The Cetelem Foundation for Personal Finance Education is launched

Paris, November 23rd 2010Press releaseThe CETELEM FOUNDATION FORPERSONAL FINANCE EDUCATION is launchedSet up in 1992 under the aegis of the Fondation de France, the Cetelem Foundationtoday decides to focus its efforts on one crucial mission: personal finance education.This mission is the logical extension of Cetelem’s ongoing work to foster the development of responsiblelending®.In an economic context that has rocked households’ financial balance, the CETELEM FOUNDATION FORPERSONAL FINANCE EDUCATION and 4 leading French associations, AGIR abcd, AURORE, CRESUS, andSecours Catholique, working in conjunction with FACE (Fondation Agir Contre l’Exclusion), have developed anumber of training schemes. The schemes primarily target young people who are about to enter the world ofwork, as well as anyone facing changes in their personal or professional life. Putting together and managing abudget, grasping the workings of a current account, understanding and mastering the various paymentmethods available, putting together a loan application… These are just a few of the subjects tackled head-on tohelp those the associations work with.Personal finance education, an indisputable needFinancial awareness acts as a powerful lever, helping each and every one of us build our personal and professionalfuture. As such, every individual has the right to be equipped with some basic financial knowledge. Learning how tomanage a budget, knowing how to read a bank statement or being capable of assessing your own financial situation areall key to achieving successful socio-economic integration. No one can deny that a concerted effort needs to be made inthis area, yet personal finance education remains something of a rarity within the French education system.Bruno Salmon is Chairman of BNP Paribas Personal Finance and Chairman of the CETELEM FOUNDATION FORPERSONAL FINANCE EDUCATION. As far as he is concerned: "It is vital that people understand and master basicpersonal finance tools if they are to handle their own finances in a responsible and efficient way. Modern-day paymentmethods, web-based purchases and direct debits are all practical solutions, but they sometimes take a bit of getting usedto. That’s why we have decided to pursue this initiative.”A pragmatic approach tailored to each partner association’s needsThe associations and organizations involved are convinced of the need to promote personal finance education, and theCetelem Foundation works with them to develop its training schemes. Its initiatives rely on the sharing of skills: theFoundation brings its own expertise and learning approach to the table, whilst its partners are responsible for actuallyrolling-out the training sessions. In concrete terms, the CETELEM FOUNDATION FOR PERSONAL FINANCE EDUCATIONputs together training tools in the form of customizable kits (lesson plans, trainer’s handbook, exercises and casestudies) that it then makes available to the partner organizations’ training teams. Specifically designed to meet youngpeople’s needs as well as those of families, the modules available focus on managing a budget, understanding andusing the various products on the market (loans, savings schemes), and generally instilling a sense of financialresponsibility in all those who take part.AGIR abcd, AURORE, CRESUS, Secours Catholique and FACE are the first five organizations to have joined theCetelem Foundation in pursuing this initiative.1

Initiatives that primarily target young peopleThe initiatives put together by the CETELEM FOUNDATION FOR PERSONAL FINANCE EDUCATION in conjunction with itspartners primarily target young people, be they apprentices (still attending school but already working), those who haveleft school without any qualifications, or those enrolled on job seekers schemes. With phone bills to settle and leisureactivities and transport to pay for, or simply because they have started working at a very young age, young peoplerapidly need to assess and control their buying power and make informed decisions as to how their money should bespent. The approach is simple: the younger the learning process starts, the easier it is to develop good spending habits.The CETELEM FOUNDATION FOR PERSONAL FINANCE EDUCATION also targets those who are facing changes in theirpersonal or professional life and who need preventive help in keeping their family’s budget on an even keel.__________________________________________________________________Press ContactsMathilde Donovanmathilde.donovan@cetelem.fr+33 (0)1 46 39 15 88Claude Martin-FranzClaude.martin-franz@cetelem.fr+33 (0)1 46 39 97 93About the CETELEM FOUNDATION FOR PERSONAL FINANCE EDUCATIONThe CETELEM FOUNDATION FOR PERSONAL FINANCE EDUCATION is one of the BNP Paribas Group’s foundations.Placed under the aegis of the Fondation de France, it was set up in 1992 on Cetelem’s initiative. Today, in an economicclimate that has multiplied the risk of exclusion, it has set itself the mission of developing and promoting personal financeeducation. Its objectives: foster socio-economic integration and prevention. This mission is a logical extension of thecompany’s line of business and its commitment to promote responsible lending®.The CETELEM FOUNDATION FOR PERSONAL FINANCE EDUCATION works in close conjunction with its partners:AGIR abcd, AURORE, CRESUS, Secours Catholique and FACE.http://fondation.cetelem.com/About BNP Paribas Personal Finance and CetelemBNP Paribas Personal Finance is part of the BNP Paribas Group, and specialises in personal financing through itsconsumer credit and mortgage activities. With 29,000 employees in more than 30 countries across 4 continents, BNPParibas Personal Finance is N°1 in France and Europe..For further information: www.bnpparibas-pf.com - www.moncreditresponsable.com2