About BNP Paribas

BNP Paribas Group – Who we are

The BNP Paribas Group is born of successive mergers between several banks that were created during the industrial revolution early in the 19th century. From the start, these banks’ missions were to finance the economy and serve their customers worldwide. This long-standing purpose and history over two centuries is now deeply embedded in the Group’s fabric.

BNP Paribas was officially established on 23 May 2000 at the merger between Banque Nationale de Paris (BNP), France’s leading deposit bank, and Paribas, an international investment bank. But its features and values have been forged, transmitted and acquired over 200 years of history marked by developments, transformations and challenges – in a word, BNP Paribas represents two centuries of a bank at the service of the global economy.

To read more about our Group history, please visit: https://histoire.bnpparibas/en/

BNP Paribas, the leading bank in the European Union

BNP Paribas is the leading bank in the European Union and a leading international banking player. Present in 64 countries and locations, with 184,000 employees, the Group has key positions in several banking and financial services activities, structured around three main operating divisions:  

  • Commercial, Personal Banking & Services (CPBS), which brings together the Group’s retail banking networks and several specialized businesses;  
  • Investment & Protection Services (IPS) for savings, investment and protection solutions;  
  • Corporate & Institutional Banking (CIB), which serves two client franchises: Corporate clients and institutional investors.  

The operating divisions of BNP Paribas are organized to increase cooperation between the business lines: A global and joint approach enhances the expertise offered to our clients in order to advise them throughout a long-term relationship. 

A diversified and integrated business model  

Backed by a solid diversified and integrated model, the Group helps all its clients (individuals, community associations, entrepreneurs, SMEs, corporate and institutional clients) to realize their projects through solutions spanning financing, investment, savings and protection insurance.   

To this end, the Group has leading platforms and business lines in Europe, a strong international presence especially in the Americas, as well as a solid and fast growing business in Asia Pacific.   

BNP Paribas is also implementing a Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) approach in all its activities, enabling it to contribute to the construction of a sustainable future, while ensuring the Group’s performance and stability.

Visit the website of the BNP Paribas Group

BNP Paribas history in the Middle East and Africa

Since the 19th Century BNP Paribas’ forerunner banks have operated in Africa, creating a strong banking history on the continent. At present, the bank has two main franchise locations in the North and South of Africa. In South Africa, the bank has both a CIB and consumer finance presence through a full commercial branch, which acts as a regional hub for operations in Southern Africa, and RCS Ltd. In Morocco, the bank has a regional office hub, in addition to the BNP Paribas Regional Investment Company (BRIC), which acts as a central platform for wider Africa. BNP Paribas also owns a majority share in the retail bank, Banque Marocaine pour le Commerce et l’Industrie (BMCI).

In the Middle East, BNP Paribas began to lay the foundations of a commercial network in the Gulf region from the late 1950s and set up a regional hub in Bahrain in 1975. During the following years, a large number of BNP Paribas Group businesses were also rolled out across the Gulf region in geographies such as the UAE, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and Qatar, which remain strong platforms to this day.

Our Geographies