French financial authorities want changes to the EU’s MiCA framework, including clearer duties for firms that give customers access to DeFi protocols. France’s Treasury, AMF, central bank and ACPR published the recommendations together. They remain proposals, not law.
What France wants to change in MiCA
In their October 21 joint submission, the French Treasury, AMF, Banque de France and ACPR asked the EU to make the boundaries between crypto regulation, payment services and financial-instrument laws clearer. They also proposed stronger supervision of large crypto groups and additional conditions for stablecoins issued across the EU and third countries.
For decentralized finance, the authorities called for identifiable responsibilities for intermediaries, due diligence and possible protocol certification. Their paper also discusses staking and crypto lending. None of these proposals is automatically binding on DeFi applications: European lawmakers and regulators would need to decide what changes to adopt and how to implement them.
The submission addresses access to DeFi, stablecoins and supervision of crypto-asset service providers. It also seeks clearer treatment of staking, crypto lending and borrowing, and the boundary between crypto services and activities covered by financial-instrument or payment-services rules.
For DeFi, the proposals focus on cases where an identifiable intermediary facilitates access to a protocol. They do not automatically classify every decentralised protocol as a regulated intermediary; the policy question is how responsibilities should apply to companies providing interfaces or customer-facing services.
What must happen before the proposals become rules
The recommendations will feed into the wider EU policy discussion. Any binding change would require the relevant legislative process and final wording. Firms should continue to follow current requirements and monitor official updates. Related coverage includes ESMA’s clarification on safeguarding client funds.
Primary source
AMF: French authorities publish joint proposals for MiCA revision.
Related Reading
For comparison with other European regulatory discussions, see the UK FCA consultation on cryptoasset rules and ESMA’s guidance on safeguarding client funds.
This report covers policy proposals and is not legal or investment advice.
