India’s finance minister has called on the G20 countries to bring crypto within the “Automatic Exchange of Information” framework. It has attracted more than 100 countries to adopt the Common Reporting Standard.
G20 Urged To Bring Crypto under Automatic Exchange of Information
India’s finance minister, Nirmala Sitharaman, talked about cryptocurrency Friday during the G20 Ministerial Symposium on Tax and Development in Bali, Indonesia.
Noting that “tax transparency” is an area where “considerable progress has been made with the Automatic Exchange of Information in respect of financial accounts,” she described: “Our investigations have shown that numerous layers of entities are often set up by tax evaders to conceal their unaccounted assets.”
Sitharaman added that although “the Automatic Exchange of Information framework provides for financial account information to various jurisdictions, tax evaders, being smart, explore other avenues to shift their unaccounted wealth through investment in non-financial assets.” Emphasizing that this area is a point of action for the G20, the finance minister detailed:
As the Crypto Asset Reporting Framework is being developed, I ask the G20 not to forget about the possibility of an Automatic Exchange of Information for non-financial assets such as immovables.
Global tax evasion is being reduced by the Automatic Exchange of Information (AEOI). Common Reporting Standard is an information standard that the AEOI uses. This standard was created in response to a request from the G20 and approved in July 2014 by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development Council (OECD).
The CRS asks jurisdictions for information about their financial institutions, and allows them to automatically exchange this information on an annual basis with other jurisdictions.
More than 100 Countries have ratified the CRS
The Indian finance minister continued: “Over 100 countries have committed to exchanging financial account information under the Common Reporting Standards.”
But, Sitharaman pointed out that there are still some countries which have not yet started information exchanges within this framework. They “will have to be brought in … Therein lies one work agenda for G20,” Sitharaman stressed. According to her,
It is my opinion that the G20 should play the catalyst role in encouraging these countries to join the Automatic Exchange of Information. This mechanism can help strengthen international efforts to combat offshore tax avoidance and evasion.
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