PANAMA Trends and Developments Contributed by: Teresa Carballo and Edgar Young, Pacifica Legal
crowdfunding, neobanks, WealthTech, InsurTech and RegTech). In relation to crypto, it addresses digital assets – including the issuance, custody, exchange, and management of crypto-assets, tokens, NFTs, and stablecoins – and establishes a specific “Licence for Digital Assets and Crypto- Assets”. In our experience, material legislation in this area has historically required the alignment of the legislature, the executive (through the relevant superintenden- cies), and the affected industry (eg, banks, securities, finance, and technology). In our opinion, none of the current draft bills shows that alignment. The SBP and the SMV have not publicly signalled support for any of them; the industry has not coalesced behind any single proposal; and the political calendar for 2026 may include higher-priority items (eg, economic sub- stance and tax regime, decentralisation, the General Procurator’s Office reform). For now, the current legal- but-unregulated status persists. Part of the reason for an increase in regulatory pro- posals is compliance with FATF standards. In recent years, Panama has made enormous efforts to stay off the international grey and black lists, implementing regulatory, supervisory, and enforcement reforms to align with international AML/CFT standards and tax- transparency frameworks.
Part of these efforts is the recent commitment to implement the Crypto-Asset Reporting Framework (CARF). On 2 December 2025, Panama signed two Multilateral Agreements for the Automatic Exchange of Tax Information at the 18th Plenary Meeting of the OECD Global Forum (Organization for Economic Co- operation and Development): Multilateral Competent Authority Agreement on the Crypto-Asset Reporting Framework (CARF MCAA) and Addendum to the Mul- tilateral Competent Authority Agreement on the Com- mon Reporting Standard (Addendum CRS MCAA). Closing thought For now, Panama offers something relatively rare: a stable, low-cost, legally grounded environment where a wide range of crypto business models can be built and operated in a flexible regulatory framework, sup- ported by an efficient corporate structure and regula- tors that are consistent and transparent about the lim- its of their mandate, but overall take a crypto-friendly approach. The trade-offs are real, including banking friction, reputational questions, and the ever-present possibility of new legislation, and the right structure always depends on the specific product, the user base, and where the founders sit. This has positioned Panama as a favourable jurisdiction for many block- chain initiatives looking for a safe environment in which to build.
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