The chair of the European Union's parliamentary tax subcommittee has proposed a centralized asset registry that would be used to record all forms of wealth that every EU citizen possesses. It would also apply to corporations and other types of business entities.
The EU Asset Register would serve as a “comprehensive database that records various assets owned by citizens” and is being considered on the pretense of fighting against terrorist financing and money laundering.
The EU is currently conducting feasibility studies aimed at determining the finer details of such a database. There are some suggestions that it would only apply to people with certain incomes or assets whose values exceed a specific amount; one number that has been mentioned as a trigger for being recorded centrally is 200,000 euros.
Some of the assets that may be included in the register include bank accounts, real estate, vehicles, artwork, precious metals, securities and cryptocurrencies, although the precise assets that would need to be disclosed are subject to the findings of the feasibility study.
Many are questioning the stated motivations for developing such a registry. After all, money launderers and terrorists would simply avoid reporting their assets to the registry while rule-abiding Europeans would have to deal with the time-consuming process of following their reporting obligations.
Discussions about an asset register go back to at least 2021, at a time when the EU was looking to find and freeze property belonging to sanctioned Russian oligarchs. A key component is finding a way to link together the existing records each member state has of all of their citizens’ finances into one central database that authorities in any other member state could draw on.
Privacy and data security could be at risk
Data privacy is a huge concern here, and many are questioning the legality of establishing such a register. The registry would be an attractive target for cybercriminals and state-sponsored hackers, and leaks of data could be useful for everyone from thieves to journalists and even spouses going through divorce proceedings. Hackers who gain access to this type of detailed financial information could carry out large-scale fraud and identity theft operations, among other types of financial crimes. Breaches could also impact global financial markets.
There are also fears that it could be used to support the introduction of additional taxes on European citizens. Not only could it pave the way for an EU-wide wealth tax, but it could also conceivably be used as a way to keep people from buying non-CBDC cryptocurrencies in the future.
People are losing personal rights on the pretense of preventing crime
The president of the Association of European Taxpayers, Rolf von Hohenhau, cautioned: “If citizens give their support, they will lose all their personal rights through a bureaucratic back door. Under the pretext of preventing money laundering, we will all be investigated.”
Although a Commission spokesperson claims that the study does not necessarily mean that such a register is around the corner, it seems like a waste of resources to carry out such an in-depth study if nothing will ever come of it. And it’s not just Europeans who should be concerned about this; other countries, including the U.S., could very well follow suit and make moves to adopt similar databases recording assets that are not traditionally tracked, such as gold and cryptocurrencies, by claiming they need to fight terrorism and money laundering.
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