso CPA advises professional individual traders on the professional trader page. That page covers the individual return, trader-versus-investor treatment, and elections. A proprietary firm, a trading partnership, or a market-making business with members stays on this page.

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Trading Firm Accounting & Tax Services

Camuso CPA provides accounting, tax advisory, and compliance services for proprietary trading firms, market makers, quantitative trading businesses, and multi-owner trading entities. Our work covers historical reconstruction, ongoing financial reporting, federal tax analysis, and entity and owner compliance across prediction markets, digital assets, perpetual futures, and related derivatives.

Trading Activity Reconstruction & Reconciliation

Historical and ongoing reconciliation of trading activity across venues, cash accounts, wallets, and internal systems, including positions, fees, funding payments, rebates, incentives, transfers, and other activity required to support the books.

Subledger & General-Ledger Accounting

Transaction-level subledger accounting and general-ledger integration for high-volume trading activity, including account mapping, venue-level records, open-position reporting, and support for partnership and entity accounting.

Ongoing Accounting & Period-End Close

Recurring monthly or quarterly accounting, reconciliations, period-end close, financial reporting, year-end workpapers, and ongoing maintenance of the firm’s trading-accounting records.

Financial & Management Reporting

Period-end financial reporting and accounting workpapers for professional trading operations, with coordination with outside advisers when required.

Tax Analysis & Written Positions

Technical federal tax analysis for material or uncertain trading positions, including prediction-market contracts, perpetual futures, digital assets, and related derivatives, with written support where appropriate.

Tax Planning, Elections & Estimated Taxes

Tax planning for professional trading firms and their owners, including estimated-tax projections, available elections, entity considerations, changes in trading activity, and other planning matters arising during the year.

Partnership, Corporate & Owner Tax Compliance

Federal and state tax compliance for trading entities and their owners, including partnership or corporate returns, partner and shareholder reporting, book-to-tax workpapers, and applicable multi-state filings.

Historical Accounting Cleanup & Delinquent Filings

Reconstruction of prior-period trading activity, correction of incomplete or unreconciled books, preparation of supporting tax workpapers, and completion of delinquent entity or owner filings where required.

Why Trading Firms Work With Camuso CPA

Professional trading businesses can generate millions of transactions across multiple venues while operating with relatively small teams. The resulting accounting requirements can include detailed transaction reconciliation, trading subledgers, open-position reporting, general-ledger integration, and recurring period-end close. Tax reporting introduces additional questions involving the instruments traded, taxpayer capacity, entity structure, and the treatment of trading activity.

Camuso CPA has developed specialized experience working directly with professional traders and market makers on these issues. Our engagements include reconstructing historical trading records, establishing accounting processes, analyzing material federal tax positions, and coordinating the resulting financial records with partnership and entity tax compliance.

Patrick Camuso’s research on prediction-market event contracts has been published in Tax Notes, examining competing federal tax frameworks and the implications for professional trading activity. That technical research complements our client work on transaction-level accounting, financial reporting, and tax-position implementation.

Trading Firm Accounting & Tax

Case Study

Quantitative Prediction-Market Trading Firm — Accounting, Federal Tax Analysis and Partnership Compliance

Client Type Multi-Member Trading Firm

Activity Automated Market Making

Scale Millions of Fills

Scope Accounting, Tax & Partnership Compliance

The Problem

The firm had scaled its prediction-market market-making activity while its accounting and tax reporting had fallen behind the trading operation. Nearly two years of high-volume activity had not been incorporated into the books, partnership filings remained outstanding, and material federal tax positions affecting the firm's prediction-market activity had not been formally documented.

What We Did

Camuso CPA reconstructed the historical trading activity, developed transaction-level subledger accounting for the firm's prediction-market activity, and integrated the resulting records into the general ledger. We also analyzed and documented material federal tax positions, prepared the related book-to-tax workpapers, and completed the required partnership tax compliance.

The Outcome

The historical trading activity was incorporated into the firm's books, outstanding partnership reporting was brought current, and the accounting and tax positions were implemented within a consistent reporting process. Camuso CPA now provides ongoing accounting together with quarterly tax projections, provisions, and year-end tax support.

