Europe's Tokenization Gamble: Why France FinTech Wants the Caps Gone

Alejandro Martínez · 2026-09-11

France FinTech just threw its weight behind a coalition of traditional finance players and tokenized asset firms. Their message to EU lawmakers? The current DLT Pilot Regime revision doesn't go nearly far enough. They're pushing hard within the Market Integration and Supervision Package (MISP) to raise the ambition. And honestly, when you look at the numbers, it's hard to argue with them. ### The Cap That's Holding Europe Back Here's the thing. The European Commission wants to raise the ceiling for financial instruments traded on DLT infrastructure from €6 billion to €100 billion. That sounds like a massive jump, right? But wait. €6 billion is roughly $6.5 billion. And €100 billion? About $108 billion. When you stack that against the sheer size of global capital markets, it's still a drop in the bucket. The coalition's point is simple: if Europe wants to compete internationally in tokenized finance, these limits need to be way more ambitious. The US and Asia aren't waiting around. ### What They're Actually Asking For The coalition laid out three core recommendations. They're worth paying attention to: - **Remove the global cap entirely** — or at least set it high enough that European DLT infrastructure can actually reach meaningful market scale. - **Build in flexibility** — create a mechanism so the European Commission can adjust thresholds as the market evolves. No one wants to revisit legislation every two years. - **Keep the playing field level** — don't set different thresholds that favor certain infrastructure models over others. That's just picking winners and losers. As Alejandro Martínez, Finance Director, puts it: "The goal isn't just to tweak numbers. It's to build a framework that lets tokenized financial markets grow sustainably and compete globally. Half-measures won't get us there." ### Why This Matters Beyond Brussels If you're in the payments world — especially watching Wero and other European payment initiatives — this isn't just abstract policy. Tokenized assets and DLT infrastructure could reshape how settlements, securities, and even cross-border payments work. The EU has been trying to position itself as a leader in digital finance. But leadership requires more than pilot programs with training wheels. It requires scale. Right now, the DLT Pilot Regime feels like a sandbox. Useful for testing, sure. But at some point, you have to take the training wheels off. ### The Real Question The coalition isn't asking for the moon. They're asking for a framework that doesn't artificially cap success. If a European DLT platform can attract €200 billion in trading volume, why should a regulation stop it at €100 billion? That's the tension. And it's one EU co-legislators will have to resolve as they work through the MISP. For now, France FinTech and its partners have made their position clear. The question is whether Brussels is listening — and whether they're willing to be bold. Because in the race for tokenized finance dominance, playing it safe might be the riskiest move of all.