La Banque Postale, France’s mighty postal
bank, has underlined its intention to push even further into
domestic retail financial services with a major new advertising
campaign. The banking unit, facing growing competition in France,
estimates that 90 percent of French consumers aged between 25 and
49 will see the new campaign.
In the middle of a changing French retail banking market, La Banque
Postale, the 12,000-branch-strong banking arm of the French post
office, has rolled out a major new advertising campaign built
around the notion of ‘a new way of banking’ for France.
Go deeper with GlobalData
Focusing on its extensive distribution
capabilities, the established role of the French post office in
local communities and French society, and a strong customer service
ethos, the aim of campaign is to resolutely position La Banque
Postale as a serious banking player. 
The bank has the largest branch network in
France, at 11,900 units, but has upped its game in terms of online
distribution (it says it has 2.5 million online customers out of
9.53 million in all). It also has 23 dedicated ‘financial centres’
in its network outside of the more traditional postal network and
5,119 ATMs.
According to research from RBI for
the fiscal year 2008, La Banque Postale ranks first in France in
terms of branches but fourth in terms of retail deposits (France
only) and seventh in terms of retail loans (see France country
survey, RBI 610). Its group net income fell 44 percent in 2008
to €302 million ($412 million).
The division has been beefing itself up over
the past 12 months in the face of a deregulating French banking
market and increasingly aggressive ‘megabrands’ such as Crédit
Agricole and BNP Paribas; it also now has to deal with the new
French giant being created by the merger of Groupe Caisse d’Epargne
and Banque Populaire.
How well do you really know your competitors?
Access the most comprehensive Company Profiles on the market, powered by GlobalData. Save hours of research. Gain competitive edge.
Thank you!
Your download email will arrive shortly
Not ready to buy yet? Download a free sample
We are confident about the unique quality of our Company Profiles. However, we want you to make the most beneficial decision for your business, so we offer a free sample that you can download by submitting the below form
By GlobalDataThe advertising campaign is being rolled out
in two stages, across May and June, right across the country and on
all media platforms including the internet and prime-time
television. The over-arching use of flowers right across in the
campaign is, says the group, an attempt to illustrate the
“serenity, simplicity and transparency” of La Banque Postale, as
well as its ‘new way’ of banking.
From 3 to 14 May, the campaign was relayed on
TV, magazines, billboards and on the internet, and the bank says it
has estimated that nearly 90 percent of French consumers aged
between 25 and 49 were exposed to it. From 11 May to 14 June, an
extra round of posters and commercials will be launched,
emphasising how the bank offers customers a ‘new way of living’ and
banking.
The media campaign, created by UK agency
M&C Saatchi, is being complemented by in-branch displays in
post offices which continue with the same imagery and theme of the
television and print ads.
A changing regulatory landscape in France, new
consumer banking strategies from the established players and new
entrants such as La Banque Postale are injecting a bit of fizz into
the staid French retail banking industry.
Crédit Agricole is rolling out a new consumer
finance unit, for example, and La Banque Postale itself is
targeting late 2009 as the start date for a proposed consumer
credit joint venture with Société Générale. The service will
complement the postal bank’s fledgling mortgage business, which saw
outstanding volumes rise by 15.1 percent in 2008 to €7.7
billion.
BNP Paribas, which has one of the smaller
branch networks, is also refocusing on its domestic market more in
2009. In its first-quarter earnings report, it said outstanding
deposits rose 7.1 percent compared to the same period a year
earlier due in particular to the effects of the Livret A
account.
Tax-free Livret A savings accounts, held by
over 45 million French consumers, were the preserve of La Banque
Postale and Caisse d’Epargne until the start of 2009, when all
banks were able to sell the product. French banks have also been
ordered to make account switching much simpler to improve
competition: they now have up to two weeks to move accounts from
one institution to another.
La Banque Postale, France’s mighty postal
bank, has underlined its intention to push even further into
domestic retail financial services with a major new advertising
campaign. The banking unit, facing growing competition in France,
estimates that 90 percent of French consumers aged between 25 and
49 will see the new campaign.
