2026-02-21

How to Track Cryptocurrency Across Countries and Exchanges

Cryptocurrency is the most fragmented asset class in most international investors’ portfolios. Stocks sit in a brokerage. Cash sits in a bank. Crypto sits across three exchanges, two hardware wallets, a MetaMask browser extension, a staking protocol, and a lending platform you set up two years ago and half forgot about.

Now add the international dimension: you bought Bitcoin on a US exchange, Ethereum on a Singapore exchange, and some altcoins on a global exchange that may or may not have a regulatory home. You moved countries, and the tax rules changed completely. You have staking rewards accruing in a token you have never converted to fiat. And you have no single place that shows you what all of it is worth, right now, in the currency you actually use.

This guide covers the practical mechanics of tracking crypto across countries and exchanges — consolidation, valuation, tax reporting, and the complications that come with DeFi, staking, and cross-border moves.

Why Crypto Tracking Is Uniquely Difficult¶

Every asset class has tracking challenges. Stocks require price feeds. Real estate requires valuations. Cash accounts require FX conversion. Crypto has all of these challenges simultaneously, plus several unique ones.

No central record. Your brokerage knows every stock you own. No single entity knows every crypto asset you hold. On-chain wallets are self-custodied and invisible to any institution. You are the only source of truth.

Proliferation of venues. A typical crypto investor holds assets across multiple exchanges, hardware wallets, software wallets, and DeFi positions. Each is a separate silo with its own interface and export format.

24/7 global markets. There is no market close, no settlement period, and no single reference price. The price of Bitcoin on Coinbase and Binance can differ at any given moment.

Cross-chain complexity. The same token can exist on multiple blockchains. Forks, airdrops, wrapped tokens, and chain migrations create a constantly moving target.

Step 1: Inventory Every Holding¶

Before you can track anything, you need to know what you have. Go through every venue systematically.

Centralized exchanges. Log into every exchange you have ever used — Coinbase, Kraken, Binance, Gemini, Crypto.com, Bitstamp, and any others. Check balances including small dust balances that might have grown in value. Do not forget exchanges you used years ago.

Hardware wallets. Ledger, Trezor, and other hardware wallets. Check every account and every supported chain. If you set up a Ledger three years ago and added accounts for Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana, and Cosmos, check all four.

Software wallets. MetaMask, Phantom, Keplr, Trust Wallet, and others. Check every network you have added. MetaMask can hold assets on Ethereum mainnet plus any EVM chain you have configured (Polygon, Arbitrum, Avalanche, BNB Chain, etc.).

DeFi positions. Liquidity pool positions (Uniswap, Curve, Aave), staking (Lido, Rocket Pool, native chain staking), lending (Aave, Compound), and yield farming. These are easy to forget because they do not appear in your wallet’s token list — you often need to visit the specific protocol’s interface to see them.

Staking rewards. Native staking rewards on proof-of-stake chains (Ethereum, Solana, Cosmos, Polkadot) accrue continuously. The rewards themselves are separate assets that need to be tracked both for net worth purposes and for tax purposes.

Write everything down with the quantity, the token, and where it is held. This becomes your crypto inventory.

Step 2: Convert Everything to One Currency¶

Your crypto holdings are natively denominated in their own tokens — you own 0.5 BTC, 3.2 ETH, 150 SOL. To include them in your net worth alongside stocks, cash, and real estate, you need to convert each position to your home currency.

The conversion is straightforward:

Quantity x Current Price (in USD) x FX rate to home currency = Home currency value

If you hold 3.2 ETH, ETH is trading at $3,400, and your home currency is GBP with GBP/USD at 0.79:

3.2 x $3,400 x 0.79 = GBP 8,601

The challenge is that crypto prices are volatile. A net worth calculation that includes $50,000 in crypto can change by $5,000 in a single day. This is a feature of the asset class, not a tracking problem — but it means daily or real-time valuations are more important for crypto than for real estate or bonds.

For stablecoins (USDC, USDT, DAI), the conversion is simpler — they are designed to hold a 1:1 peg to a fiat currency, typically USD. Treat them as cash equivalents for tracking purposes, but be aware that stablecoins are not risk-free and the peg can break.

For more on converting multi-currency assets into a single home currency view, see How to Track Investments in Multiple Currencies.

Step 3: Understand Tax Reporting by Country¶

This is where crypto tracking becomes genuinely country-specific. Different jurisdictions classify crypto differently, tax it differently, and have vastly different reporting requirements.

