Faced with low-cost, mobile and accessible offers from new banking players, Société Générale has decided to fight back with the launch of "Kapsul". Available from 2 euros a month, this offer includes a bank account and an international Visa card.
Société Générale rethinks its strategy
In a highly competitive environment marked by long-term low interest rates that are having a major impact on the profitability of banking establishments, the bank with the red and black logo is rethinking its strategy. The launch of Kapsul, a new low-cost banking offering, is one of the latest projects in its 2020 transformation plan.
Available since January 28, 2020, Kapsul is an entry-level offer, priced at 2 euros a month and accessible without income requirements. It includes a mobile-controlled bank account, an international Visa card and the bank's standard range of services (mortgages, consumer credit, savings, etc.). The bank card offers relatively limited limits, at 300 euros over 7 rolling days for withdrawals and 1,000 euros over one month for payments.
The bank specifies that Kapsul is aimed at customers who are "price-sensitive", "comfortable with digital" and have "frugal needs". Several features are available, such as the ability to block or unblock your bank card from your mobile, track your account balance in real time by sending notifications, and activate or deactivate contactless payment.
A cashback offer to make all the difference
Société Générale is well aware that it is lagging behind in the low-cost banking market, and is counting on its cashback offer to make a difference. In concrete terms, the bank pays out a percentage of the sums spent by the customer with partner merchants on the Internet, via apps or in stores. This feature, available since 2015, was extended to physical stores in October 2019. It collects nearly 5% of the amount spent.
Last but not least, Société Générale has launched an innovative service, offering policyholders a refund of their contributions if they are dissatisfied with the services offered during the first 12 months. Confident in the positioning of its offer, the bank hopes to win 10% more customers "fairly quickly". Capitalizing on its assets, it expects to be profitable within 2 years.
So, even though Société Générale already has an online bank with Boursorama, the bank wants to enable its customers to opt for another package as their needs evolve, while retaining the same IBAN number, identifiers and transaction history. It remains to be seen whether this offer will convince users.