In the middle of a changing French retail banking market, La Banque
Postale, the 12,000-branch-strong banking arm of the French post
office, has rolled out a major new advertising campaign built
around the notion of ‘a new way of banking’ for France.
Focusing on its extensive distribution
capabilities, the established role of the French post office in
local communities and French society, and a strong customer service
ethos, the aim of campaign is to resolutely position La Banque
Postale as a serious banking player.
The bank has the largest branch network in
France, at 11,900 units, but has upped its game in terms of online
distribution (it says it has 2.5 million online customers out of
9.53 million in all). It also has 23 dedicated ‘financial centres’
in its network outside of the more traditional postal network and
5,119 ATMs.
According to research from RBI for
the fiscal year 2008, La Banque Postale ranks first in France in
terms of branches but fourth in terms of retail deposits (France
only) and seventh in terms of retail loans (see France country
survey, RBI 610). Its group net income fell 44 percent in 2008
to €302 million ($412 million).
The division has been beefing itself up over
the past 12 months in the face of a deregulating French banking
market and increasingly aggressive ‘megabrands’ such as Crédit
Agricole and BNP Paribas; it also now has to deal with the new
French giant being created by the merger of Groupe Caisse d’Epargne
and Banque Populaire.
The advertising campaign is being rolled out
in two stages, across May and June, right across the country and on
all media platforms including the internet and prime-time
television. The over-arching use of flowers right across in the
campaign is, says the group, an attempt to illustrate the
“serenity, simplicity and transparency” of La Banque Postale, as
well as its ‘new way’ of banking.
From 3 to 14 May, the campaign was relayed on
TV, magazines, billboards and on the internet, and the bank says it
has estimated that nearly 90 percent of French consumers aged
between 25 and 49 were exposed to it. From 11 May to 14 June, an
extra round of posters and commercials will be launched,
emphasising how the bank offers customers a ‘new way of living’ and
banking.
The media campaign, created by UK agency
M&C Saatchi, is being complemented by in-branch displays in
post offices which continue with the same imagery and theme of the
television and print ads.
A changing regulatory landscape in France, new
consumer banking strategies from the established players and new
entrants such as La Banque Postale are injecting a bit of fizz into
the staid French retail banking industry.
Crédit Agricole is rolling out a new consumer
finance unit, for example, and La Banque Postale itself is
targeting late 2009 as the start date for a proposed consumer
credit joint venture with Société Générale. The service will
complement the postal bank’s fledgling mortgage business, which saw
outstanding volumes rise by 15.1 percent in 2008 to €7.7
billion.
BNP Paribas, which has one of the smaller
branch networks, is also refocusing on its domestic market more in
2009. In its first-quarter earnings report, it said outstanding
deposits rose 7.1 percent compared to the same period a year
earlier due in particular to the effects of the Livret A
account.
Tax-free Livret A savings accounts, held by
over 45 million French consumers, were the preserve of La Banque
Postale and Caisse d’Epargne until the start of 2009, when all
banks were able to sell the product. French banks have also been
ordered to make account switching much simpler to improve
competition: they now have up to two weeks to move accounts from
one institution to another.
|
Performance |
||||||||
|
France – selected first quarter |
||||||||
|
Group net income (€m) |
French retail banking net income |
|||||||
|
Q109 |
Q408 |
Q108 |
Y-o-y % change |
Q109 |
Q408 |
Q108 |
Y-o-y % change |
|
|
BNP Paribas |
1,558 |
-1,366 |
1,981 |
-21.4 |
440 |
312 |
482 |
-8.7 |
|
Crédit Agricole |
427 |
n/d |
1,316 |
-67.5 |
303 |
270 |
350 |
-13.4 |
|
Société Générale |
-278 |
87 |
1,096 |
n/m |
216 |
290 |
306 |
-29.4 |
|
(1) retail banking refers to profits |
||||||||
