PARIS, BANQUE NATIONALE DE

nationalized French commercial-banking company. It has branches and representatives in more than 75 countries. Headquarters are in Paris. The bank was created in 1966 when French Finance Minister Michel Debr combined two existing banks to make the largest bank on the European continent. The two merged banks were Banque Nationale pour le Commerce et l'Industrie (established in 1932) and Comptoir National d'Escompte de Paris (established in 1848), both nationalized in 1945. Banque Nationale provides domestic-banking services for individuals and corporations, investment banking, advisory services, and foreign and international banking services. The bank acts as a managing underwriter for most debt securities of the French government, underwrites corporate securities, and provides markets for Eurocurrency securities in Paris. It also provides financing for French export companies and credit lines for foreign companies buying French exports. Many of the international-banking services are provided through foreign banks, subsidiaries, and associated banks.