The 42-year-old added that a presidential campaign — which he is already laying the groundwork for ahead of the 2027 contest — could be the right avenue for such a discussion.
A 2023 senatorial report estimated that illegal drug trafficking in France is worth between €3.5 and €6 billion yearly, and that most of this revenue comes from “small daily purchases using small banknotes.” The French state only recovers a few million euros of that amount each year, Darmanin said, adding that other forms of payment —included cryptocurrency — are easier for investigators to track.
The right-leaning justice minister, who spent years as interior minister before taking on his new role last December, has long advocated tough-on-crime policies. In the same RTL interview, he also backed the use of facial recognition technology in public spaces to identify individuals wanted by the police.
