The Trésor public () is the national administration of the
Treasury
A treasury is either
*A government department related to finance and taxation, a finance ministry; in a business context, corporate treasury.
*A place or location where treasure, such as currency or precious items are kept. These can be ...
in
France
France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
. It is headed by the general directorate of public finances (''Direction générale des finances publiques'') in the
Ministry of the Economy, Finance and Industry.
The ''Trésor Public'' is responsible for:
* the accountancy of the state;
* the control and help in the accountancy of public administrations and local governments;
* the perception of direct
tax
A tax is a mandatory financial charge or levy imposed on an individual or legal entity by a governmental organization to support government spending and public expenditures collectively or to regulate and reduce negative externalities. Tax co ...
es such as the
income tax
An income tax is a tax imposed on individuals or entities (taxpayers) in respect of the income or profits earned by them (commonly called taxable income). Income tax generally is computed as the product of a tax rate times the taxable income. Tax ...
(the computation of those taxes is vested in a separate administration).
History
Its origins can be traced back to King of France
Philip Augustus
Philip II (21 August 1165 – 14 July 1223), also known as Philip Augustus (), was King of France from 1180 to 1223. His predecessors had been known as kings of the Franks (Latin: ''rex Francorum''), but from 1190 onward, Philip became the firs ...
(reigned from 1165 to 1223), who transformed France into the most prosperous and powerful country in Europe. His actions brought financial stability to his country. However, the modern Treasury came into being under the leadership of superintendents of finance such as
Colbert, and above all with Count Mollien in the 19th century. It accompanied and embodied the emergence of the modern bureaucratic state.
From January 1806 to 1814, under Emperor
Napoleon
Napoleon Bonaparte (born Napoleone di Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French general and statesman who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led Military career ...
, Mollien was Minister of the Treasury (succeeding
Barbé-Marbois after the bankruptcy of the Négociants réunis) and Napoleon's principal financial adviser. Mollien set up the ''Caisse de service'', responsible for overseeing the movement of funds.
Until the 2012 reform, the Treasury was headed in each
department by the Treasurer-Paymaster General (''Trésorier-Payeur Général''), a high-ranking official. In
Paris
Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...
, the function used to be divided into the Paymaster General of the Treasury (''Payeur Général du Trésor''), and the Receiver General of the Finances (''Receveur Général des Finances''). Each
region
In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as areas, zones, lands or territories, are portions of the Earth's surface that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and ...
had its own Treasurer-Paymaster General, the one for the ''département'' of the ''région'' ''
préfecture''. However, following the 2012 reform, the system has been greatly simplified, and relevant administrations for taxes (
Direction générale des impôts) and public accounts (
Direction générale de la comptabilité publique) were merged into the general directorate of public finances (
Direction générale de finances publiques). During this process, redundant fiscal and financial functions were consolidated into a single departamental or regional director for public finances (Directeur département ou régional des finances publiques).
The Trésor also runs a
certificate authority
In cryptography, a certificate authority or certification authority (CA) is an entity that stores, signs, and issues digital certificates. A digital certificate certifies the ownership of a public key by the named subject of the certificate. Thi ...
. In December 2013 it was revealed that it issued fake certificates impersonating
Google
Google LLC (, ) is an American multinational corporation and technology company focusing on online advertising, search engine technology, cloud computing, computer software, quantum computing, e-commerce, consumer electronics, and artificial ...
in order to facilitate spying on French government employees via
man-in-the-middle attack
In cryptography and computer security, a man-in-the-middle (MITM) attack, or on-path attack, is a cyberattack where the attacker secretly relays and possibly alters the communications between two parties who believe that they are directly communi ...
s.
The Trésor public is different from the
Direction générale du Trésor (or French Treasury), which is the administration in charge of French State's debt and cash management (through the
Agence France Trésor), and contributes to financial sector and economy financing regulation, economic policy and international economic and financial negotiations.
[William G. Andrews, Stanley Hoffmann - Fifth Republic at Twenty, The 0791494950- 1980 Page 257 As the bureaucratic agent and voice of the minister of finance, its influence and authority rest on the desire and ability of the minister of finance to exercise its power. The Trésor manages the finances of the central government, but that power enables it to manipulate the economy as well. Government departments account for a substantial portion of total investment and the Trésor exerts power over public investment." Moreover, the Trésor is a financial intermediary intervening in the ...]
See also
*
DigiNotar
*
Global surveillance disclosures (2013–present)
*
Tailored Access Operations
References
External links
Trésor public websitein French
Directorate General of Public Finances websitein French
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tresor Public
Government of France
Ministry of Finance (France)