175-Year-Old French Bank Issues First Stablecoin Under EU MiCA Rules

French banking group ODDO BHF has launched EUROD, a euro-backed stablecoin. The token acts as a compliant digital model of the euro below the EU’s new MiCA regime.

The 175-year-old lender’s transfer reveals how conventional banks are increasing into regulated blockchain-based finance.

French Bank Enters the Digital Asset Market

ODDO BHF, which manages greater than €150 billion in belongings, mentioned the token will checklist on Madrid-based trade Bit2Me, backed by Telefónica, BBVA, and Unicaja. Bit2Me holds registration below Spain’s CNMV and was one of many first exchanges approved below MiCA. The license lets the platform broaden throughout the EU.

The financial institution teamed up with infrastructure supplier Fireblocks to deal with custody and settlements. It points EUROD on the Polygon community to allow quicker and cheaper transactions. The token fully depends on euro reserves and undergoes exterior audits. Bit2Me CEO Leif Ferreira mentioned the itemizing “bridges conventional banking with blockchain rails” as Europe embraces regulated digital belongings.

MiCA Framework and Stability Risks

The Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA), applied this 12 months, requires issuers to keep up one-to-one reserves and assure redemption. It additionally enforces sturdy governance and transparency requirements. EUROD’s rollout will check how effectively MiCA can harmonize digital-asset oversight throughout the EU.

European Central Bank (ECB) President Christine Lagarde just lately warned that overseas stablecoins with out “strong equivalence regimes” might set off reserve runs within the eurozone. In a letter to the European Parliament, she urged lawmakers to restrict issuance to EU-authorized corporations. She cited the collapse of TerraUSD as proof of the dangers from unregulated tasks.

Euro-pegged stablecoins have doubled in market cap this 12 months. Circle’s EURC leads the market, climbing to about $270 million, in response to knowledge from CoinGecko. EURC now dominates the sector, whereas bank-issued tokens corresponding to SocGen’s EUR CoinVertible entice much less demand below MiCA.

ECB adviser Jürgen Schaaf argued that Europe should transfer quicker on innovation or danger “erosion of financial sovereignty.” The European Systemic Risk Board (ESRB) warned that multi-issuer schemes—the place EU and non-EU corporations launch the identical stablecoin—might import systemic danger and want tighter oversight.

Despite these warnings, MiCA’s readability is driving competitors. Société Générale-FORGE launched its euro stablecoin EURCV, whereas Deutsche Börse partnered with Circle so as to add EURC and USDC to its buying and selling techniques. Nine European banks—together with ING, CaixaBank, and Danske—formed a Dutch consortium to subject a MiCA-compliant euro stablecoin by 2026, with Citigroup later becoming a member of the coalition earlier than its planned launch within the second half of that 12 months.

Meanwhile, ten G7 lenders, together with Citi and Deutsche Bank, explore multi-currency stablecoins to modernize settlement processes and enhance international liquidity.

Outlook for EUROD and the Euro Stablecoin Market

Euro-backed stablecoins nonetheless characterize a small share—under $574 million in complete capitalization—in contrast with over $160 billion in dollar-pegged tokens. Regulators count on euro-denominated belongings to strengthen monetary sovereignty if managed transparently.

For ODDO BHF, EUROD marks a strategic transfer to draw institutional purchasers via compliance and belief. Its progress will hinge on adoption by cost suppliers and buyers on the lookout for a dependable euro different within the digital economic system.

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