Finance Archives - United Kingdom

BNP Paribas Personal Finance partners with Arval to offer one stop shop to purchase and finance used stock.

Two divisions of the BNP Paribas Group in the UK – BNP Paribas Personal Finance and car leasing specialist, Arval – are joining forces to launch a new stock financing solution for motor dealers across the UK.

Dealerships can now purchase and finance their used stock in one transaction directly through Arval’s market-leading online sales platform MotorTrade. The tie up enables dealers to spread 100 per cent of the purchasing cost (inclusive of fees) over flexible phased repayments of up to 120 days. The one-stop solution also makes it easier for dealerships to increase their stock levels, to manage their cashflow, and plan their expenditure levels. The solution is backed by the BNP Paribas Group for complete peace of mind.

Funding is applied to the account automatically for vehicles bought through the stock funding option. All information relating to the purchase, such as invoices, statements and payment schedules, is available to view on any connected device through an online account.

Arval’s MotorTrade platform offers dealerships direct online access to around 45,000 ex-lease vehicles each year from a range of manufacturers with no middlemen and competitive buyers’ fees.

For its part, BNP Paribas Personal Finance has been offering responsible consumer finance solutions in the UK for 45 years. In that time, it has become a trusted partner for businesses adapting to ever-changing marketplaces.

The new agreement is part of BNP Paribas’ Group-level commitment to deliver a seamless ‘one bank’ approach that pools the expertise of all its teams to provide the best experience for its partners.

Andrew Brameld, managing director of BNP Paribas Personal Finance’s motor finance business in the UK, said: “We’re delighted to be partnering with Arval to deliver this industry-leading stock finance solution to motor dealers across the UK.

“Here at BNP Paribas Personal Finance we have extensive experience at delivering quality, affordable financing options and we’re sure dealers will find this to be a useful tool as they manage and finance their stock levels.”

Gary Burns, remarketing director at Arval UK, added: “Arval MotorTrade has grown rapidly to become the go-to platform for retailers who are looking to purchase high quality used stock for their forecourts.

“This partnership further enhances our MotorTrade proposition making it even easier for buyers to access the stock they need, while giving them the confidence they have a finance plan in place that they know they can trust.”

For more information on BNP Paribas Personal Finance click here.

For more information on Arval UK click here.

For more information on Arval MotorTrade click here.

For more information on the BNP Paribas Group in the UK click here.

BNP Paribas today launches its latest single dealer platform (SDP), Cortex LIVE, with an inbuilt digital trading assistant, ALiX.
Cortex LIVE responds to growing client demand for more intelligent execution methods, more transparency and enhanced controls. The platform features a real-time market intelligence portal, Insight LIVE, and the FX industry’s first real time digital trading assistant, ALiX.
ALiX works with Cortex LIVE to provide an interactive trading experience – delivering clients with a running commentary on execution and trading, important events like data announcements, market moves or changes in liquidity. ALiX and Insight LIVE represent the latest advances in artificial intelligence, as well as natural language processing and are capable of reacting to over 100,000 data points per second.
Cortex LIVE, Insight LIVE and ALiX are a direct product of BNP Paribas’ ongoing commitment to digital growth.
Asif Razaq, global head of FX algorithmic execution at BNP Paribas, said: “We are proud to launch Cortex LIVE and ALiX. Our continued innovation takes clients into the next digital era as ALiX delivers a live commentary on execution, key markets events and provides a pioneering user experience. The client has complete control, while ALiX enhances execution capabilities and offers full transparency throughout execution.”
Joe Nash, digital FX COO at BNP Paribas, said: “In a complex market we bring our clients solutions grounded in simplicity. We are excited to offer a bespoke personal trading experience, which navigates through an evolving market, adapting to our clients more sophisticated needs. Cortex LIVE is the ultimate in interactivity, the simplicity of ALiX unlocks the power of the large data set beneath.”
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Press Contacts
Sarah Shephard sarah.shephard@uk.bnpparibas.com +44 (0) 20 7595 6038
BNP Paribas CIB on Twitter – @BNPParibasCIB
About BNP Paribas
BNP Paribas is a leading bank in Europe with an international reach. It has a presence in 73 countries, with more than 196,000 employees, including around 149,000 in Europe. The Group has key positions
PRESS RELEASE
in its three main activities: Domestic Markets, International Financial Services (whose retail-banking networks and financial services are covered by Retail Banking & Services) and Corporate & Institutional Banking, which serves two client franchises: corporate clients and institutional investors.
BNP Paribas employs more than 9,000 people across 10 business lines in the UK. These include Corporate & Institutional Banking, Exane BNP Paribas, Leasing Solutions, Arval, Real Estate (including Strutt & Parker acquired in September 2017), Asset Management, Cardif Pinnacle, Commercial Finance, Personal Finance and Vauxhall Finance. Around half of its employees are in Corporate & Institutional Banking, based in London, while the others are based in various offices across the country, including Belfast, Birmingham, Cardiff, Glasgow, Manchester.

