French banks ask for right to distribute National Savings

Four French banks – Societe Generale, BNP Paribas, Credit Agricole SA and Groupe Banque Populaire – have written to the French prime minister, Dominique de Villepin, offering to distribute France’s national savings account, Livret A, for a deposit-based commission of only 0.8 per cent. The account, whose deposits are used to fund French social housing projects, is currently available only via the French post office, La Poste, and the French co-operative bank Caisse d’Epargne. From November 1, those entities will be paid commissions of 1.3 and 1 per cent respectively, compared with 1.4 and 1 per cent at present.