France's far-right National Rally unexpectedly warms to Bitcoin after years of opposition

Key Takeaways

• France's far-right National Rally party proposed using surplus nuclear electricity for Bitcoin mining, signaling a major policy shift.
• The initiative suggests growing political support for crypto despite prior opposition from party leaders.

France’s main far-right party, the National Rally (Rassemblement National, RN), long known for its skepticism toward crypto, is showing a new stance as its lawmakers join those from the Union of the Rights for the Republic (UDR) to back a proposal to use surplus nuclear energy for Bitcoin mining, according to a recent report from Le Point.

The proposal, filed by 77 members of the two parties on July 11, isn’t drawing attention for its chance of success, but for the change in tone from a bloc that once pushed for an outright ban on digital assets.

From money laundering fears to energy opportunity

The far-right’s turn toward crypto started earlier this year during parliamentary debates on drug trafficking. RN’s Aurélien Lopez-Liguori, who leads the digital sovereignty study group, became focused on provisions concerning crypto mixers linked to money laundering.

As he examined further, he began to see potential in repurposing excess electricity, especially from nuclear plants, for Bitcoin mining.

The proposal aims to harness surplus energy for profit. According to the Association for the Development of Digital Assets, a well-known French crypto industry group, mining operations could generate $100-150 million annually per gigawatt of capacity.

RN’s leader, Marine Le Pen, who called for banning crypto in 2016, even floated the idea publicly during her March visit to the Flamanville nuclear power plant.

In June, Lopez-Liguori pushed a related amendment, but his first shot was shut down. He came back with a full bill last month.

The lawmaker is proposing a five-year pilot project aimed at improving energy efficiency at state utility EDF. The goal isn’t to create a national Bitcoin reserve, but to follow Norway’s model, even as Norway has recently retreated from crypto mining.

RN remains divided, while Zemmour’s party embraces Bitcoin

Still, not everyone in the RN is on board. Some senior figures remain wary of embracing an asset class they view as unstable and ideologically incompatible with the party’s vision of state-controlled monetary sovereignty.

One anonymous party official dismissed crypto as “hot air,” warning of the political risks. Others are frustrated by what they see as premature messaging and internal divisions playing out in public.

In contrast, another known far-right party, led by Éric Zemmour, has leaned fully into the Bitcoin narrative. His close adviser Sarah Knafo delivered a speech at the European Parliament last December in which she lauded the promise of decentralized finance and accused the European Central Bank of authoritarian overreach.

The speech was applauded by El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele and earned Knafo an invitation to the “Crypto Ball” in Washington this January, held just before Trump’s inauguration.