Born in 1980, Fontaine earned his international master title in 1997 and his grandmaster title in 2002. He was a professional chess player from 2002 to 2005, when he became a professional chess coach and director of the Cannes Chess Club. In 2004 Fontaine played on the French national team at the 36th Chess Olympiad. He also worked as a presenter for "Europe Échecs". He joined Agon Limited as chief of staff in August 2012, but resigned after the World Chess Championship 2013 due to disagreements with Andrew Paulson. He transferred his national federation to Monaco in 2016 and to Switzerland in 2018.