France's Finance Minister Signals Policy Turn, Voices Support for Euro Stablecoins

French Finance Minister Roland Lescure (@RolandLescure) has urged the market to expand euro-denominated stablecoins and called on EU banks to explore tokenized deposits, signaling a notable shift in Paris' stance on private digital money. Speaking Friday at a crypto conference in Paris, Lescure said it was "not satisfactory" that euro-pegged stablecoins remain far smaller in volume than dollar-pegged alternatives. He singled out Qivalis—a 12-bank consortium that includes ING, UniCredit, BBVA, and BNP Paribas—which plans to launch a euro-pegged stablecoin in the second half of 2026. "That is what we need and that is what we want," Lescure said. The comments mark a clear departure from former finance minister Bruno Le Maire, who previously argued that privately issued stablecoins "had no place on European soil." Bank of France Governor Francois Villeroy de Galhau has also warned that private stablecoins could lead to the "privatization of money." The market imbalance remains stark. Tether has more than $185 billion of USDT in circulation, while Societe Generale's euro-pegged stablecoin launched in 2023 has only 107 million euros outstanding. Qivalis said it is targeting compliance with the EU's MiCA framework and approval from the Dutch central bank. The consortium aims to make its token the default euro-denominated option across exchanges, custodians, and DeFi platforms, positioning it as a counter to "digital dollarization."