Compagnie Bancaire
The Compagnie Bancaire was a French bank, formed from 1946 onwards by successive ventures and acquisitions led by former civil servant. It innovated in retail financial services such as consumer credit. It came under the control of Paribas in the late 1960s and was eventually acquired by it in 1998, subsequently becoming part of BNP Paribas.
Union Financière d'Entreprises Françaises et Étrangères
In September 1946, Fouchier left his senior civil servant position at the Direction du Trésor to create the Union Financière d'Entreprises Françaises et Étrangères (UFEFE,Union Française des Banques
The merged UFEFE-BFA entity renamed in 1950 as Union Française des Banques. As a result of the merger, the UFB included Banque Worms, the Crédit du Nord, Union des Mines, Crédit Lyonnais, Société Générale, Banque de Paris et des Pays-Bas and Banque de l'Indochine among its shareholders.From that platform, Fouchier proceeded with the establishment of specialized ventures in emerging segments of the French financial services market:
- In 1951, the Union de Crédit pour le Bâtiment, a residential mortgage credit company formed in partnership with the Crédit Foncier de France;
- In 1953, the Crédit à l'équipement électro-ménager, a consumer credit firm intended to serve French households that were then starting to purchase domestic appliances in large numbers;
- In 1954, the Compagnie Française d’Épargne et de Crédit ), a long-term mortgage credit formed in partnership with the Fédération du Bâtiment et des compagnies d'assurance;
- In 1956, the Société d'Études et de Gestion des Centres d’Équipement, in partnership with the Fédération parisienne du Bâtiment et des banques for the management of property assets such as shopping malls.
Compagnie Bancaire
In 1970, the Compagnie Bancaire took over the Compagnie pour le Financement de l'Industrie du Commerce et de l'Agriculture, which made loans for the purchase of cars, trucks, and agricultural vehicles.
In July 1973, it established a life insurance company branded Cardif which met major commercial success and was floated on the Paris Stock Exchange in 1990.
In 1984, it established Cortal, a retail brokerage. In 1994, Cortal developed its product offering by providing a wide choice of mutual funds from multiple providers, a first in Continental Europe.
Following the election of François Mitterrand in 1981, the Compagnie Bancaire escaped nationalization, unlike its shareholder Paribas which was nationalized on. In 1985, Cetelem acquired Findomestic in Italy and subsequently expanded further into Portugal, the United Kingdom, and Germany. Cortal was granted a banking license and pioneered the concept of bank without physical branches. In 1989, Arval developed long-term leasing and fleet management services for corporate clients. By the 1990s, the contribution from the Compagnie Bancaire represented nearly a fifth of Paribas's overall profits.