France Steps Up Scrutiny of AML Compliance at Crypto Firms

France’s banking supervisor is intensifying on-site anti–money laundering (AML) checks at cryptocurrency firms as it decides which of the country’s more than 100 registered platforms will qualify for EU–wide authorization in the coming months, Bloomberg reported.

The nation’s prudential supervision and resolution authority, known as ACPR, has been conducting inspections at dozens of exchanges since late last year, focusing on firms registered as prestataires de services sur actifs numériques (PSANs). The reviews test how effectively companies implement AML and counter-terrorist financing controls, Bloomberg said, citing individuals with knowledge of the matter.

Binance and Coinhouse are among the platforms currently facing greater scrutiny, according to the report. Binance, the world’s largest crypto exchange, was asked last year to strengthen compliance and risk controls, including by bolstering staffing and IT systems.

The stepped-up oversight comes as EU officials wrangle over how to coordinate enforcement under the bloc’s new Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) regime, which fully took effect this year. France, Austria and Italy have urged the EU’s markets watchdog to directly supervise major crypto groups and tighten rules amid uneven national implementation.

Findings from the ACPR inspections are shared with France’s Financial Markets Authority (AMF), which then determines whether a firm receives a MiCA authorization from France that would grant “passport” rights to offer services across the economic bloc. By contrast, failures to remedy shortcomings identified by ACPR can trigger sanctions or jeopardize MiCA licensing.

French PSANs have until June 30, 2026 to secure the MiCA permit, the news outlet said. To date, approvals have gone to a handful of firms, including fintech Deblock, crypto company GOin, bitcoin savings app Bitstack, and CACEIS, the custody arm of Crédit Agricole.