Make sharing crypto data less cryptic

GoI is reportedly putting final touches to the reporting mechanism for crypto transactions, and should be ready for cross-border data-sharing by next year. India has been at the forefront of efforts that have shaped up as the crypto asset reporting framework designed to improve international tax transparency. Swelling crypto market capitalisation will provide an avalanche of information to the global anti-tax evasion endeavour. The framework is an information-sharing arrangement among tax authorities expected to provide visibility on assets, intermediaries, users and transactions. Guidelines are designed to replicate the success of information exchange about financial transactions. But unlike the tightly regulated financial market, distributed ledger transactions present a challenge to regulators implementing reporting standards. Special effort needs to go into sensitising the ecosystem about compliance through a combination of hand-holding and penalties.

Common reporting standards for cryptos work when a large enough number of countries sign up. Holdouts could be breeding grounds for dark pools of capital the global alliance is seeking to squeeze out. It also requires consistency in reporting efforts by member states. International pressure is mounting to bring more countries into the fold and help those that need to bring their tax administration up to speed. There's a strong likelihood of cryptos emerging as a transparent asset class by end of the decade.

The process will be helped along by emergence of fiat digital currencies, which provide authorities with greater visibility into transactions and holdings. These provide an alternative mechanism for digital commerce without risks inherent in cryptos. Tax transparency will be served by improved international cooperation and increased acceptance of cryptos by everyday users. But a risk remains that the crypto market could split into a regulated mainstream branch and another that operates in the shadows, leveraging the technology's decentralising tendency to protect privacy.