France Moves to Tax Stablecoin Swaps, and ESMA Asks About Tokenised Collateral

Two European crypto-policy steps this week. French MPs on the National Assembly’s finance committee voted to tax crypto-to-stablecoin swaps and extend the exit tax to crypto. And ESMA, the EU markets regulator, asked whether tokenised assets could safely serve as collateral at clearing houses. Neither changes the rules yet. This is not tax or investment advice.

Spotted via Coinhouse (@Coinhousefr) on X and SCA (@SovereignChainA) on X. The ESMA item is from ESMA’s own release.

France: two crypto tax amendments clear committee

Proposal; committee adoption confirmed. France’s 2027 budget bill (projet de loi de finances pour 2027, no. 3210) is before the National Assembly. Its finance committee adopted two amendments tabled by Nicolas Sansu and other deputies of the left-wing GDR group; the Assembly’s own copies of both are marked “Adopté” [1][2]. Capital reports that they were adopted on 7 and 8 October [3].

• Stablecoin swaps (amendment I-CF1826). At present a crypto-to-crypto swap is not taxed in France; tax falls due when gains are turned into euros or spent, Capital explains [3]. The amendment would remove that deferral for swaps into “jetons de monnaie électronique”, the e-money tokens defined in the EU’s MiCA regulation, meaning stablecoins backed by an official currency such as the euro or dollar [2][3]. It would apply to swaps from 1 January 2027 and also changes how the purchase price of crypto-assets is worked out for tax [2].
• Crypto exit tax (amendment I-CF1822). People who move their tax home abroad after being French tax residents “pendant au moins six des dix années” before leaving would be taxed on unrealised crypto gains if their holdings’ total value “excède 800 000 €” [1]. That matches the threshold for shares [1]. It would apply to departures from 1 January 2027 [1].

Capital also reports that the committee adopted an amendment from Daniel Labaronne allowing crypto losses to be carried forward for ten years (reported) [3].

What happens next. A committee vote is not law. Journal du Coin notes that for a budget the full chamber starts again from the government’s text, so the amendments must be voted again [4]. The committee chair told members that the full Assembly’s debate on the first part of the bill would run from Tuesday 13 October to Monday 19 October [5]. The Senate then examines the bill.

ESMA: a call for evidence on tokenised collateral

Confirmed (ESMA); evidence-gathering only, no rule change. On 9 October the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) launched a call for evidence on “the potential use of tokenised collateral by central counterparties (CCPs)” [6][7]. CCPs are clearing houses that stand between the two sides of a trade and hold collateral in case a member defaults.

ESMA wants to know “whether, and under what conditions, tokenised forms of collateral could be used safely and effectively by EU CCPs” [6]. That covers tokenised copies of assets held in traditional systems (“digital twins”), assets issued directly on blockchains, and whether a CCP could “access, transfer and convert tokenised collateral into liquidity” after a default [6].

ESMA Chair Verena Ross said: “Tokenisation has the potential to make Europe’s financial markets more efficient, integrated and innovative” [6]. Klaus Löber, who chairs ESMA’s CCP Supervisory Committee, added that “the fundamental safeguards applicable to CCP collateral remain unchanged” [6].

Responses are due “by 15 January 2027”. ESMA will assess them in the first quarter of 2027 and then decide on next steps [6].

What this does not prove

• That France has adopted these taxes. They are committee amendments that must be voted again by the full Assembly and then go to the Senate [1][2][4][5].
• That anyone owes tax on stablecoin swaps now. The amendment would apply from 1 January 2027 if it becomes law [2].
• That ESMA will allow tokenised collateral. It is asking questions, not changing rules [6].

The Bottom Line

French MPs on the finance committee want swaps into euro- or dollar-backed stablecoins taxed, and crypto holdings over €800,000 caught by the exit tax, from 2027. Both are proposals until the full Assembly and Senate vote. ESMA is gathering evidence on tokenised collateral at clearing houses until 15 January 2027.

Related on TSN: Stablecoins and Tax Under Pressure: ESMA’s Warning, a Senator’s Letter and Greece’s 10% Plan

Sources

1. Assemblée nationale, amendement n° I-CF1822 to the projet de loi de finances pour 2027 (no. 3210), tabled 4 October 2026 by M. Sansu and others; marked “Adopté” (official text). https://www.assemblee-nationale.fr/dyn/17/amendements/3210A/CION_FIN/CF1822
2. Assemblée nationale, amendement n° I-CF1826 to the projet de loi de finances pour 2027 (no. 3210), tabled 4 October 2026 by M. Sansu and others; marked “Adopté” (official text). https://www.assemblee-nationale.fr/dyn/17/amendements/3210A/CION_FIN/CF1826
3. Hugo Babay, “Budget 2027 : cryptos et IA dans le viseur des députés”, Capital, 9 October 2026, 11:44 BST (source of the adoption dates and the Labaronne amendment). https://www.capital.fr/economie-politique/budget-2027-cryptos-et-ia-dans-le-viseur-des-deputes-1530853
4. “Amendements crypto du budget 2027 : le point complet”, Journal du Coin, 8 October 2026 (trade press). https://journalducoin.com/actualites/budget-2027-amendements-crypto-dac8/
5. Assemblée nationale, Commission des finances, compte rendu n° 003, 1 October 2026 (official record; the chair, Éric Coquerel, sets out the timetable). https://www.assemblee-nationale.fr/dyn/opendata/CRCANR5L17S2027PO59048N003.html
6. ESMA, “ESMA seeks evidence on the use of tokenised collateral in central clearing”, press release, 9 October 2026 (ESMA91-1505572268-5023; official). https://www.esma.europa.eu/press-news/esma-news/esma-seeks-evidence-use-tokenised-collateral-central-clearing
7. ESMA, “Call for evidence on the CCP collateral tokenisation”, 9 October 2026 (ESMA91-1505572268-4934; official). https://www.esma.europa.eu/sites/default/files/2026-10/ESMA91-1505572268-4934_-_Call_for_evidence_tokenisation.pdf
8. Coinhouse (@Coinhousefr), X post, 8 October 2026, 16:08 BST (French crypto platform; read via the X API). It goes beyond the amendment texts by giving further budget dates (a vote on the revenue part on 20 October and on the whole bill on 17 November), which TSN has not checked against the Assembly’s calendar. https://x.com/Coinhousefr/status/2108212937378725957 (also seen: Clubic (@Clubic), X post, 9 October 2026, 13:24 BST, https://x.com/Clubic/status/2108534000838996444)
9. SCA (@SovereignChainA), X post, 9 October 2026, 12:32 BST (small, unverified commentary account; read via the X API). It goes beyond ESMA’s release with opinion and a claim about an earlier Eurex collateral transaction that TSN has not verified and does not use. https://x.com/SovereignChainA/status/2108521026271490485