The Endgame Behind Global Transparency Laws: CARF, CRS, and the Rise of the Wealth Tax Agenda

In early 2025, the United States government quietly walked back its enforcement of the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA), a dramatic about-face that came after a federal judge declared the law unconstitutional in 2024. While the headlines barely noticed, those of us tracking international tax and financial surveillance saw this for what it was: a rare and telling retreat.

Because make no mistake—the CTA, like its global cousins, was never about stopping terrorists or drug cartels. It was about knowing what you own. And knowing what you own is the first step toward taxing what you own. The U.S. may have blinked. But globally, the machinery is still accelerating.

Across the Atlantic, Europe is doubling down. The OECD continues to expand its Common Reporting Standard (CRS), and 67 countries have already signed onto a new system called CARF (Crypto-Asset Reporting Framework)—a regime so sweeping that it will make today’s automatic exchange rules look quaint.

What’s the goal of all this? If you believe the words of Gabriel Zucman, the French professor-turned-policy-architect, the answer is simple: a global wealth tax based not on what you earn, but on everything you have.

To understand how we got here—and how you can still protect yourself—you need to follow the arc that connects “transparency,” international treaties, digital surveillance, and what is now openly discussed: the redistribution of private capital through taxation.

Let’s examine how these pieces fit together.

The Real Purpose Behind “Transparency”

Governments rarely admit their true intentions. The CTA in the U.S. was sold as an anti-terrorism measure, requiring millions of small businesses to file ultimate beneficial ownership (UBO) reports. But it didn’t take long for critics to notice the absurdity: as if ISIS were setting up Wyoming LLCs to fund sleeper cells.

The system mandated detailed disclosures—including passport numbers and private addresses—even from single-member LLCs. Non-compliance carried threats of prison. It wasn’t about security; it was about building a centralized database for future use.

And then came the surprising shift. In early 2025, under mounting legal pressure and political resistance from small business groups and states’ rights advocates, the U.S. government effectively suspended CTA enforcement. It didn’t just fizzle out—it was acknowledged as overreach.

But this rare rollback does not mean the global agenda is dead. Quite the contrary: while the U.S. steps back, the EU, OECD, and dozens of aligned jurisdictions are surging forward with more integrated systems.

CRS and the Global Data Net

The Common Reporting Standard (CRS), introduced by the OECD in 2014 and implemented globally since 2017, mandates that financial institutions collect tax IDs and report account balances for foreign clients. Those reports are sent to the account holder’s home country—automatically.

Most people don’t understand the scope: it’s not just interest income. CRS covers account balances, financial assets, and increasingly, digital transactions and real estate.

This reporting structure now exists in over 110 jurisdictions. And while the public story is always about “tax evasion,” the technical function is very different: data centralization.

Why centralize? Because when you centralize information about global assets, you create the technical infrastructure to tax global assets. It’s no longer a secret that this is the goal.

Gabriel Zucman and the Wealth Tax Blueprint

For years, wealth taxes were seen as politically toxic and technically unworkable. That changed when French economist “the nutty” professor Gabriel Zucman began making headlines with detailed, data-driven proposals.

Zucman doesn’t just advocate for wealth taxes—he advocates for a global minimum wealth tax, starting with billionaires and expanding downward. His most recent proposal, endorsed in 2024 by the EU Commission, outlines how governments can calculate global wealth using data from CRS, corporate registries, real estate records, and crypto reporting regimes.

In other words, the “transparency tools” introduced in the last decade weren’t the end goal. They were the plumbing. The goal was to eventually use those systems to identify, value, and tax everything you own.

We’re no longer in the realm of speculation. The European Parliament hosted official sessions on implementation pathways. Several national governments—Spain, Canada, and the Netherlands—have floated trial programs. France is actively integrating CRS data into its tax audit systems.

The messaging has also shifted. No longer do officials pretend this is about crime or fairness. They now openly talk about “rebalancing capital” and “climate justice.” The expropriation of private wealth is becoming a mainstream policy option.

In fact, the European Commission’s intentions slipped into public view during a 2025 press conference, when Wopke Hoekstra, the EU Commissioner for Climate Action, was asked how the EU planned to finance its climate goals amid rising debt and public resistance to new energy taxes. In an unscripted response, Hoekstra acknowledged that the Commission was “already looking at coordinated wealth taxation options across member states,” using data from CRS, beneficial ownership registers, and other reporting frameworks. The remark caused immediate controversy, prompting a rushed clarification from Commission spokespeople—but the signal was clear: the EU is quietly laying the groundwork for a supranational wealth tax, without formal proposals or public debate.

