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France submitted a draft law to the Senate on July 27, aiming to authorize a multilateral agreement to exchange cryptocurrency transaction data with 48 countries worldwide.
The initiative is led by Jean-Noël Barrot, Minister of Europe and Foreign Affairs. Specifically, the agreement would allow French tax authorities to share—and receive—detailed information on crypto transactions with countries and territories outside the European Union. This includes exchanged amounts, the number of transactions, as well as the identities of users and crypto service providers involved. The project complements the DAC 8 directive, which already provides for automatic data exchanges between EU member states. Here, the goal is to go further, well beyond European borders.
No voting date has been set yet.
What the Proposal Specifically Entails
The mechanism is quite clear on paper. Crypto platforms registered in the EU will be required to transmit information about all transactions conducted since the beginning of 2026 to tax authorities. Authorities will have access to this data starting in 2027. Until now, platforms were only required to report operations in specific cases—terrorism financing, money laundering. The project significantly broadens this scope. All transactions will be monitored, not just suspicious cases.
And that’s a major change.
The rationale behind the proposal is to fill gaps in the current system. Many crypto-asset holders use platforms outside the EU or hold assets in territories that do not yet cooperate on tax matters. The agreement aims to close these loopholes by creating a global surveillance framework, coordinated among 48 partner states. France is clearly positioning itself as a leader in this international regulatory dynamic—likely to influence subsequent discussions at the OECD and G20 levels.
The crypto-asset market has experienced massive growth in recent years. Transaction volumes have exploded, investor profiles have diversified, and tax authorities in many countries are struggling to keep up. The idea of a multilateral framework is not new—but France is among the first to push for concrete legislative action in this direction.
Renaud Lifchitz Sounds the Alarm
Not everyone is convinced it’s a good idea. Renaud Lifchitz, a crypto security expert, warns of the risks associated with increased data collection. His argument: the more sensitive information on crypto-asset holders is centralized, the more potential targets are created for leaks. And the consequences are not just administrative. He mentions physical threats—robberies, kidnappings. Documented cases already exist in several countries where Bitcoin or Ethereum holders have been targeted after their identities and assets were exposed.
This is a real problem. Not theoretical.
The issue of data security cannot be separated from the fiscal debate here. Sharing user identities with 48 states assumes that each of these states has robust data protection systems. It’s not certain that this is the case everywhere. And a leak in just one link of the chain is enough to expose thousands of holders. Lifchitz does not necessarily oppose fiscal transparency per se—but he says that the risks for ordinary users are real and deserve to be taken seriously in the legislative debate.
For now, the proposal is in the Senate. It still needs to go through the usual stages of the French legislative process before coming into force. It’s not yet clear if amendments on data protection will be introduced in committee.
Crypto platforms will have to adapt. Broader disclosure obligations, enhanced compliance, and likely high implementation costs. Actors already well-established in the EU—those who have already invested in DAC 8 compliance infrastructure—will be better positioned than smaller operators to absorb the impact.
48 countries. Transaction data since January 2026. Access planned for tax authorities starting in 2027.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the DAC 8 directive and how does it relate to this draft law?
The DAC 8 is a European directive on tax cooperation that mandates the automatic exchange of crypto data between EU member countries. The French draft law complements it by extending these exchanges to 48 non-EU states.
When will tax authorities have access to crypto data under this framework?
According to the draft law, tax authorities will have information on crypto accounts and transactions starting in 2027, with transaction tracking going back to January 1, 2026.
What risks does Renaud Lifchitz identify for crypto holders?
Lifchitz warns that centralizing sensitive data on crypto-asset holders increases the risk of information leaks, potentially exposing users to physical threats like robberies or kidnappings.
