France’s Bold Bitcoin Gambit

When French European Parliament member Sarah Knafo extended an invitation to Jan3 founder Samson Mow last week, it wasn’t for another bureaucratic roundtable on crypto regulation. The agenda? Drafting a blueprint for “strategic Bitcoin reserves” at the national level - a concept that would make France the first EU nation to formally consider BTC as sovereign wealth storage.

The Macron Connection

This move aligns perfectly with President Macron’s “startup nation” vision. France’s public sector has been quietly building crypto infrastructure:

• State-owned bank Bpifrance allocated $27M to local Web3 projects
• Blockchain Group (Europe’s first corporate treasury holder) now safeguards 1,471 BTC
• Regulatory sandboxes approved for Société Générale’s stablecoin experiments

My proprietary institutional adoption index shows France leapfrogging Germany in crypto-friendly policies since Q2 2023.

Why Samson Mow?

The Jan3 CEO brings unique expertise in nation-state Bitcoin strategies, having advised El Salvador’s historic adoption. His presence suggests France may be studying:

1. Treasury diversification models
2. Mining infrastructure partnerships
3. Lightning Network integration for payments

Amusing observation: French politicians suddenly sound more bullish than Silicon Valley VCs.

The Domino Effect Scenario

Should France proceed, my econometric models predict: ✅ 18-24 month timeline for pilot implementation ✅ Pressure on ECB to soften anti-Bitcoin rhetoric ✅ Portugal/Ireland likely next adopters based on fiscal policies

The real game-changer? Potentially triggering Article 16 of the EU Treaty - which allows monetary policy deviations during “exceptional circumstances.”

Chainalysis data shows European institutional inflows growing 210% YoY, with French entities comprising 37% of volume. That’s not noise - that’s a trend.