What Is CARF and Why It Matters

As if CRS weren’t enough, the OECD has rolled out a second regime—more aggressive and more targeted. Known as CARF (Crypto-Asset Reporting Framework), this system takes aim at crypto and digital asset holders.

Crypto was once the escape hatch. But not anymore.

CARF, scheduled for rollout in 2027, mandates that all “crypto-asset service providers”—including exchanges, brokers, wallet services, and even some DeFi platforms—collect identity data and report user balances and transactions.

There is no meaningful threshold. There is no de minimis exception. Transfers between personal wallets? Tracked. Cross-border payments? Flagged. Assets moved from one jurisdiction to another? Reported.

In its final version, CARF even includes provisions for non-custodial wallets and smart contracts, if the transaction originates in or touches a cooperating jurisdiction.

This is not fantasy. Sixty-seven countries have signed on. Draft legislation is in place. The integration with CRS is already underway. Your crypto will be as visible as your bank account by 2027—unless you act before then.

From Surveillance to Taxation: The Playbook

Once these systems are operational, what’s to stop governments from using them for wealth taxes, retroactive assessments, or asset freezes?

The short answer: nothing.

History shows that information precedes taxation. Once property ownership records became digitized in Greece, they were used to assess new taxes on homes. Once Italy implemented mandatory bank reporting, it was used to cross-check lifestyle audits. Once Argentina introduced a wealth tax, offshore CRS data was used to identify non-compliant citizens.

Now the OECD wants to bring the same tools to crypto and private business ownership. Zucman is simply making the next logical leap: if the data is there, why not use it?

The current global climate—with inflation, deficits, and exploding welfare obligations—only makes this more likely. Governments are broke. The easiest political move is to target the “wealthy”—defined ever more broadly—with a narrative of fairness and redistribution.

This is the trajectory unless individuals take control of their own structures.

How to Protect Yourself—Before It’s Too Late

If you’ve been reading passively, now is the time to act decisively. The systems are in place. The reporting has begun. And the taxes will follow.

1. Change Tax Residency
Move to a country with no wealth tax, no exit tax, and a favorable stance toward foreign income. Options still include the UAE, Panama, Georgia, Paraguay, and select Caribbean states.

2. Use Asset Protection Structures
Trusts, private interest foundations, and insurance-wrapped products—when used lawfully and properly—can provide asset protection outside CRS/CARF scope. Choose jurisdictions that are not OECD-compliant or that do not share data.

3. Bank Outside the CRS System
Ironically, U.S. banks offer one of the last havens of financial privacy for non-Americans. The U.S. never joined CRS and only shares data under FATCA.

4. Limit Exposure to Crypto Surveillance
Consider moving crypto holdings to secure cold storage, peer-to-peer networks, or jurisdictions that have not yet implemented CARF compliance. Also reconsider the use of popular exchanges with full KYC obligations.

5. Accumulate Private, Hard-to-Track Assets
Gold. Fine art. Rare collectibles. Strategic land holdings. These may offer insulation from digital surveillance regimes—especially when held outside your country of citizenship.

6. Plan for a Second Citizenship
A second passport opens options and is vital if your home country introduces a punitive exit tax or strips citizenship from non-residents. Citizenship-by-investment programs still exist, though windows are closing.

7. Act While It's Still Legal
This isn’t a call for evasion. It’s a call for lawful, preemptive planning. Once CARF goes live in 2027, many privacy-preserving strategies will become obsolete or illegal. The window for defensive action is now.

The Illusion of Consent

All of this is being done in the name of fairness. In the name of transparency. In the name of fighting inequality and funding green transitions.

But it’s not about fairness. It’s about control. Once governments know everything you own, they control how much you keep. And they will always find a moral justification for taking more.

There is no opt-out button once you're inside the system. Your only protection is to stay outside it—by structuring your assets, your residency, and your citizenship in ways that remain free, legal, and private.

The U.S. may have backed down—for now. But Europe is charging ahead. The OECD has global ambitions. And Zucman and his fellow ideologues already have their fingers on the levers.

If you think they’re going to stop, think again.

If you're ready to explore practical options for privacy, protection, and sovereignty, reach out to our team for a confidential strategy session.