United States¶

The IRS treats cryptocurrency as property, not currency. This classification, established in IRS Notice 2014-21, means that every disposition of crypto — selling for fiat, trading one token for another, using crypto to buy goods or services — is a taxable event that must be reported.

Key US crypto tax rules:

• Capital gains/losses are reported on Form 8949 and Schedule D. Short-term gains (held under one year) are taxed as ordinary income. Long-term gains (held over one year) are taxed at preferential rates (0%, 15%, or 20% depending on income).
• The “crypto question” on Form 1040 asks whether you received, sold, exchanged, or otherwise disposed of digital assets during the tax year. Answering “no” when you should answer “yes” is a red flag for audit. See IRS Digital Assets guidance.
• Staking rewards are taxable as ordinary income at the fair market value on the date received, according to Revenue Ruling 2023-14. This applies to both proof-of-stake validation rewards and DeFi yield.
• Airdrops are taxable as ordinary income at fair market value on the date received.
• Mining income is self-employment income subject to income tax and self-employment tax.
• Cost basis methods: The IRS allows specific identification (selecting which lots to sell) and FIFO (first in, first out). LIFO (last in, first out) and HIFO (highest in, first out) are also permissible if you specifically identify the lots. See IRS FAQ on Digital Assets.
• FBAR reporting: If you hold crypto on a foreign exchange (e.g., a US person with an account on Binance’s non-US platform or Bitstamp), FinCEN has indicated that foreign crypto exchange accounts may be reportable on FBAR (FinCEN Form 114). The rules are evolving — see FinCEN’s guidance. For a complete FBAR guide, see How to File an FBAR as an Expat.

United Kingdom¶

HMRC treats crypto as a form of property, broadly similar to the US approach. Capital gains rules apply to disposals.

Key UK crypto tax rules:

• Capital Gains Tax applies when you sell crypto for fiat, exchange one crypto for another, or use crypto to pay for goods or services. The annual CGT exemption was reduced to GBP 3,000 (from GBP 12,300) for the 2024-25 tax year onward. CGT rates on crypto gains are 18% (basic rate taxpayers) or 24% (higher rate taxpayers) as of the 2024-25 tax year.
• Income tax applies to crypto received as employment income, mining, airdrops (if received for doing something), and staking rewards.
• Share pooling rules apply to crypto, meaning you cannot use specific identification. Instead, HMRC requires Section 104 pooling (a running average cost basis) with the 30-day bed and breakfasting rule and same-day matching rule. See HMRC’s Crypto Assets Manual.
• DeFi lending and staking — HMRC has published specific guidance on DeFi transactions. Whether a DeFi lending position is a disposal (triggering CGT) depends on whether beneficial ownership of the tokens is transferred. See HMRC’s DeFi guidance.
• Reporting is through Self Assessment tax return.

Germany¶

Germany’s approach to crypto taxation is notably favorable for long-term holders. Gains on crypto held for more than one year are tax-free under Section 23 of the Income Tax Act (Einkommensteuergesetz). This makes Germany one of the most attractive jurisdictions in Europe for crypto investors.

• Held under one year: Gains are taxed as other income at your marginal income tax rate (up to 45% plus solidarity surcharge). A de minimis exemption of EUR 600 applies.
• Held over one year: Gains are completely tax-free.
• Staking complication: Staking and lending previously raised questions about whether the holding period extended to 10 years. The German Federal Ministry of Finance clarified in 2022 that staking and lending do not extend the holding period beyond one year, which was favorable news for German crypto investors.

Portugal¶

Portugal was once considered a crypto tax haven for individual investors but introduced crypto taxation in 2023. Short-term gains (assets held under one year) are now taxed at 28%. Long-term gains (over one year) remain tax-free for individual investors.

Singapore¶

Singapore does not have a capital gains tax, which means crypto gains for individual investors are generally tax-free. However, if you are trading crypto as a business or are deemed to be carrying on a trade, the Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (IRAS) may treat the gains as taxable business income. IRAS has published guidance on the income tax treatment of digital tokens.

Other Notable Jurisdictions¶

• UAE: No personal income tax, making crypto gains tax-free for individuals.
• Australia: ATO treats crypto as property. CGT applies, with a 50% discount for assets held over one year.
• Canada: CRA treats crypto as a commodity. 50% of capital gains are taxable.
• Japan: Crypto gains are classified as miscellaneous income and taxed at marginal rates up to 55%.
• Thailand: Crypto gains may be taxed as assessable income, but enforcement has been limited.

