French Finance Minister Roland Lescure stated that euro-backed stablecoins should be increased in Europe and banks operating in European Union countries should take new steps on tokenized deposits. These statements by Lescure were made on Friday, according to Reuters.
Joint stablecoin preparation from European banks
Following the traditional approach from the European Central Bank and the Bank of France for some time, Lescure has publicly said that he supports a consortium of banks called Qivalis. Qivalis brings together 12 European banks, including BBVA, ING, UniCredit and BNP Paribas. The consortium’s goal is to create a euro-pegged stablecoin to balance the US dominance in digital payments.
This new stablecoin project is planned to be implemented in the second half of 2026. The aim is for European banks to act together and take a more active role in payment systems with digital euro-based products.
Call from the Ministry for tokenized deposit moves
Lescure also drew attention to the impact of stablecoins on the global market, emphasizing that stablecoins indexed to the euro are significantly less common than those indexed to the dollar, and that this is an inadequate situation. He made a clear call to banks to focus more on tokenized deposits to strengthen digital payments.
“This is exactly what we need and what we want to achieve,” Lescure said. He said and encouraged banks to further develop tokenized deposit products.
Tokenized deposits can provide faster and more transparent transactions by digitizing traditional bank deposits. Lescure’s suggestions highlight the message that emphasis should be placed on technological transformation as well as regulation within the financial sector.
A sign of change in the view of stablecoins in France
The French government and central bank’s approach to stablecoins has been quite cautious in recent years. Bruno Le Maire, one of the country’s former finance ministers, described privatized fiat-based cryptocurrencies as “having no place on European soil” and “a threat to the sovereignty of countries.” In fact, in 2023, the European Commission was preparing a policy aimed at preventing the large-scale use of stablecoins.
However, recent official statements indicate that France may adopt a more flexible attitude in this area. It is considered that Lescure’s statements may lead to a change in Paris’s policy on stablecoins.
On the other hand, concerns still persist that tokenized private currencies pose a political threat. In a live discussion with Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong last month, Bank of France Governor Francois Villeroy de Galhau reiterated his concern that stablecoins and tokenized private currencies “could lead to the privatization of money and the loss of monetary policy sovereignty.”
As a result, the latest call by the French Minister of Finance can pave the way for increasing competitiveness and accelerating digital transformation with innovative solutions for the financial sector in Europe.
