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France applies MiCA's tripartite crypto-asset taxonomy -- asset-referenced tokens, e-money tokens and other/utility crypto-assets -- as its operative classification framework, layered atop the PACTE Law's earlier ICO visa regime. The ACPR requires e-money token issuers, including SG-FORGE, Circle Internet Financial Europe and Schuman Financial, to hold electronic money institution authorisation and comply with MiCA Title IV, per ESMA's Interim MiCA EMT White Paper register. The PACTE-era AMF ICO visa regime continues to restrict eligible public offerings to utility tokens that do not qualify as financial instruments, though this claim's sourcing remains below the materiality-4 chase-protocol threshold and rests on a single trade-press anchor pending a stronger primary source. For instruments at the classification boundary, ESMA directs national competent authorities to apply a substance-over-form, three-criteria test to determine when a crypto-asset qualifies as a MiFID II transferable security and therefore falls outside MiCA's scope. NFTs -- crypto-assets that are unique and non-fungible with other crypto-assets -- are excluded from MiCA's scope under Article 2, per the regulation's own text.
The PACTE-era AMF ICO visa regime continues to restrict eligible public token offerings to utility tokens that do not qualify as financial instruments. This claim's materiality sits below the threshold that triggers the chase protocol for stronger sourcing, and it currently rests on a single trade-press anchor pending a stronger primary source; it is retained as Confirmed on the strength of that single anchor but flagged here as an area where a stronger citation would be useful.
At the classification boundary between MiCA-scoped crypto-assets and traditional securities law, ESMA directs national competent authorities, including the AMF, to apply a substance-over-form three-criteria test in determining when a given crypto-asset in fact qualifies as a MiFID II transferable security and therefore falls outside MiCA's scope entirely. This guideline, anchored to ESMA's own published text, gives the classification regime a degree of built-in flexibility to catch instruments that superficially resemble crypto-assets but function economically as securities.
Non-fungible tokens receive express treatment under the underlying statute: MiCA excludes crypto-assets that are unique and non-fungible with other crypto-assets from its scope entirely, per Article 2 of the regulation, an exclusion confirmed directly against the EUR-Lex statutory text.
Outlook
The classification taxonomy itself appears stable and unlikely to see near-term legislative change; the more active monitoring surface is likely to be case-by-case application, particularly at the security-token boundary where ESMA's substance-over-form test will continue to generate individual determinations as new token structures come to market, and in the ICO visa space where a stronger primary source for the utility-token eligibility rule would improve confidence beyond the current trade-press anchor.
no periodic updates on record for this sub-brief
Sources and findings (4)
- T1 · ESMAACPR — e-money token issuers (SG-FORGE, Circle Internet Financial Europe, Schuman Financial) to be authorised as electronic money institutions and comply with MiCA Title IVretrieved M5bindingin force
- T4 · The BlockAMF ICO visa regime (PACTE Law) — public offerings of utility tokens not qualifying as financial instrumentsretrieved M3bindingin force
- T1 · ESMAESMA — NCAs to apply a substance-over-form three-criteria test determining when a crypto-asset qualifies as a MiFID II transferable security outside MiCA scoperetrieved M4bindingin force
- T1 · EUR-LexMiCA (Regulation (EU) 2023/1114) — crypto-assets that are unique and non-fungible with other crypto-assets (NFTs) from its scope, per Article 2retrieved M3bindingin force