France's Bpifrance to Invest €25 Million in Local Crypto and Blockchain Projects

On March 27, Bpifrance, the French state-owned bank, announced plans to invest €25 million ($27 million) in cryptocurrencies to support local crypto and blockchain projects. This initiative, backed by the French Ministry of Economy and Finance, aims to bolster emerging technologies within France, focusing on decentralized finance (DeFi), staking, tokenization, and artificial intelligence. Bpifrance has been supporting the blockchain sector for a decade, having invested over €150 million ($162 million), including early support for Ledger in 2014. The bank began testing token investments in 2022, including a deal with DeFi lending platform Morpho. This investment seeks to strengthen France's competitiveness in the digital assets field, especially as the US accelerates its crypto strategy.