Banking in English with a personal touch
December 4th, 2009 | Published in Features, Info & Advice, Interviews, Work & Study | 3 Comments
Euros. Photo: Zempt
Kate Daligault is a financial advisor at Banque Rhône-Alpes in Grenoble. She talks to Grenoble Life about the banking culture in France, getting financial advice in English, and what new residents need in order to open an account.
Grenoble Life: What is your role at Banque Rhône-Alpes?
Kate: I work with international clients, guiding them through the pitfalls of the French banking system and hopefully making their lives in France easier. I can also help with tax returns and financial planning – even the French find these difficult!
GL: Banque Rhône-Alpes has produced a lot of practical advice about its services in English, why?
Kate: Most of our clients do not speak French or simply feel more comfortable talking about their personal finances in English – the French banks use a lot of technical jargon which can be daunting. We also have part of our website in English, a corporate brochure on Banque Rhône-Alpes, means of payment and different types of accounts in France, and several product brochures as well.
GL: Tell us a little about your background and where you come from.
Kate: My passport is British, but I think I’m what you call one of these third culture people. I was born in the States, and travelled mainly in Europe during my childhood years, due to my father’s career, learning to speak French in Switzerland. I first went to England when I was 12 years old and completed my secondary school and university studies there, and then went to work in The City, London, for Natwest Bank. For my first permanent position, they sent me to France, and I’ve been here ever since.
GL: Why did you come to Grenoble originally?
Kate: Like everyone else – because of my husband’s job! We used to live in the Southwest of France and he was transferred to his company Head Office in Grenoble in 2004, following a promotion.
GL: When did you start working at Banque Rhône-Alpes and what kind of training did you need for the job?
Kate: I’ve been with Banque-Rhône-Alpes for just over a year now, and although I’m a qualified UK Financial Advisor, have a degree in Banking & International Finance, and have been advising expats in France for over 12 years now, I still had to go through the in-house Private Account Officer training! This consisted of four separate weeks of training, spread over three months at the Head Office in Paris. It was difficult to go back to full-day lessons, but very worthwhile.
GL: How can new residents to Grenoble get face to face financial advice in English?
Kate: The best way is to contact me on 04 38 02 38 81 or kate.daligault (at) banque-rhone-alpes.fr and arrange for an appointment. Our branch is right next to Chavant cinema, in the centre of town.
GL: How has the banking culture in France changed since you arrived in the country?
Kate: The main difference has been the introduction of online banking and call centres. Although these provide greater ease of access for clients, they tend to dehumanise banks and make clients feel anonymous. I feel that one of Banque Rhône-Alpes’ great strengths is to move away from this commercial banking model and retain personal contact with clients – I know all my clients by name and see them at least once a year.
GL: How does the banking culture differ from that in your native country?
Kate: Ever wonder why you have debit interest to pay, but your account was never overdrawn? This is due to the French value-dating system, which means that for a cheque for 1,000 € deposited on day one, the funds are not available until day three. Therefore if you write a cheque before that date, you may be overdrawn in value terms.
The other big difference is the legal status of cheques in France. Writing a cheque without having sufficient funds or a pre-arranged overdraft is a misdemeanour, as is bouncing a cheque. This results in being blacklisted by the Banque de France for five years and will affect your credit rating. You will not be able to obtain credit until you have cleared your previous liabilities.
GL: What advice would you give new residents looking to set up an account in France?
Kate: The main difficulty when you first arrive in France is that you cannot open a bank account because you don’t have a fixed address yet, but estate agents will not let you sign a rental agreement if you cannot provide details of a French bank account … it’s Catch 22. At Banque Rhone-Alpes, we have over 20 years’ experience in dealing with new arrivals, and all you need to provide is:
- a valid passport or national identity card if you are from within the EU
- proof of employment / studies in France
- a valid address
December 5th, 2009 at 10:30 am (#)
Barclays on Avenue Alsace Lorraine also do bilingual English/French Banking. I’ve been with them since arrival and have found them excellent – very organised, very friendly, very fast to help out with problems.
It’s interesting that in 6 months in France I have met and know the names of two friendly people in my bank, who are super-efficient and speak (at least) two languages. But 35 years in England and my opinion of English bankers is that they’re all a bunch of stupid moneygrabbing incompetents. Ho hum.
December 5th, 2009 at 10:32 am (#)
Another note – Barclays let me open the account with my UK address, and indeed intiate the whole account-opening process from the UK, so I knew I had an account waiting before even getting on the plane. This really helped with getting out of the famous French Banking Flat before Account before Flat before Account problem.
December 11th, 2009 at 10:39 am (#)
I’ve been banking with Banque Rhone-Alpes since I arrived in Grenoble, and was thrilled when Kate arrived there!
I love stopping in at the International Branch on Bd Jean Pain. It’s such a friendly, efficient, welcoming office – and they really do know their clients personally.