In France, the government adopts an ordinance opposing the anonymity of transactions in crypto. Their wishes are to be able to systematically identify users. These measures are part of the fight against terrorism.
Since the recent terrorist events of the last few months, the project has been in the government’s pipeline. In October, the finance minister advocated greater control of cryptocurrency.
For Bruno Le Maire, these digital assets “pose a real problem of terrorist financing”. The new French regulatory system is now official. France, therefore, wants to do away with the anonymity of transactions involving cryptoassets.
KYC for all crypto transactions
By means of an ordinance, the executive, therefore, imposes customer identification obligations (KYC, link in French) on all crypto companies operating in the country. The crypto press on the other side of the Atlantic described this decision as a “declaration of war” against anonymity.
New obligations are thus imposed on the so-called “crypto-to-crypto” digital asset exchange activities. They also concern digital asset trading platforms. For these companies, this means LCB-FT risk assessment, customer knowledge, verification of beneficial owners, cooperation with intelligence services and freezing of assets.
“This order strengthens the fight against anonymity in digital asset transactions by including providers of services on digital assets (PSANs) among the entities prohibited from keeping anonymous accounts,” wrote Bercy in a press release.
A “culmination” and a threat to “cryptonation” France
But France intends to go even further. The government announces that it will introduce “new regulations”. This time, these will aim to “accelerate the marketing of digital identification solutions for transactions involving digital assets. »
And according to the Ministry of Finance, this demand comes directly from “the actors of the ecosystem”. The reactions of a number of them suggest, however, that these provisions are not unanimous.
On LinkedIn, Alexandre Stachtchenko, boss of Blockchain Partner and member of ADAN, does not hide his anger. These “new measures will not even fulfill the mission they have set themselves: to fight terrorism” he denounces.
But for the leader, this political decision also threatens “in a major way the sector in France. The worst thing when one claims to be a cryptonation. “Aware of a risk of “distortion of competition”, the government responds by confirming the registration obligations of foreign players.
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