With its new strategic plan, La Banque Postale is embarking on a new stage in its development, drawing in particular on a strong brand reflecting its citizen identity and a base of more than 20 million customers.
With the support of the La Poste Network, La Banque Postale is rooted in the regions
La Banque Postale stands out for its physical presence throughout the country. It relies on the 17,000 contact points of the La Poste Network (post offices, service points in partnership with local authorities and retailers, etc.), which guarantee physical access to La Banque Postale’s products and services. This unique postal network, which receives 1 million customers daily, combined with a website visited daily by 3 million users, enables the Bank to ‘capture’ the traffic necessary for its strategic development.
Efforts to modernise the post offices (2,600 renovations over the past five years) will be continued with a sustained investment policy (300 to 400 renovated offices per year) and experimentation with new formats.
La Poste hosts 501 of the 1,000 public service houses created throughout France to promote access to public services for all. They provide, in the same location, La Poste’s services and access to online partner services (Employment Division, Medical Insurance, CAF, Pension Insurance, MSA and GRDF). In an increasingly connected world, the presence of a physical and human network is an asset. In addition, the Group has committed to the digital inclusion of its customers with 300 dedicated post offices.
Leading bank lender for local authorities and healthcare players
La Banque Postale is the leading lender to local communities and public hospitals. It provided them with unfailing financial support during the health crisis: €5.7 billion in loans granted to public hospitals and local authorities. To deal with immediate cash needs, an envelope of €600 million in zero-rate loans was also released.
A boost for recovery
La Banque Postale is supporting the Allier department’s local economy recovery plan. A dedicated team ensures the fast handling of financing requests with a very low loan cap, notably for municipalities with fewer than 5,000 residents.
Strongly aware of the importance of environmental issues for local authorities, La Banque Postale decided to launch green loans in June 2019. They are intended to finance projects with a high environmental impact, waste recovery, energy renovation of public buildings, renewable energy generation and ecological mobility (clean transport). Their minimum amount of €500,000 enables municipalities of all sizes to access green finance. The ‘green loan’ is refinanced by green bonds issued by the SFIL Group. Since 2019, more than €1 billion in green loans has helped finance more than 250 local authority projects. Since 2020, this provision has also been offered to hospitals and healthcare players.
Finally, the health and economic context has highlighted the essential role of La Banque Postale and its subsidiary Domiserve with the General Councils, in the implementation of their social actions via the CESUs (universal service employment cheques). Domiserve issues more than €255 million in CESUs each year. Last year, it inaugurated two particularly welcome services: home delivery of food purchases for people who live far from shops and home help services for people who have just been discharged from hospital. The CESUs also enable departments to support their residents with the payment of a personalised autonomy allowance or disability allowance. In April 2021, Domiserve acquired Hippocad. This company offers local authorities and service providers remote management solutions for home-care assistance.
Local public sector
With its strategic plan, La Banque Postale aims to consolidate its leading position in local public sector financing, in partnership with SFIL. Goal: 30% market share by 2025.
A long-standing partner of social housing associations
La Banque Postale, which is the bank of seven out of ten social housing landlords, continues to support its landlord customers in the development of social housing, renovation and building rehabilitation. Aware of climate issues, in 2019, La Banque Postale set up a building energy performance diagnostics service. In 2020, it extended its green loan provision to social housing landlords. In order to adapt to new health constraints, the Bank helped social landlords make rent payment paperless, with its Scellius remote payment solution in particular.
Supporting the growth of 340,000 companies, VSEs and self-employed
As the bank for 50% of the CAC 40 and SBF 120 companies, La Banque Postale continues to strengthen its attractiveness to a large number of private economic players. At the end of 2020, total outstanding loans to corporates, VSEs and the self-employed reached €26.2 billion.
La Banque Postale played a role in supporting companies during the health crisis. It continued to support its corporate customers on a daily basis and implemented exceptional mechanisms. Over 6,000 state-guaranteed loans (PGEs) were granted in 2020, or more than €1 billion. A factoring system, developed by its subsidiary La Banque Postale Leasing & Factoring, has enabled companies to win up to 45 days of cash by allowing them to be paid as soon as the order is received.
La Banque Postale, together with its subsidiaries CNP Assurances and LBP AM, continued its commitment in 2021 alongside the public authorities by participating in the Participative Relaunch Loan (PPR) scheme. This new tool will enable SMEs and ISEs to strengthen their financial structure and finance their growth.
In addition, aware of climate and environmental issues, La Banque Postale supports companies’ ecological transition projects. In September 2020, La Banque Postale expanded its green loan offering by making them accessible to businesses and the self-employed (SMEs/SMIs). Already aligned with the requirements of the European Green Taxonomy, these enhanced green loans enable companies to embark on their low-carbon transition. The granting of green loans to companies reduces their carbon footprint by financing responsible real estate, water and waste treatment, and sustainable mobility projects.
Expanding the scope of activity of major customers
La Banque Postale wishes to become a major banking partner for French companies, with the aim of doubling SME/ISE customers and by increasing the flow volume 2.5 by 2025.
Supporting the actions of non-profit associations
La Banque Postale supports the social and solidarity economy. One non-profit association in four is a La Banque Postale customer. Its specialised business centre advisors support 5,000 of the main associations (foundations, education, charities or social organisations), while smaller associations are welcomed in post offices or managed by telephone at the Agence Pro. During the health crisis, the advance-on-subsidy solution proposed by La Banque Postale enabled many non-profit associations to balance their cash and ensure the survival of their projects.