Trump’s Global Minimum Tax Plan Hits Wall: China & EU Resistance Stalls Crypto-Friendly Reform
Trump's push for a revised global minimum tax just slammed into a geopolitical brick wall. The plan—which crypto insiders saw as a potential tailwind for digital asset adoption—is now stalled, frozen by coordinated resistance from China and the European Union.
Why the Deadlock?
It's a classic sovereignty showdown. The proposed framework aimed to set a new floor for corporate taxation worldwide, but Beijing and Brussels aren't playing ball. They see it as an overreach, a policy crafted in Washington trying to dictate terms beyond its borders. For the crypto sector, which thrives on regulatory arbitrage and cross-border fluidity, this impasse creates more fog, not clarity.
The Crypto Angle
Behind the political posturing lies a financial reality check. A unified global tax regime would have forced traditional finance and the crypto economy onto a more level playing field. Now, with the plan in limbo, the old rules of jurisdictional shopping remain firmly in place. It's a win for crypto-native firms who excel at navigating this fragmented landscape—and a stark reminder that in global finance, cooperation is often the first casualty of national interest. After all, nothing unites governments like the desire to tax everyone else's profits.
What's Next?
Expect more fragmentation, not less. With no global deal, individual nations and blocs will double down on their own rules. For crypto, this means continuing to operate in a patchwork world—a complexity that drives innovation but also fuels regulatory uncertainty. The stalemate isn't just about tax rates; it's a signal that the old financial world order is struggling to adapt, leaving digital assets to chart their own course through the chaos.
China questions carve-outs, Poland and Czech Republic reject tax‑incentive rules
China raised the first objection when the OECD prepared to publish new text on Wednesday that would have confirmed the G7 revisions, demanding to know why it was not eligible for the same treatment granted to American multinationals.
The planned package also included measures to make compliance easier for companies, and a list describing which tax incentives would meet the new rules. But China’s objections forced the OECD to halt the release entirely.
Poland and the Czech Republic raised their own issues during the negotiations, specifically on the language that set out how tax incentives would be handled, and both said the terms put their governments at a disadvantage. Their concerns added more weight to the growing resistance to Trump’s new carve-out deal.
Estonia then added a wider set of complaints. Jürgen Ligi, Estonia’s finance minister, said the plan could harm Europe at a time when EU governments were moving ahead with reforms while other regions were not. Ligi said the limited tax revenue did not justify the extra bureaucracy on European companies and questioned why Europe should continue working on a framework the US itself had not adopted.
“We have not considered this initiative suitable for Estonia from the very beginning, and even less so now, when the US, who initiated this effort, has declined to implement it themselves,” Ligi said. “I told my US colleague when asked that we do not want anything other than what they want for themselves.”
Talks stall as officials warn the plan is ‘in the ICU’ and Capitol Hill eyes a deadline
People involved in the negotiations said the objections did not end the process outright, but they admitted the delay put the entire timetable at risk. One official described the global minimum tax effort as “in the ICU.”
Another used the phrase “grey smoke,” meaning talks were stuck but not dead.
The stalled publication comes at a moment when governments are scrambling to secure agreement on the new rules and on the US carve-out. If they fail, the entire structure may fall apart.
The issue is being tracked closely in Washington, where Republicans earlier in the year drafted a proposal to impose a “revenge tax” on companies and investors from countries that enforced the original plan without US exemptions.
Lawmakers pulled that threat after the G7 accepted Trump’s push to renegotiate the framework. But with the revised deal now blocked, the risk of that policy returning has grown.
At a congressional hearing this month, Jason Smith, chair of the House Ways and Means Committee, warned that patience was running out. “We have been patient to allow for all negotiating parties to have the space they need to reach agreement, but they must reach agreement,” Smith said.
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