France's Crypto Registry Plan Has Holders Seeing Red—and Reporting It 🇫🇷

France's National Assembly Finance Committee adopted amendment I-CF821 on Friday, advancing a proposal that would require individuals to declare crypto holdings of €100,000 ($112,000) or more to tax authorities, with non-compliance punishable by fines of up to €10,000 ($11,000). The reporting threshold would be assessed based on the value of self-custody wallets at the end of the calendar year, and the rule would be added to France's general tax code if enacted, though the amendment is not yet law and remains subject to change.

The proposal cites underreporting of crypto ownership and the use of digital assets in fraud as motivation. Self-custody wallets, in which holders control their own private keys rather than relying on centralized exchanges, would fall under the new disclosure requirement.

The amendment has drawn sharp criticism from privacy advocates and crypto industry figures. Harry Halpin, CEO of privacy infrastructure Nym, called the plan "a terrible idea," pointing to a recent case in which a French tax agent was accused of selling data from the country's tax authority to criminals. "In the future, criminals will use chain analytics and other AI surveillance," Halpin told Decrypt, adding that "the only solution to defend your data and cryptocurrency is to use shielded cryptocurrency like Zcash and actually private VPNs." He said France should be "held accountable" to victims of crypto kidnappings.

Rand Hindi, founder of privacy protocol Zama, wrote on X that "if you live in France and hold crypto, leave," and urged those who cannot relocate to "hire personal security for you and your family." The pushback comes amid a string of high-profile crypto-related crimes in France, including the 2025 kidnapping of Ledger co-founder David Balland and his wife from their home, an incident that has fueled concerns over physical security risks faced by known crypto holders.

The Finance Committee's adoption of the amendment marks a procedural step, and the measure would still require further legislative action before becoming binding law.