Step 4: Handle DeFi and Staking Complications¶

Decentralized finance adds layers of complexity that centralized exchange trading does not have.

Staking Rewards¶

When you stake ETH, SOL, ATOM, or other proof-of-stake tokens, you receive rewards that need to be tracked in two ways:

1. As income on the date received, at the fair market value on that date (in most jurisdictions)
2. As a new asset with a cost basis equal to the fair market value when received

If you stake 32 ETH and receive 0.004 ETH in staking rewards on a given day when ETH is at $3,500, you have $14 in taxable income and a new asset with a $14 cost basis. Over a year with daily rewards, that is 365 taxable events. Tracking this manually is impractical.

Liquidity Pool Positions¶

Adding liquidity to a Uniswap or Curve pool means depositing tokens and receiving LP tokens representing your share. The underlying composition changes continuously due to impermanent loss. The tax treatment varies by jurisdiction and is still being clarified in many countries. The conservative approach is to treat the deposit as a disposal, the LP token as a new asset, and the withdrawal as another disposal.

Wrapped and Bridged Tokens¶

Wrapping ETH to WETH or bridging tokens between chains creates transactions that may or may not be taxable events depending on your jurisdiction. HMRC has indicated that wrapping a token is generally not a disposal if the wrapped token represents the same underlying asset. The IRS has not provided specific guidance, leaving US taxpayers in an ambiguous position. For tracking purposes, treat wrapped versions of the same token as the same asset.

Step 5: Build Your Tracking System¶

A functional crypto tracking system for an international investor needs to handle:

Multi-exchange consolidation. Aggregate balances across all exchanges and wallets into a single view.

Multi-currency conversion. Convert all crypto positions to your home currency using current exchange rates, just as you do with foreign-denominated stocks.

Historical transaction records. Keep a complete record of every buy, sell, trade, transfer, staking reward, and airdrop with dates, quantities, prices, and fees.

Cost basis tracking. Maintain cost basis per lot (or per pooled average, depending on your jurisdiction’s rules) across all venues. A Bitcoin bought on Coinbase in 2022 and transferred to a Ledger in 2023 still has its original 2022 cost basis.

DeFi position tracking. Include staking, LP, and lending positions in your net worth with current valuations.

Most crypto tax software handles the tax calculation side well but does not integrate with your non-crypto portfolio. For a complete net worth picture, you need a portfolio tracker that handles all asset types.

Managing Crypto When You Move Countries¶

If you are a digital nomad or expat who changes tax residency, your crypto tax obligations change with you. This creates both complications and opportunities.

Document your cost basis before you move. Some countries treat a change of tax residency as a deemed disposal. Australia and Canada both have departure tax provisions that may apply to crypto holdings. If your new country does not have departure tax, your cost basis carries over — but you need documentation.

Understand the new country’s rules before you trade. Selling crypto as a Singapore tax resident is very different from selling as a Japan tax resident. Know the rules before you execute trades.

Keep records of where you were when you traded. Tax authorities may want to verify your residency when you made specific trades. Travel records, visa stamps, and residency documentation matter.

For a comprehensive guide to the financial side of moving between countries, see Financial Checklist Before Moving Abroad and How to Financially Prepare for Repatriation.

Common Crypto Tracking Mistakes¶

Forgetting about dust. Small balances left on exchanges after trades can become significant if the token appreciates. Check every exchange, including ones you have not used in years.

Not tracking transfers between your own wallets. Moving Bitcoin from Coinbase to your Ledger is not a taxable event, but it needs to be recorded so your cost basis follows the asset to the new location.

Using exchange prices inconsistently. Pick one price source and use it consistently. A single data source ensures internal consistency across your portfolio.

Ignoring gas fees. Transaction fees are part of your cost basis. If you bought 1 ETH for $3,400 and paid $15 in gas, your cost basis is $3,415. Over hundreds of transactions, gas fees add up.

Not accounting for lost access. If you have lost access to a wallet, those assets are gone. Most jurisdictions allow you to claim a capital loss, but documentation requirements vary.

Consolidate Your Full Picture¶

Crypto is one piece of your financial life. Tracking it in isolation — separate from your stocks, cash, property, and debt — gives you an incomplete picture of your net worth and your currency exposure.

FlashFi tracks crypto alongside every other asset class, converting everything to your home currency with live exchange rates. See your complete net worth — stocks, ETFs, crypto, cash, and debt — in one dashboard.

Start tracking your complete portfolio and stop guessing what you are actually worth.

By David Brougham