Matignon tightens checks on foreign purchases of 'sensitive' firms
Published on 03/08/2026 - 13:06 GMT+2 Matignon has decided to clamp down. In a decree published on Sunday 2 August (source in French), Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu has...
Published on 03/08/2026 - 13:06 GMT+2
Matignon has decided to clamp down. In a decree published on Sunday 2 August (source in French), Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu has strengthened state control over the purchase, by foreign investors, of companies in sensitive sectors.
Until now, the Economy Ministry had the power to scrutinise deals when a non-European investor acquired 25% or more of a French company listed on a regulated market outside the European Union. "From now on, any shareholding of at least 10% by a non-European investor in a French company listed on a regulated market outside the European Union will have to be authorised by the state", the prime minister wrote on X.
"Protecting our strategic companies means protecting our sovereignty. Our responsibility is twofold: to promote the development of our companies while safeguarding our strategic interests", Sébastien Lecornu said.
The aim of this decision is to "guard against opportunistic non-European shareholdings in French companies listed outside the EU that may pose threats to national security", the prime minister's office said in a statement.
"In order not to unduly impair companies' ability to raise funds on the markets, this enhanced screening will be carried out under an accelerated procedure", the text also states.
Investors will now have to notify their transaction to the Directorate General of the Treasury. The economy minister will then have ten days to decide whether it requires an in-depth review.
"Protecting our companies is not enough"
The decree is in line with several recommendations made in a parliamentary report that called for a "radical change of stance" in order to strengthen the country's economic security. Written by Christophe Plassard (Horizons MP for Charente-Maritime), Jean-Louis Thiériot (Republican Right MP for Seine-et-Marne) and Charles Rodwell (Ensemble pour la République MP for Yvelines), the report stressed that the French system needed to be reinforced at a time when foreign investments "are taking on greater prominence given the geopolitical context".
"France has one of the most robust foreign investment screening regimes in Europe. But our sovereignty also depends on our ability to finance our strategic companies", Jean-Louis Thiériot said on X (source in French). "Protecting our companies is not enough. We also need to give them the means to grow."
In the balance of power between France and investors, Christophe Plassard is calling for the country to "shed its naivety". "We need to be on the defensive if our capital and our companies come under attack. But we also have to be on the offensive and clear-eyed about our ability to retain our know-how", the MP told France 24 (source in French).
