Cannes Set To Become France’s Crypto Payments Capital By Summer 2025

Cannes, famous for its film festival and luxury shops, is preparing to become one of the first French cities to massively adopt cryptocurrencies. By summer 2025, nearly 90% of the businesses in the Azure City will accept crypto payments.

Cannes wants to become the French capital of crypto payment

The merchants of Cannes are about to experience a major transformation of their payment habits. 

According to Artem Shaginyan, strategy manager at Lunu Pay, the Cannes municipality aims to achieve a spectacular 90% adoption rate among local merchants by summer 2025. This initiative particularly targets attracting wealthy international clientele, especially during the prestigious Cannes Film Festival.

Mayor David Lisnard already launched the first concrete actions in February with the organization of training sessions for business owners. 

These training sessions will enable professionals to master the integration of crypto payment systems in their shops. The Rue d’Antibes, a famous shopping street in the city, is expected to be the first to massively adopt this technology.

“It is a strong signal. When a city like Cannes, world-renowned for its culture and commerce, starts integrating cryptocurrencies on a large scale, it shows that Web3 payments are no longer a niche“, highlights Artem Shaginyan. 

This strategy positions Cannes as a pioneer in crypto adoption by a major tourist destination.

A momentum spreading around the world

The Cannes initiative is part of a global movement of cryptocurrency adoption by municipalities. Lugano in Switzerland already accepts bitcoin for municipal taxes since December 2023. 

Colorado in the United States and Vancouver in Canada have also taken the step, while Panama City just announced acceptance of crypto for local taxes in April 2025.

In France, this trend is also confirmed. Toulouse stands out as a pioneer with its Tisséo transport network now accepting crypto payments for bus and metro tickets since March 2025. A recent study also reveals that 39% of French small and medium business leaders have already personally invested in cryptocurrencies.

This growing adoption reflects an evolution in consumption habits and a desire from cities to remain competitive on the international stage. For Cannes, the challenge is twofold: modernize its commercial ecosystem while attracting a tech-savvy clientele with strong purchasing power.

The Cannes initiative could mark a decisive turning point in crypto adoption in France. If the experience proves successful, other French tourist cities could quickly follow this example, thus accelerating the democratization of crypto payments in the Hexagon.