France Bets on Blockchain: What Minister Anne Le Hénanff Said at Paris Blockchain Week

At Paris Blockchain Week, France sent a clear political and economic message: it intends to become one of the leading hubs of the new financial architecture. In her speech, Anne Le Hénanff, Minister Delegate for Artificial Intelligence and Digital Affairs, stressed that this is no longer a moment of simply observing change — it is a moment of actively shaping it.

From the opening lines of her address, she framed the occasion as a historic turning point for the global financial system:

“We are not just witnessing the future of finance, we are shaping it.”

According to the minister, finance is undergoing a profound structural transformation, and distributed ledger technology has moved far beyond the status of a simple innovation. It now represents a paradigm shift, one that is redefining the very principles by which value is created, exchanged, and secured.

“Distributed ledger technology is not merely an innovation, it is a paradigm shift, redefining how value is created, exchanged and secured.”

One of the central messages of the speech was that digital assets and tokenisation are no longer niche experiments. On the contrary, the minister described them as the new infrastructure of global finance.

“Digital assets and tokenization are no longer niche experiments. They are the new infrastructure of global finance.”

In her view, France recognises this transformation both as an opportunity and as a responsibility. That is why innovation has stood at the heart of public policy for nearly a decade. As an example, she pointed to the France 2030 investment plan, through which the government is committing €54 billion to accelerate innovation and ensure that the French economy remains at the forefront of global change.

The minister also underlined that France does not support innovation in a chaotic or unstructured way. Instead, it seeks to combine growth with legal certainty — a balance that, in her words, makes the country especially attractive for blockchain and decentralised finance projects.

“France is the place for you to make decentralised finance happen.”

Why France? In her speech, the minister outlined several reasons.

First, regulatory leadership. France was among the first countries to implement the European MiCA framework for crypto-assets, and its domestic legal environment already offers market participants a predictable and robust foundation.

“We don’t see regulation as a barrier, but as an enabler, ensuring trust, protecting investors, and unlocking growth.”

Second, she spoke about political will. She referenced support mechanisms such as the French Tech Next 40/120 programme and the Choose France initiative, both designed to attract global talent and capital.

“France believes in crypto and blockchain. We are not just open for business, we are open for innovation.”

The third advantage, she argued, is access to talent and capital. Paris draws strength from world-class universities, engineering schools, and a dynamic Web3 community. This environment is further reinforced by the presence of major institutional players and investors.

Finally, the fourth factor is a thriving ecosystem in which French startups and financial institutions are not merely experimenting with blockchain, but deploying it in the real economy. Among the examples she cited were Morpho, Ledger, and Spiko, as well as Société Générale Forge and other institutions working on tokenised assets.

A particularly important part of the speech focused on tokenisation, which the minister presented not as a future possibility, but as a present-day reality.

In her words, tokenisation is democratising access to illiquid assets, automating processes, and enabling 24/7 trading. Its advantages are tangible: fractional ownership, lower costs, and greater liquidity. France, she insisted, is moving quickly in this direction. With the full implementation of MiCA by 30 June 2026, the country aims to provide a high degree of legal certainty across the European market.

She also cited figures showing growing public interest in these new financial instruments. According to the minister, 19% of French citizens now recognise tokenised investment funds, while 55% of crypto holders are interested in real-world assets.

Yet the speech went beyond finance alone. One of its most forward-looking sections addressed the convergence of artificial intelligence and blockchain. The minister described this intersection as a transformative opportunity capable of reshaping not only financial services but the broader digital landscape.

Among the possible applications she highlighted were:

— verifying the integrity of AI training data;

— enabling decentralised computing with greater privacy and security;

— automating compliance and enforcing ethical and legal standards, including GDPR.

“I see the convergence of AI and blockchain as a transformative opportunity.”

Here too, Paris, she argued, holds a distinct advantage, as it is already one of Europe’s major AI centres. France aims to leverage this strength to build a trustworthy, decentralised AI ecosystem aligned with European values: privacy, transparency, and user control.

In closing, the minister delivered a strategic message not only to the French audience, but to the international community. France, she said, offers a unique combination of regulatory clarity, political support, and industrial strength — and is therefore ready to become one of the key platforms of the emerging financial world.

“To the founders here today, I would like to say, choose France. To the investors, bet on France. To the regulators and institutions, partner with France.”

Her final words sounded almost like a manifesto for a new era:

“Together, we can build a financial system that is more efficient, more inclusive and more sovereign.”

Anne Le Hénanff’s speech at Paris Blockchain Week made one thing clear: France does not intend to occupy a peripheral place in the global transformation of finance. It is aiming for a leading role. And if blockchain was once seen as an experimental technology, the French state is now presenting it as a foundation of Europe’s next stage of economic development.