BNP Paribas today announces its strategic partnership with Kantox, a leading fintech specialising in FX risk management solutions.

The agreement enables BNP Paribas and Kantox to jointly offer Kantox’s Dynamic Hedging solution to BNP Paribas’ clients across EMEA. Dynamic Hedging is an innovative software solution developed by Kantox, which allows corporate treasurers to fully automate and streamline FX workflows. The solution will complement the product suite available on Centric, BNP Paribas’ leading digital banking platform.

This partnership strengthens BNP Paribas’ commitment to digital growth and transformation, demonstrating an agile approach which combines the strength of a leading global bank with the latest advances in fintech.

Philippe Gelis, CEO and co-founder at Kantox, said: “We are pleased to jointly offer our award-winning Dynamic Hedging solution to BNP Paribas’ corporate clients. Our solution allows treasurers to automate FX management and leverage micro-hedging to save time and streamline workflows. We believe that our offering, combined with the financial strength of BNP Paribas as a banking partner, is an attractive value proposition for their existing corporate client base.”

Xavier Gallant, Co-Head of Corporate Rates, FX and Local Markets Sales EMEA at BNP Paribas, said: “When it comes to managing foreign currency risk, we are seeing a real need for our corporate clients to improve efficiencies in forecasting their future cash flows, formalising hedging practices and optimising execution through automation. BNP Paribas’ partnership with Kantox will offer corporate treasurers in EMEA the opportunity to access a fully automated hedging solution and ultimately improve their treasury processes. We look forward to a successful partnership.”

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Press Contacts

Sarah Shephard sarah.shephard@uk.bnpparibas.com +44 (0) 20 7595 6038

BNP Paribas CIB on Twitter – @BNPParibasCIB

About BNP Paribas

BNP Paribas is a leading bank in Europe with an international reach. It has a presence in 73 countries, with more than 196,000 employees, including around 149,000 in Europe. The Group has key positions in its three main activities: Domestic Markets, International Financial Services (whose retail-banking networks and financial services are covered by Retail Banking & Services) and Corporate & Institutional Banking, which serves two client franchises: corporate clients and institutional investors.

BNP Paribas employs more than 9,000 people across 10 business lines in the UK. These include Corporate & Institutional Banking, Exane BNP Paribas, Leasing Solutions, Arval, Real Estate (including Strutt & Parker acquired in September 2017), Asset Management, Cardif Pinnacle, Commercial Finance, Personal Finance and Vauxhall Finance. Around half of its employees are in Corporate & Institutional Banking, based in London, while the others are based in various offices across the country, including Belfast, Birmingham, Cardiff, Glasgow, Manchester.

About Kantox

Kantox is a leading fintech company building software solutions that help businesses to overcome complex FX challenges and leverage foreign currencies for growth. Kantox’s expertise and solutions allow businesses to capture FX exposure data and automate their hedging, payment and collection processes. Over 3,900 clients in 70 countries trust Kantox with their payment and currency management needs.

The company is headquartered in London and authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority (reference number 580343). For more information, visit www.kantox.com, @Kantox or LinkedIn

Loan structure incentivises employment support and work-ready training for Optivo residents

UK Housing Association Optivo today announced it has secured a new five-year £50 million revolving credit facility provided by BNP Paribas. The facility is structured as a sustainability-linked loan (SLL) where the interest rate is tied to Optivo meeting social impact-based key performance indicators. There is an option to increase the size of the facility to £75 million, as well as extend the tenor.

