Banking Law

Whether it’s a loan, a fraud, or a seizure, banking law often enters our lives without warning. Through this blog, we help you better understand your rights when dealing with financial institutions, with clear, accessible articles grounded in the real disputes faced by individuals and professionals alike.

Over-Indebtedness, Moratorium and Loan Acceleration: The Formal Notice Must Precisely Identify the Debt Claimed (Cass. civ. 1re, 25 March 2026, No. 24-20.953)

You benefited from an over-indebtedness plan including a moratorium on the repayment of your loans, and at the end of the moratorium the bank administratively ...

Self-Build House Loans and Unfair Deferred Amortisation Clauses: A Clause Conditional on an Acceptance Report Without Reservations Is Unfair (Cass. civ. 1re, 17 December 2025, No. 24-12.411)

You had your house built with a dedicated home loan, and you have found, with some bitterness, that the bank keeps applying the pre-financing phase ...

Experienced Guarantor and Duty to Warn: The French Supreme Court Restates a Strict but Debatable Principle (Cass. com., 26 November 2025, No. 24-18.757)

You are a company director and you signed a guarantee (cautionnement) securing a loan granted to your business. When difficulties arose and the bank turned ...

Interest-Only Loan and Switch-to-Repayment Clause: The Bank Must Inform the Borrower of the Precise Criteria From Subscription (Cass. civ. 1re, 25 March 2026, No. 24-16.108)

You took out an interest-only (in fine) mortgage backed by life insurance policies. The bank explained to you that, at a certain anniversary of the ...

In Fine Loan and Duty to Warn: Limitation Runs Only from the Loan’s Due Date (Cass. com., 15 April 2026, No. 25-11.856)

More than fifteen years ago, you took out an in fine loan backed by a life insurance policy, thinking that the funds invested would make ...

Disproportionate Guarantee and Annual Information: Two Requirements Restated by the French Supreme Court (Cass. com., 11 March 2026, No. 24-18.830)

You stood surety for your company’s loan, and the bank is now demanding payment of a debt that far exceeds your means. You feel that ...

Apparent Anomaly and Romance Fraud: €95,294 in Transfers to Belgium Are Not Enough (Cass. com., 25 March 2026, No. 24-18.093)

A widowed retiree transferred, over two months, more than €95,000 to accounts in Belgium, believing she was paying costs needed to close out a life ...

Crypto-Asset Investment: The Bank, as a Mere PSP, Has No Duty to Warn (Cass. com., 25 March 2026, No. 25-10.353)

You have lost your savings on a crypto-asset platform and you wonder whether your bank, which let your transfers go through without a word, can ...

Right to an Account and Closure: Why Signing a New Agreement Returns the Bank’s Freedom (CA Paris, 11 March 2026, No. 25/02587)

You obtained your bank account through the right to an account procedure (droit au compte); a few months or years later, your bank offers you ...

“Credit Reserve” Requalified as Separate Personal Loans: Total Forfeiture of the Right to Interest (CA Rouen, 19 February 2026, No. 24/04213)

Are you repaying a “credit reserve” (crédit en réserve), a “flexible credit” or a “rechargeable loan” where each drawdown gave rise to its own amortisation ...

Bank Identity Fraud and Refund: Strong Authentication Is Not Enough to Prove the Customer’s Consent (Paris Court of Appeal, Pôle 4 Chamber 9 A, 2 April 2026, No. RG 25/00442)

You received a text message from Chronopost asking you to pay a few cents to release a parcel. Then a telephone call from a so-called ...

Independent Guarantee under Article 2321 of the Civil Code: Manifest Abuse, Object and Administrative Jurisdiction (Cass. com., 1 April 2026, No. 24-13.364, Published in the Bulletin)

You have given an independent guarantee (garantie autonome) as part of a complex commercial contract. The beneficiary calls it for a colossal sum, in a ...