French authorities propose tighter safeguards for DeFi under MiCA

• France’s Treasury and three financial authorities have proposed changes to the EU’s Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA).
• The proposals cover decentralised finance, stablecoin rules, protocol certification and stronger oversight of major crypto service providers.
• The submission aims to strengthen investor protection while supporting innovation and Europe’s financial competitiveness.

France’s Treasury, AMF, Banque de France and ACPR have proposed changes to the EU’s Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA).

The joint submission responds to the European Commission’s consultation on revising the bloc’s crypto-asset regulatory framework.

The French authorities advocate clearer responsibilities for intermediaries, appropriate due diligence and protocol certification to protect decentralised finance users.

Their proposals also seek clearer boundaries between MiCA, financial instruments legislation and payment services rules, particularly where activities require multiple authorisations.

The authorities want clearer rules for crypto-asset staking, lending and borrowing, alongside safeguards for users of decentralised finance services.

They also propose strengthening the European Securities and Markets Authority’s oversight of significant crypto-asset service providers and crypto conglomerates.

For stablecoins, the submission supports euro-denominated tokens and tokenised bank deposits while proposing safeguards for tokens issued across EU and non-EU markets.

The proposals will inform the European Commission’s MiCA review, but any regulatory changes depend on the subsequent EU legislative process.