Which countries coordinated crypto regulation?

TLDR

Several groups have coordinated crypto rules recently, led by the OECDs Crypto Asset Reporting Framework (CARF) with about 50 countries signing on and more preparing to join in 20272028 (CARF overview).

1. UK and US are working toward a joint passporting sandbox, and Singapore signed a digital asset settlements MoU with Germany (UK US collaboration noted).
2. The EU is moving to more centralized crypto oversight via ESMA across member states (ESMA direction).
3. In APAC, South Korea, Malaysia, and Indonesia announced a joint push on taxation, investor protection, and exchanges (regional coalition).

Deep Dive

1. OECD CARF Cohort

The broadest coordination is tax data sharing under the OECDs CARF, targeting cross?border tax evasion via automatic exchange of crypto account information.

• CARF rollout is slated for 2027 with about 50 countries (Brazil, Indonesia, Italy, Spain, Mexico, UK) and another 23, including the US, aligning by 2028 (CARF overview).
• CARF complements domestic rules like the US 1099?DA reporting regime planned for 2026 (noted in the report above).

2. Transatlantic and Central Bank MoUs

Bilateral efforts aim to harmonize licensing and settlement standards.

1. UK and US policy channels are working toward a joint passporting sandbox, enabling firms licensed in one market to serve the other with fewer repeat approvals (UK US collaboration noted).
2. Singapores MAS and Germanys Deutsche Bundesbank signed an MoU to collaborate on cross?border digital asset settlements and standards for tokenized assets, payments, and securities (central bank MoU).

3. EU and APAC Regional Blocks

Regional groupings are also tightening coordination.

1. The EU is preparing more centralized crypto supervision under ESMA, building on MiCA and addressing cross?border licensing and order?book issues among member states (ESMA direction).
2. South Korea, Malaysia, and Indonesia announced a joint push on taxation, investor protection, and exchange governance to stabilize local markets (regional coalition).
3. Globally, the FSB urged closer coordination, warning current approaches remain fragmented as crypto integrates with traditional finance (FSB review).

Conclusion

Coordination is accelerating on three fronts: global tax transparency (CARF), bilateral sandboxes and payment MoUs, and regional supervision (EU, APAC clusters). The practical effect is more unified reporting and licensing expectations across jurisdictions, which could lower compliance friction for regulated firms while narrowing room for regulatory arbitrage.