Work With A Trading Firm CPA

Trading Firm CPA FAQ

What does a trading firm CPA do?

A trading firm CPA works with professional trading businesses on the accounting, tax, and reporting requirements arising from high-volume or complex trading activity.

Depending on the firm, that can include transaction reconstruction, reconciliation, subledger and general-ledger accounting, period-end close, financial reporting, federal tax analysis, planning, book-to-tax workpapers, partnership or corporate reporting, and tax compliance.

What types of trading firms does Camuso CPA work with?

Camuso CPA works with market makers, liquidity providers, proprietary trading companies, quantitative and systematic trading firms, and trading partnerships. Our clients include founder-led businesses and established trading operations.

We advise firms operating across prediction markets, perpetual futures, digital assets, and related derivatives. We assess each engagement based on the actual trading activity, accounting requirements, entity structure, and tax matters involved.

Does Camuso CPA handle both accounting and tax for trading firms?

Yes. Camuso CPA provides trading accounting, reconciliation, subledger and general-ledger reporting, period-end close, technical federal tax analysis, planning, and entity tax compliance.

Firms can engage us for accounting alone, tax advisory alone, or an integrated engagement. We can also coordinate with an existing accountant, internal finance team, tax adviser, or legal counsel when specialized trading expertise is needed.

Why do high-volume trading firms need specialized accounting?

Professional trading firms can generate substantial transaction volume, maintain open positions across multiple venues, receive rebates, incentives, funding payments, and other trading-related amounts, and operate automated strategies with relatively small teams.

The accounting needs are therefore driven by the activity—not headcount. Summary platform or broker reports may not provide all of the detail required to reconcile the trading activity, maintain the books, complete period-end close, or support year-end tax workpapers.

How are prediction markets, perpetual futures, and crypto derivatives taxed for a trading firm?

There is no single federal tax treatment that applies to every instrument or trading firm.

The analysis can depend on the instruments traded, contract terms, transaction mechanics, taxpayer capacity, entity structure, and other relevant facts. Depending on the activity, issues may include ordinary versus capital treatment, §1256, wagering rules, trade-or-business treatment, hedging, available elections, entity and owner reporting, and other federal tax provisions.

Material or uncertain positions may warrant formal written analysis before they are implemented in the returns.

Should a trading firm consider a Section 475(f) election?

Potentially, but the analysis is fact-specific.

Whether an election is available or advisable depends on the taxpayer’s activity, the instruments involved, whether the applicable trade-or-business requirements are satisfied, the consequences of the election, and the relevant filing deadlines.

A trading firm should not assume that §475(f) applies uniformly across all trading activity or instrument types.

How do entity structure and ownership affect a trading firm’s tax reporting?

Entity classification and ownership can affect federal and state reporting, partner or shareholder allocations, estimated taxes, state filing obligations, and other tax considerations.

Trading firms with multiple owners, mid-year ownership changes, outside capital, or activity across several jurisdictions may require additional accounting and tax analysis beyond the treatment of the trading instruments themselves.

Can Camuso CPA work with our existing attorneys, auditor, fund administrator, or other service providers?

Yes.

Camuso CPA can provide specialized trading-firm accounting and tax services while coordinating with existing regulatory counsel, fund counsel, auditors, administrators, brokers, and other professional advisers.

The appropriate division of responsibility depends on the firm’s existing systems, service-provider relationships, and reporting requirements.

When should a trading firm engage a specialized CPA?

Ideally before transaction volume, additional venues, new instruments, ownership changes, outside capital, or reporting deadlines make the accounting and tax issues more difficult to address.

Common triggers include beginning market-making activity, adding automated strategies, expanding into prediction markets or perpetual futures, forming a new trading entity, adding partners, preparing for audit or diligence, establishing recurring financial reporting, or approaching year-end without reconciled books.

Can Camuso CPA help if our books or prior filings are behind?

Yes. Where trading activity has not been incorporated into the books or prior filings remain outstanding, Camuso CPA can work from available source records to reconstruct the relevant activity, reconcile the accounting records, prepare the required book-to-tax workpapers, and complete the related tax compliance. The appropriate scope depends on the quality of the available records, the periods involved, and the issues identified during the review.