SociétéGénéraleand La BanquePostalehave today just signed a memorandum of understanding to expand the operations of their joint venture Transactis, from card transactions to European and international wire transfers and direct debits.

Since the successful payment card processing partnership that enabled the banks to achieve significant savings in unit-transaction handling costs between 2008 and 2015, and the inclusion of Crédit du Nord in their shared system, Transactis handles 22% of payment cards and card transactionsin France.

The two banks have now decided to layer a new industry partnership on top of this existing operational framework, providing Transactis with a shared platform to manage the electronic processing of all their wire transfer and direct debit transactions.

They have chosen to work with Sopra Banking Software, a leading developer of payment applications in Europe and a longstanding partner of both Société Générale and La Banque Postale, using itsenterprise software solution Sopra Banking Platform for Payments.

This new and innovative partnership – the first of its kind in Europe – will combine the know-how of two banks and one software developer, to meet three objectives:

• Build a high-performance, innovative, shared IT management platform to address new needs on the market such as instant payments and mobile banking
• Pool transaction costs for all payments from 2018 based on a model similar to that of card transactions
• Offer the platform’s services on the European market and make Transactis a leader in electronic payment processing services for the continent’s financial industry

Société Générale

Société Générale is one of the largestEuropeanfinancial services groups. Based on a diversified universal banking model, the Group combines financial solidity with a strategy of sustainable growth, and aims to be the reference for relationship banking, recognised on its markets, close to clients, chosen for the quality and commitment of its teams.

Société Générale has been playing a vital role in the economy for 150 years. With more than 145,000 employees, based in 66 countries, it accompanies 31 million clients throughout the world on a daily basis. Société Générale’s teams offer advice and services to individual, corporate and institutional customers in three core businesses:

Retail banking in France with the Société Générale branch network, Credit du Nord and Boursorama, offering a comprehensive range of omnichannel financial services on the leading edge of digital innovation;

• International retail banking, insurance and financial services to corporates with a presence in developing economies and leading specialised businesses;

• Corporate and investment banking, private banking, asset management and securities services, with recognised expertise, top international rankings and integrated solutions.

Société Générale is included in the main socially responsible investment indices: DJSI (World and Europe), FTSE4Good (Global and Europe), Euronext Vigeo (Europe, Eurozone and France), ESI Excellence (Europe) from Ethibel and 4 of the STOXX ESG Leaders indices.

For more information, follow SociétéGénérale on @societegeneraleor visit www.societegenerale.com