In a surprising move, French lawmakers have proposed historic legislation that would create a national Bitcoin reserve and formally reject the European Central Bank’s (ECB) digital euro.
France’s Bitcoin reserve proposal, led by Eric Ciotti and the Union Right-Center (UDR) party, is the most ambitious Bitcoin bill in French history. It has indicated that it will purchase up to 420,000 Bitcoins (BTC) over the next seven to eight years, representing about 2% of the total supply.
If passed, France would be the first country in Europe to strategically reserve Bitcoin, using the scarce digital asset as a form of “digital gold” to strengthen national fiscal sovereignty.
The proposed law outlines a plan to accumulate 420,000 BTC, worth approximately $48 billion at current market prices. Funding for the reserve fund comes from several sources, including:
- Public Bitcoin mining using surplus nuclear and hydro energy.
- Bitcoin seized from criminal proceedings.
- Daily Bitcoin purchases are funded by popular French savings schemes such as Libret A and LDDS, which allocate up to 15 million euros per day.
- Pending constitutional approval, it may be possible to pay taxes in Bitcoin.
The bill also calls for the creation of a public administration agency (EPA) to manage Bitcoin reserves, modeled on France’s agency that oversees gold and foreign currency holdings.
UDR leader Eric Ciotti stressed that the proposal aims to secure the future of the French economy.
In addition to supporting Bitcoin, French lawmakers have also clearly expressed opposition to the ECB’s digital euro proposal. Ciotti and others argue that centralized digital currencies threaten privacy and economic freedom.
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The resolution compares the idea to China’s digital yuan and warns that a digital euro could allow authorities to track and freeze people’s funds. Lawmakers described it as a “grave threat to fundamental personal freedoms.”
He also warned that moving people’s direct deposits to the ECB could destabilize Europe’s banking system and concentrate power in one institution. “Such concentration of power is harmful to economic freedom. This is not the role of the ECB.” says the resolution.
Instead, the French proposal promotes euro-denominated stablecoins (digital tokens pegged to the euro) as a decentralized alternative for everyday payments. Transactions under 200 euros will be tax-free, and stablecoins could be used to pay taxes in the future.
Lawmakers believe the move will help diversify France’s foreign exchange reserves and reduce its dependence on the US dollar and a global payments system dominated by US companies.
Currently, more than 90% of the world’s stablecoins are pegged to the US dollar. In contrast, euro-backed stablecoins have a market capitalization of less than $300 million. The proposal argues that this imbalance leaves Europe overly dependent on US companies such as Tether and Circle.
To address this, Ciotti’s plan calls on the European Commission to amend the Market in Crypto Assets (MiCA) regulation to make it easier for European banks to issue euro-backed stablecoins.
France’s central bank governor Francois Villeroy de Galraud recently expressed a similar opinion, warning that Europe’s slow progress in developing its own digital currency could deepen its dependence on non-European systems.
The bill also focuses on promoting France’s growing digital asset sector. It suggests:
- Flexible electricity rates for mining operations.
- Tax incentives for data centers involved in Bitcoin mining.
- Allows Bitcoin and other digital assets to be included in Exchange Traded Notes (ETN) and PEA investment accounts.
- Reduce the weight of prudential risks on digital asset-backed loans and facilitate secured lending.
Despite the excitement, the bill faces stiff political hurdles. The UDR party only holds 16 of the 577 seats in France’s National Assembly, so the proposal will need broader support.