Defence: Groupe BPCE is founding partner of the “Wars and Peace Forum”

Wednesday 25 March

On April 1, Groupe BPCE will attend as founding partner the “Wars and Peace Forum” (Guerres et Paix), organized in Paris by the French media Le Point, to understand the geopolitical and strategic challenges of today and tomorrow.

The Forum is a meeting place for analysis, exchange and debate devoted to contemporary issues of defence, geopolitics and sovereignty. The theme of this first edition will be: “France, Europe and democracy put to the test in the face of world disorder”.

On the program of the event :

  • Interview with Nicolas Namias, CEO of BPCE: “Banks, essential partners of defence players”;
  • Conference “AI, space, drones, naval industry: when companies arm the France of tomorrow”, with the intervention of Olivia Laplane, Director of the Defense sector of Groupe BPCE and the presence of innovative companies that are customers of the group.

The financing of the defence sector is a crucial issue at a time when geopolitical events are accelerating, placing sovereignty issues at the heart of concerns. Aware of these challenges, Groupe BPCE is stepping up its support for the players in the Defence Industrial and Technological Base (SMEs active in security and defence), as part of its Vision 2030 strategic project:

  • The first financial institution in Europe to issue a bond dedicated to the defence sector – European Defence Bond, to serve the sovereignty and financing needs of defence companies.
  • Nearly a third of the Defence Industrial and Technological Base’s companies that are clients of the group (internal source, as of December 2025)
  • Banque Populaire and Caisse d’Epargne, the first French banks to sign an agreement with the European Investment Bank (EIB) to support defence SMEs. This €300 million loan will enable Groupe BPCE, through the Banques Populaires and the Caisses d’Epargne, to increase its financing to the sector. A first tranche of €150 million is currently deployed within the two networks. 

The Defence Industrial and Technological Base at a glance:

4,500 companies (SMEs and mid-caps) Source: Ministry of the Economy and Finance, conference of 20 March 2025.

220,000 direct and indirect jobs Source: Ministry of the Economy and Finance, conference of 20 March 2025.