Crédit Agricole Consumer Finance (CA Consumer Finance) and Bankia have secured banking license for their consumer finance joint venture (JV) in Spain, which will operate under the SoYou brand.
The new consumer finance joint venture company has been approved by the Spanish Ministry of Economy (Secretaría General del Tesoro) to operate as a financial credit institution.
CA Consumer Finance is the consumer credit subsidiary of French financial services company Crédit Agricole. The company signed an agreement with Bankia in May 2018 to set up the joint venture, which will specialise in offering point-of-sale consumer financing.
How the JV will help the Crédit Agricole subsidiary
For the Crédit Agricole subsidiary, the joint venture accelerates in establishing its footprint in Spain. On the other hand, for the Spanish bank, the joint venture creates a subsidiary focused on consumer finance, while adding a growth market to its portfolio of business operations in Spain.
CA Consumer Finance CEO Philippe Dumont said: “This license and the upcoming launch of our business with SoYou in Spain are a major milestone in the achievement of CA Consumer Finance’s strategic plan. This new entity will enable us to support our partners in Spain with a complete range of services and the most modern digital solutions.”
CA Consumer Finance will hold a stake of 51% in SoYou, while the remaining stake of 49% will be held by Bankia.
SoYou is set to begin its operations in the coming months after all the formalities for registration in the official register are wrapped up, said Crédit Agricole.
Products to be marketed by the new consumer finance company
The products to be marketed by the new consumer finance company will mainly be personal and consumer loans, revolving credit lines, consumer appliance leases, and loyalty cards.
Initially, SoYou will be engaged in providing point-of-sale financing for new and used vehicles, and for services and consumer goods. Later on, it will look to launch its personal loan business to the end customer.
SoYou managing director Pierre Adam said: “With SoYou, our objective is to make consumer finance clear and simple for our customers, by making it easier to understand, underwrite and manage.”
