Summary
Today, wrapped tokens are outside ASC 350-60 — they convey a right to receive another asset, which fails the scope criterion in ASC 350-60-15-1(b). Holders of wBTC do not get the fair value accounting that holders of BTC get.
On April 15, 2026 the FASB tentatively decided Tentative to expand ASC 350-60 to crypto assets conveying enforceable rights to receive an in-scope crypto asset, with separate disclosure. Derecognition guidance for transfer arrangements is still being deliberated. None of this is final guidance yet.
1. What a wrapped token is
A wrapped token is a claim token: an asset minted on one protocol that represents — and is redeemable for — a different crypto asset held by a custodian, smart contract, or bridge. Wrapped Bitcoin (wBTC) circulates on Ethereum and is redeemable 1:1 for BTC held by a custodian; liquid staking tokens and bridge receipt tokens follow the same economic pattern. The holder's economics track the underlying asset, but the legal asset held is the claim, not the underlying.
2. Why ASU 2023-08 excluded them
ASC 350-60-15-1(b) limits the fair value model to crypto assets that "do not provide the asset holder with enforceable rights to, or claims on, underlying goods, services, or other assets." A wrapped token is precisely such a claim — its whole purpose is the right to receive the underlying crypto asset. The FASB scoped these out of ASU 2023-08 deliberately, to keep the 2023 standard narrow and fast, accepting the anomaly that economically identical exposures would be measured differently.
The anomaly is stark in practice. Direct BTC: fair value through net income under ASC 350-60. Wrapped BTC: outside the subtopic, and under the most common analysis an indefinite-lived intangible under ASC 350-30 — historical cost less impairment, no upward remeasurement. Some practitioners instead analyze certain wrapped structures as a look-through to the underlying or as a receivable, depending on the enforceability and form of the redemption right. Diversity in practice is real and acknowledged; document whichever analysis you adopt.
3. The April 15, 2026 tentative scope expansion
At its April 15, 2026 meeting, the Board unanimously agreed to expand the scope of ASC 350-60 to crypto assets that provide the holder with enforceable rights to receive another crypto asset that is itself in scope. Two features of the tentative decision matter for preparers:
- The underlying must be in scope. A token wrapping BTC qualifies; a token wrapping an NFT or conveying rights to fiat (a stablecoin) still does not.
- Separate disclosure. Significant wrapped-token holdings would be disclosed separately from other significant crypto holdings in the ASC 350-60-50-1 tabular disclosure — the Board wants users to see the custodial/bridge risk layer distinctly.
The companion workstream — derecognition for crypto transfer arrangements (when does wrapping, lending, or bridging transfer control?) — remains in deliberation. The staff was directed to develop a principles-based model leveraging the control concepts in Topic 606 and repurchase-agreement guidance. Until that lands, transferors must reason from existing derecognition concepts, and the wrap/unwrap legs of these structures remain judgment areas.
4. What to do now
- Inventory claim-shaped holdings. Identify every position that is a right to receive crypto rather than the crypto itself — wrapped tokens, bridge receipts, liquid staking tokens.
- Assess enforceability. The tentative scope turns on enforceable rights. A custodial wBTC redemption right differs from an unaudited bridge's implied promise. Legal form will drive eligibility.
- Keep current treatment. The expansion is tentative; do not move wrapped tokens to fair value until a final ASU is effective (early adoption provisions will be specified in the ASU).
- Prepare for separate disclosure. Tag wrapped positions in the subledger now so the future tabular disclosure is a query, not a project.
Unsure whether a specific asset is in scope today? The ASC 350-60 scope tool walks the six criteria — wrapped tokens route to an "it depends" result with the current state of play.