Optivo will draw on the loan for general corporate purposes and will reinvest interest rate savings to help deliver employment support and work-ready training programmes to residents in Optivo households and communities.

Participants will benefit from a three-stage development approach based on an ‘end to end’ employment support pathway:

Engagement, confidence building, information advice and guidance
Pre-employment ‘work ready’ training
‘In work’ support training.

Employment opportunities include security, construction, beauty and hospitality sector jobs.

Under the terms of the agreement, Optivo will benefit from a lower interest rate margin on the loan if it delivers an agreed number of unemployed residents into work or supports them with work-ready training. This target rises incrementally over the five year life of the loan. Optivo will publish the outcome in the Group’s Annual Report.

Sarah Smith, Chief Financial Officer at Optivo, said: “Our full commitment is to building homes, making places and enhancing lives. We’re delighted BNP Paribas are joining forces with us to maximise our positive social impact.”

Simon Gates, UK Head of Corporate Coverage and Transaction Banking at BNP Paribas, said: “Ultimately, thanks to Optivo’s focus on employment, this sustainable linked loan is about getting people back into work, which is good for individuals, families, the economy and society. It’s a business model that BNP Paribas supports, with this deal being the second SLL we’ve structured in the UK Housing Association sector in the last 12 months.”

London, UK – 5 December 2018 – BNP Paribas announced that Lewis Burnett joined the bank today as co-head of Corporate Broking, based in London. Lewis reports to Andreas Bernstorff, EMEA head of Equity Capital Markets, and will be overseen by Matthew Ponsonby, UK head of Global Banking.

The move reunites Lewis with Andrew Forrester, who joined the bank as co-head of Corporate Broking in August. As they build out the Corporate Broking team, Lewis and Andrew will position BNP Paribas as a trusted adviser to the senior management teams of UK FTSE 100 and 250 companies, and increase BNP Paribas’ market share in UK equity-related transactions. Corporate Broking will form a central pillar in BNP Paribas’ UK growth plan, drawing on the research and distribution strength of Exane BNP Paribas, the balance sheet strength of one of Europe’s leading banks, and its market-leading product set.

Lewis was latterly head of UK Advisory and Corporate Broking at Credit Suisse where he worked since 2005, advising on numerous high profile capital raisings and M&A transactions. Prior to that, Lewis was a City lawyer. Andrew was latterly a managing director in Credit Suisse’s UK Advisory and Corporate Broking department. Previously, he was head of UK ECM and Corporate Broking at Nomura, and held senior Corporate Broking positions at Citigroup for more than a decade.

Andreas Bernstorff, EMEA head of Equity Capital Markets, BNP Paribas, said: “We are pleased to now have both Lewis and Andrew on-board. They bring outstanding knowledge of ‘UK PLC’ and almost 40 years’ collective experience in providing strategic equity advice to UK firms. They will play a key part in increasing the impact BNP Paribas makes in UK equity primary markets, that is commensurate with the leading business we have built in equity research and distribution.”

Exane BNP Paribas, which is responsible for research and distribution within BNP Paribas’ ECM business, operates one of the largest distribution platforms dedicated to European equities worldwide. It was ranked #1 pan-European equities house by the Extel Survey of investors in 2018 and 2017, with 17 top rated analysts in the 30 equity sectors. On the debt side, BNP Paribas was #1 in Euro-denominated DCM and a top three bookrunner in both high-yield and leveraged loans in Europe, in the first nine months of 2018 according to Dealogic.

Matthew Ponsonby, UK head of Global Banking, BNP Paribas, said: “Based on our traditional strengths in financing and a uniquely diversified range of services in the UK, we are already a core relationship bank to many FTSE 100 companies. Together with our UK Client Coverage, Financial Sponsors and Financial Institutions Coverage teams, Corporate Broking builds on these areas of strength and is therefore a logical extension of the dialogue we are already having with clients.”

