G-20 Summit Results: Crypto Is Important for Global Economy, Needs to Be Regulated and Taxed

On Dec. 1, the G-20 declaration titled "Building Consensus for Fair and Sustainable Development" was published on the official website of the Council of the European Union and the European Council.

On Dec. 2, Japanese news outlet Jiji reported that the G-20 countries have also called for the international taxation of cryptocurrency.

The article specifies that - under current laws - foreign companies that do "Not have a factory or other base in Japan" cannot be taxed by the local government, while the G-20 leaders seek to "Build a taxation system for cross-border electronic services."

The issue will reportedly be discussed next year, when Japan will become the host of the summit and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzō Abe will take the position of G-20's president.

G-20 officials have previously maintained a 'hands-off' approach on crypto.

In March 2018, after a call from France's finance minister, Bruno Le Maire, the G-20 participants concluded the first public debate on virtual currencies.

The meeting resulted with a "Firm" July deadline that had been put forward for "Very specific recommendations" on how to regulate cryptocurrencies globally, despite the Financial Stability Board - the group which coordinates financial regulation for the G-20 economies - resisting calls from some G-20 members to discuss regulating cryptocurrencies at the conference.

Many of the G-20 participants decided that cryptocurrencies needed to be examined further before making a concrete regulatory move, albeit some countries including Brazil stated that they won't be following the G-20 recommendations.

"[W]e ask the FATF to clarify in October 2018 how its standards apply to crypto-assets," the summary read. It is unclear if those recommendations have been presented to date, as there has been no information from the G-20 regarding that issue.

On Oct. 22, as the G-20 remained silent, Jeremy Allaire, the CEO of the Goldman Sachs-backed crypto investment app Circle, stated that crypto-related regulatory matters have to be addressed "At the G20 level." Prior to that, on Oct. 19, the FATF said that by June 2019, jurisdictions will be obliged to license or regulate cryptocurrency exchanges and some firms providing encrypted wallets internationally as part of AML and anti-terrorism procedures.