French Finance Minister Roland Lescure has emphasized the need for more euro-denominated stablecoins and encouraged European banks to explore tokenized deposit options, marking a possible shift in the French government's and its central bank's stance on digital currencies. According to Reuters, Lescure expressed support for a group 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.
The move aims to counter the dominance of the US in digital payments. Lescure stated, 'That is what we need and that is what we want.' He also urged banks to further investigate the launch of tokenized deposits.
The relatively low volume of euro-pegged stablecoins compared to those pegged to the US dollar was deemed 'not satisfactory' by Lescure. This stance differs from that of the former Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire, who previously advocated for strict regulations against privately issued fiat-pegged cryptocurrencies, citing threats to national sovereignty. More recently, the Bank of France Governor Francois Villeroy de Galhau warned that stablecoins could accelerate the threat of privatization of money and loss of monetary sovereignty.