As part of its 2020 group business development plan, BNP Paribas is looking to grow its business in the UK and other selected European countries, with the aim of becoming the bank of reference for corporates in Europe. Corporate Broking is a central part of that strategy and caps a compelling proposition based on its diversified UK banking platform, leading debt financing capabilities and the #1 ranked equities distribution and research platform in Europe.

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About BNP Paribas

BNP Paribas (http://www.bnpparibas.com/) is a leading bank in Europe with an international reach. It has a presence in 73 countries, with more than 196,000 employees, including around 149,000 in Europe. The Group has key positions in its three main activities: Domestic Markets, International Financial Services (whose retail-banking networks and financial services are covered by Retail Banking & Services) and Corporate & Institutional Banking, which serves two client franchises: corporate clients and institutional investors.

BNP Paribas employs more than 9,000 people across 10 business lines in the UK. These are Corporate & Institutional Banking, Exane BNP Paribas, Leasing Solutions, Arval, Real Estate (including Strutt & Parker acquired in September 2017), Asset Management, Cardif Pinnacle, Commercial Finance, Personal Finance and Vauxhall Finance. Around half of these employees are in Corporate & Institutional Banking based in London, while the others are based in various offices across the country, including Belfast, Birmingham, Cardiff, Glasgow and Manchester.

London, UK – 26 March 2018 – BNP Paribas today announced that it has recently appointed Bertrand Valet Head of Financial Sponsors Coverage for Continental Europe. Mr Valet is based in Paris but will spend a significant amount of his time working in London. He reports to James Seagrave, the Bank’s London-based, Global Head of Financial Sponsors Coverage.

Mr Valet has more than 25 years’ experience. He joined BNP Paribas from Bank of America Merrill Lynch after nine years with that firm, latterly as a managing director and head of France coverage in its EMEA financial sponsors team. In that role, Mr Valet managed relationships with private equity clients on a pan-European basis, including priority clients in London and Paris. He also led the dialogue with key private equity firms in the context of their investments in French leveraged buyouts. Mr Valet’s recent mandates include advising on the sale of French fashion group SMCP to Shandong Ruyi on behalf of KKR in 2016, and subsequently leading SMCP’s IPO on Euronext Paris in 2017. He also advised on the sale of Germany-headquartered, industrial packaging firm MAUSER to Stone Canyon on behalf of Clayton, Dubilier and Rice last year.

Prior to this, Mr Valet led the development of Bank of America Merrill Lynch’s financial sponsors and sovereign wealth fund activity in the Middle East and North Africa until 2011. Before Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Mr Valet spent almost a decade working for Morgan Stanley in London and Dubai, and also worked for Paribas in London for two years. He started his career at Paribas Technology in San Francisco which later became Partech Ventures.

“We are delighted that Bertrand has joined BNP Paribas. He brings a strong track record in the EMEA region and excellent experience of building and developing client relationships. His recruitment is part of our ongoing strategy to increase BNP Paribas’ impact and market share with financial sponsor clients” said Mr Seagrave.

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About BNP Paribas

BNP Paribas (www.bnpparibas.com) is a leading bank in Europe with an international reach. It has a presence in 74 countries, with more than 192,000 employees, including more than 146,000 in Europe. The Group has key positions in its three main activities: Domestic Markets and International Financial Services (whose retail-banking networks and financial services are covered by Retail Banking & Services) and Corporate & Institutional Banking, which serves two client franchises: corporate clients and institutional investors. The Group helps all its clients (individuals, community associations, entrepreneurs, SMEs, corporates and institutional clients) to realise their projects through solutions spanning financing, investment, savings and protection insurance. In Europe, the Group has four domestic markets (Belgium, France, Italy and Luxembourg) and BNP Paribas Personal Finance is the European leader in consumer lending. BNP Paribas is rolling out its integrated retail-banking model in Mediterranean countries, in Turkey, in Eastern Europe and a large network in the western part of the United States. In its Corporate & Institutional Banking and International Financial Services activities, BNP Paribas also enjoys top positions in Europe, a strong presence in the Americas as well as a solid and fast-growing business in Asia-Pacific.

