Bitcoin News Today: France Bets on Bitcoin and Stablecoins as ECB Pushes Digital Euro

The European Central Bank (ECB) is accelerating its plans to launch a digital euro, with a potential 2029 rollout, as it seeks to modernize the eurozone's financial infrastructure and reduce reliance on physical cash. ECB President Christine Lagarde announced in late October that the Governing Council has moved into the "next and final phase" of development, emphasizing the need to digitize cash while preserving "trust in our common destiny," according to a Decrypt article. The digital euro, a central bank digital currency (CBDC), is expected to complement physical currency and enable seamless online and offline transactions across the euro area.

However, the ECB's ambitions face resistance within Europe. French lawmakers recently adopted a resolution opposing the digital euro, citing concerns over privacy, economic freedom, and the risks of centralized control. The National Assembly passed a proposal urging the government to reject the ECB's draft regulations and instead promote euro-denominated stablecoins and a national Bitcoin reserve, as described in a Yahoo Finance article. The resolution, led by Union of the Right for the Republic (UDR) members, warned that a CBDC could allow authorities to track and freeze citizens' funds, drawing comparisons to China's digital yuan. Lawmakers also argued that a digital euro could destabilize the banking system by enabling direct transfers to the ECB, potentially triggering a "bank run" and concentrating financial power in a single institution.

The ECB's digital euro project, which began in November 2023, is projected to cost €1.3 billion ($1.5 billion) through 2029, with annual operating expenses estimated at €320 million ($369 million), the Decrypt article said. If the European Parliament approves the necessary regulations by 2026, a pilot phase could commence in mid-2027, followed by a full rollout in 2029. Meanwhile, France's pro-crypto agenda includes advocating for a Bitcoin reserve, supporting domestic crypto growth, and promoting stablecoins as alternatives to the ECB's CBDC.

The debate over CBDCs intersects with the broader rise of stablecoins, which are increasingly competing with central bank projects. JPMorgan analysts noted in a recent TradingView article that Circle's USDC stablecoin has outpaced Tether's USDT in onchain growth and market capitalization, driven by regulatory compliance and institutional adoption. USDC's market cap grew 72% year-to-date, compared to USDT's 32%, as the former benefits from MiCA regulation in Europe and integrations with payment networks like Visa and Mastercard. Tether, the largest stablecoin issuer, reported annual profits exceeding $10 billion as of September 2025, with $135 billion in U.S. Treasury holdings and $10 billion in Bitcoin reserves, according to a Yahoo Finance report. The firm also announced plans to launch a new U.S.-focused stablecoin, USAT, in collaboration with Anchorage Digital.

Globally, CBDC development is advancing across multiple regions. Hong Kong's e-HKD project completed its second pilot phase in 2025, with plans for a 2026 rollout. The project, part of a broader "Digital HKD Plus" initiative, aims to establish tokenization standards for programmable digital currencies. Meanwhile, the U.S. has banned CBDCs domestically under an executive order, though it has embraced stablecoins through legislation like the GENIUS Act, the Decrypt article noted.

The ECB's digital euro and the growing influence of stablecoins highlight a pivotal moment in the evolution of global finance, balancing innovation with concerns over privacy, sovereignty, and systemic risk.