According to Reuters, French Finance Minister Roland Lescure stated on Friday that Europe requires more stablecoins pegged to the euro, and EU banks should investigate tokenized deposits. This declaration may signify a shift in the stance of the French government and its central bank. Lescure expressed support for Qivalis, a consortium of 12 European banks, including BBVA, ING, UniCredit, and BNP Paribas, which plan to launch a euro-pegged stablecoin in the second half of 2026 to counter US dominance in digital payments. "That's what we need, and that's what we want," Lescure said, also encouraging banks to explore tokenized deposits further.
He noted that the relatively low volume of euro-pegged stablecoins compared to dollar-pegged ones is "unsatisfactory." Previously, former Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire led a strict regulatory stance against privately issued fiat-pegged cryptocurrencies, considering them a threat to national sovereignty. In 2023, Le Maire was linked to an EU document outlining plans to limit the widespread use of stablecoins as a replacement for fiat currency. Recently, Bank of France Governor Francois Villeroy de Galhau warned that stablecoins and tokenized private money could accelerate the loss of monetary sovereignty during a live debate with Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong.