Digital Payments & Fintech · France
Digital Payments & Fintech - France
France operates a mature, fully in-force licensing regime for digital payments and fintech, built on EU frameworks transposed into the Code monétaire et financier and administered chiefly by the ACPR. Clear authorisation pathways exist for payment institutions, e-money institutions, account-information/payment-initiation providers under PSD2 open banking, and—via the AMF—crypto-asset service providers under MiCA. Recent reforms tighten BNPL (reclassified as consumer credit from late 2026) and mandate free, verified SEPA instant transfers.
The ACPR authorises payment institutions (établissements de paiement), verifying legal form, initial/prudential capital, governance and fit-and-proper management; a lighter 'agrément limité' regime exists for domestic firms below EUR 3m monthly payment volume (no EU passport). Statutory decision time is 3 months from a complete file.
Issuance of electronic money requires authorisation as an établissement de monnaie électronique (EMI) from the ACPR, under the EU e-money framework transposed into the Code monétaire et financier, with its own capital and safeguarding requirements.
France applies PSD2 directly: account-information service providers (AISP) and payment-initiation service providers (PISP) are registered/authorised by the ACPR, with mandatory secure access (APIs) to bank accounts. The EU is transitioning toward PSD3/PSR.
Under EU Instant Payments Regulation 2024/886, French banks must offer SEPA instant transfers (virement SEPA instantané) at no higher price than standard transfers since 9 Jan 2025, free across the eurozone since 9 Oct 2025, with mandatory payee/IBAN verification; the ACPR supervises compliance.
MiCA applies to CASPs since 30 Dec 2024, transposed via Ordinance 2024-936 and Decree 2025-169; the AMF licenses CASPs (trading, custody, exchange) while the ACPR oversees ART/EMT (stablecoin) issuers. France's legacy PSAN registrants may operate until the transitional period ends 1 July 2026.
Ordinance of 3 Sept 2025 transposing EU Consumer Credit Directive 2023/2225 reclassifies split/deferred payments as consumer credit from 20 Nov 2026, imposing pre-contractual information, creditworthiness/affordability checks and advertising rules even on short, interest-free instalments.
Machine-assisted translation · verified 5/23/2026 · orientation, not legal advice. English version →