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BNP Paribas presents Innovation Days 2008 and demonstrates that once again innovation is the centrepiece of its strategy

Innovation is a strong differentiation factor in the banking industry. It is the centre of the BNP Paribas strategy. Innovation, whether it is technological, financial, marketing or behavioural, means that the Group adapts rapidly to a continually changing environment in order to offer the best products and services to its clients.

Innovation Days – a dedicated seminar

For several years, the BNP Paribas Innovation Days have been an original and important element in the culture of BNP Paribas. This event, which is open this year to clients and partners, is designed to provide an opportunity to share the experience and expertise in innovation offered by the Group's various entities – in technology, processes, products, services, sustainable development and more.

The BNP Paribas Innovation Days 2008, which are held at the Carrousel du Louvre, welcome nearly 200 facilitators from more than 30 countries and offer about 30 different seminar topics.
This year, BNP Paribas is also welcoming partners and companies that are key players in innovation and social responsibility, including L'Oréal, Canal+, IBM, Orange Business Services, HP, Google Industry Finance Italia, BearingPoint, Turkcell and GoodPlanet.
The companies Violet, Kameleon, Daesign, Cleantech and Iconocast will also be present at L'Atelier's stand to present communication and interactive tools.

A true mechanism for managing innovation

BNP Paribas, which offers strong technological potential in all its businesses and transverse activities, permanently promotes a culture of innovation through a real mechanism for managing innovation. This mechanism is based on a programme of innovation management known as “Spirit of Innovation”, on two tightly-intertwined technology watch centres - L'Atelier and the Centre for Innovation and Technology - and on research partnerships with the world's top schools, including the London Business School, HEC Paris, Centrale Paris and Singapore Management University.

The Spirit of Innovation programme illustrates the group's efforts to make innovation one of its major assets in an industry in which research and development already play a vital role, from derivative products that provide employment to hundreds of mathematicians, to IT development services and retail banking marketing teams.

In order to stimulate and recognise the creativity and expertise of its employees, the Group has created the “Innovation Awards”, which are presented during the BNP Paribas Innovation Days by Baudouin Prot, Managing Director of the Group.
(More information on the 2008 winners is attached (42 ko)).

An experimentation and watch unit focused on the uses of technology, L'Atelier BNP Paribas monitors new trends and new concepts and develops a forward-looking vision in the segments where technological changes go hand in hand with changes in society and consumer practices.

The CIT (Centre for Innovation and Technology), which is attached to the ITP (Information Technology & Processes) department, is set up to facilitate innovation within the Group by coordinating contacts among multiple players: the various entities that express needs not covered by current technologies or processes, the partner publishers and builders of BNP Paribas, and the sources of innovation such as L'Atelier, which contributes the valuable results of its watch and its expertise in communication.

About BNP Paribas
BNP Paribas (www.bnpparibas.com) is a European leader in international banking and financial services, and ranks among the world's top 4 banks according to Standard and Poor's. The group is present in more than 85 countries and has nearly 163,000 employees, with about 127,000 based in Europe. The group occupies leading positions in three significant fields of activity: Corporate and Investment Banking, Asset Management & Services and Retail Banking. Present throughout Europe, in all its business lines, France and Italy are its two domestic markets in retail banking. BNP Paribas enjoys a significant and growing presence in the United States and leading positions in Asia and in emerging markets.

About L'Atelier BNP Paribas
Created in 1978 within Compagnie Bancaire, L'Atelier BNP Paribas is a meeting place for the exchange of expertise of companies that have projects and achievements related to new information and communication technologies across all business sectors. Today, L'Atelier offers various information formats for businesses as well as for individuals. The “workshops” are forums at which French and foreign companies present their strategies, technologies and the ensuing new services. The “Seminars” at L'Atelier are intended to provide an innovative response to business issues. The free daily “L'Atelier Newsletter” has become a benchmark in the French landscape of technology watch newsletters. The website www.atelier.fr provides comprehensive information, including expertise and events. L'Atelier also features studies based on observation and understanding that are real decision-making tools. Every weekend L'Atelier broadcasts “L'Atelier Numérique” (Digital Workshop) to listeners on radio station BFM. And finally, L'Atelier has two international watch branches - one in the USA (in San Francisco) and one in Asia (in Shanghai).

Today, L'Atelier BNP Paribas Workshop can be found at: https://www.atelier.fr/, https://asie.atelier.fr/ (unavailable link) and https://www.atelier-us.com/