FRANCE Trends and Developments Contributed by: Samuel Sauphanor, Alexandra Szekely, Timothée de Saint Viance and Benoit Barré, Le 16 Law
tins ), which is France’s financial intelligence unit and aims to prevent money laundering and terrorism financing. Judicial and prosecutorial tools The PNF ( Parquet National Financier ), which was established in 2013, specialises in complex financial crime cases involving corruption, tax fraud and market manipulation, often with inter - national dimensions. Asset confiscation and recovery are managed by the State’s AGRASC ( Agence de gestion et de recouvrement des avoirs saisis et confisqués ) which oversees the execution of confiscation sentences and sells seized assets on behalf of the French State for the benefit of victims or associations. Legislative measures France has enacted several pivotal laws to com - bat corruption and fraud. The Sapin II Law (2016) was a landmark reform introducing enhanced compliance requirements, whistle-blower protections and investigatory powers. It also introduced the CJIP ( Convention Judiciaire d’Intérêt Public ), a form of deferred prosecution agreement that allows corporations to settle certain criminal matters without trial. Since its adoption, the PNF has entered into 20 CJIPs over ten years. To further strengthen protections, Law No 2022- 401 (Loi Waserman) improved safeguards for whistle-blowers and aligned French legislation with EU directives on whistle-blower protection. France has also transposed several EU laws, including the Sixth Anti-Money Laundering Directive, reinforcing cross-border co-operation and extending liability to legal entities, particu -
larly in cases involving crypto-assets and com - plex international transactions. Crypto-asset fraud France has also played a leading role in the fight against crypto-asset fraud. Law No 2019- 486 (the “PACTE Law” ) established a dedicated legal regime for digital assets in France, making it one of the first EU countries to offer a struc - tured approach to crypto-regulation. Beyond the introduction of legal definitions for “tokens” and “digital assets” in the French Monetary and Financial Code (Article L54-10-1), the French legal framework clarifies the legal status of digi - tal asset service providers (PSANs), including a set of obligations ranging from registration or licensing requirements to strict AML/CFT obli - gations (eg, KYC from EUR0), under the supervi - sion of the French Market Authority (the “AMF” ). At an EU level, the legal status for crypto-asset service providers (CASPs) introduced by Reg - ulation (EU) 2023/1114 on Markets in Crypto- Assets (the “MiCA Regulation” ) has been large - ly influenced by the French legal framework, although the EU Regulation includes notable differences such as an enhanced registration requirement, harmonised obligations across all types of CASPs or EU-wide passporting rights for licensed CASPs. In terms of the implementation of the MiCA Regulation in France, there is a transition period and grandfathering exception. Article 143(3) of the MiCA Regulation provides for a transition - al regime for CASPs that were already legally authorised under national law before the appli - cation date of the MiCA Regulation. In France, all PSANs registered before 30 December 2024 (simple or enhanced registration as from 1 January 2024), benefit from the grandfather - ing exception and may operate without a MiCA
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