About BNP Paribas Corporate and Institutional Banking

Fully integrated in the BNP Paribas Group, BNP Paribas Corporate and Institutional Banking (CIB) (www.cib.bnpparibas.com) is a leading provider of solutions to two client franchises: corporates and institutionals, and operates across EMEA (Europe Middle East Africa), APAC (Asia Pacific) and the Americas. The bank is a global leader in Debt Capital Markets and Derivatives. It is a top European house in Equity Capital Markets and it has leading franchises in Specialized Financing. In Securities Services, it is a top five House worldwide. BNP Paribas CIB strives to service the global economy by providing solutions to its clients in financing (ECM, DCM, specialized financing), flow banking (trade finance and cash management), financial advisory (M&A, project finance), global markets (interest rates, credit, foreign exchange, equity derivatives), risk management, and securities services.

London, UK – 9 February 2018 – BNP Paribas today announced that Charlotte Conlan, EMEA head of high-yield bond and loan syndicate, has won GlobalCapital Magazine’s Loans Banker of the Year in 2017. Ms Conlan accepted the award at a dinner to celebrate the magazine’s annual loans and leveraged finance awards on the evening of 7 February 2018, at Gibson Hall in London.

Fred Zorzi, global head of syndicate for bonds and loans, BNP Paribas said: “I am delighted for Charlotte and pleased that her hard work has been recognised. We have ranked #1 bookrunner for EMEA syndicated loans four times in the past five years which is no easy feat; and this is thanks to Charlotte and her team.”

Ms. Conlan joined BNP Paribas in 2000 as head of leveraged syndication. Five years later, she was given additional responsibility for infrastructure and project finance. In 2013, she was appointed head of loan syndication for EMEA, before being appointed to her current role in 2015, when the bank merged its leveraged loan and high yield bond syndicate desks.

In 2017, BNP Paribas ranked #1 and #2 by number of deals for loans and high-yield bonds respectively, according to Dealogic.

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About BNP Paribas

About BNP Paribas Corporate and Institutional Banking

London, UK – 29 September 2017 – BNP Paribas has appointed Matthew Ponsonby as Head of UK Corporate Banking in its Corporate and Institutional Banking unit. In this newly-created role, Mr. Ponsonby will be responsible for managing the corporate business of the BNP Paribas Group in the UK and for spearheading its expansion. He reports to Anne Marie Verstraeten, UK Country Head, BNP Paribas Group and Yannick Jung, Head of EMEA Corporate Clients, Financing and Advisory.

In March, as part of its 2020 Business Development Plan, BNP Paribas CIB identified the UK as one of four target European markets in which it aims to expand its business, with a particular segmental focus on UK corporates and UK subsidiaries of multinational groups.

Ms. Verstraeten said: “We are committed to growing our already well-established UK franchise. Matthew’s extensive knowledge of the corporate landscape – in the UK and beyond – along with his unparalleled investment banking experience will help us achieve this goal. His excellent track record of combining strong debt franchises with M&A advisory makes him a particularly good fit for the task in hand.”

Mr. Ponsonby brings more than 30 years’ experience in financial services, in particular investment banking, equity markets and M&A. He has advised on transactions worth more than GBP350bn over the course of his career, including some of the largest transactions in EMEA. He joins from Barclays investment bank where he served from 2009-2017, most recently as Vice-Chairman and Global Co-Chief Operating Officer of Banking. Prior to this, Mr. Ponsonby worked for Citigroup where he held various senior positions including Head of European Utilities, Head of the Advisory Group in Japan, and Global Head of Infrastructure Investment Banking. Mr. Ponsonby has also held positions at Deutsche Morgan Grenfell and Andersen Consulting.

The BNP Paribas Group employs more than 7,500 staff in the UK, serving a broad client base through a comprehensive offering that includes corporate and institutional banking, securities services, real estate services, asset management, insurance, personal finance, leasing solutions and commercial finance. In 2017, the bank celebrates its 150^th year of operation in the UK. BNP Paribas UK Corporate Banking comprises relationship coverage, corporate debt, advisory, trade and treasury teams.

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About BNP Paribas

About BNP Paribas Corporate and Institutional Banking