BNP Paribas and BPCE have announced a strategic partnership aimed at acquiring technology for processing payments for cardholders and merchants.

This collaboration is poised to handle 17 billion transactions annually, covering all card payments from BNP Paribas and Groupe BPCE in Europe, with ambitions to extend services to other banks. The initiative aims to establish the partnership as the leading payment processor in France and one of the top three in Europe.

This partnership is designed to address ongoing market changes, particularly the digitalisation of payment systems, the virtualisation of debit cards, and the promotion of instantaneous transactions. The project builds on the existing collaboration between BNP Paribas and BPCE within Partecis, a joint venture focused on developing payment processing software.

The new processor will feature a technological platform capable of integrating the latest standards in payment processing. This includes operations, back-office activities, and development, while accommodating the increasing use of digital payments, mobile transactions, and e-commerce. It will also leverage innovations from domestic and international schemes such as Carte Bancaire, Visa, Mastercard, and EPI/Wero.

The partnership envisions extending these services to other banking institutions, further solidifying its market position.

An exclusive agreement between BNP Paribas and BPCE will establish a joint venture to develop a target business model. This model aims to accelerate innovation in payments and enhance the quality of services offered to customers, including those in the Banque Populaire and Caisse d’Epargne networks.

Nicolas Namias, CEO of BPCE, stated, “The first generation of our collaboration in payments with BNP Paribas was a great success. With this new industrial partnership project, in line with our next strategic plan, we are taking an important step towards accelerating innovation in payments in the coming years.”

Jean-Laurent Bonnafé, Director and CEO of BNP Paribas, added, “Payment systems are an essential component of the bank’s relationship with its customers. Our ambition for this processor is to create an efficient and scalable device across all our European locations. This joint European platform project with Groupe BPCE is crucial for accelerating our development in payment systems.”