According to Reuters, French Finance Minister Roland Lescure expressed his support on Friday for the development of more euro-issued stablecoins, urging European banks to explore the potential of tokenized deposits. This statement marks a significant shift in the French government's approach, as well as that of its central bank. Lescure voiced his backing for Qivalis, a consortium of 12 European banks, including prominent institutions such as BBVA, ING, UniCredit, and BNP Paribas, as they prepare to launch a euro-pegged stablecoin in the latter half of 2026.
The move aims to challenge the dominance of the US in the digital payments sector. "This is what we need, and this is what we want," Lescure stated, emphasizing his encouragement for banks to delve deeper into the launch of tokenized deposits.
He also expressed dissatisfaction with the relatively low volume of euro-pegged stablecoins compared to those pegged to the US dollar. This stance differs from that of the former Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire, who previously adopted a strict regulatory approach towards privately-issued fiat-pegged cryptocurrencies, viewing them as a threat to national sovereignty.
More recently, the Governor of the Bank of France, Francois Villeroy de Galhau, cautioned against the potential risks of stablecoins and tokenized private money, highlighting the threat of monetary sovereignty loss.