Banking in France

Having a French bank account is not a legal requirement to be resident in France – however, it is broadly required by service providers for certain things such as signing up for utilities, getting a mobile contract, or leasing an apartment (note that if you take out a French mortgage, you will need a French bank account). 

While not strictly a necessity, it can quickly become a de facto essential to make everyday life more practical, allowing you ease and peace of mind for financial transactions.

Big banks in France are divided between those, like BNP Paribas and Société Générale which are public-listed companies, and co-operatives like Crédit Agricole, Crédit Mutuel and BPCE group, where only clients have the option to take shares in local co-operatives, and have a say in how they are run.

With so many personal banking operations now carried out online, in-person banking is becoming less accessible, yet while France saw more bank branches shut in the past five years than in the previous decade, it still has more branches than any other European country.

At the start of June 2025 there were 36,411 branches, according to financial newspaper Les Echos, compared to 39,707 five years earlier.

Crédit Agricole (meaning agricultural), has its roots in the co-operative system that still dominates French farming, and, with other co-operative banks, is most likely to have a presence in small towns.

Where 20 years ago the wait to be served in a local bank could be long, and usually meant a chance to catch up on local gossip, many are now quiet, with most customers only going in to sign documents for loans.

ATMs and your personal banking advisor

When a bank branch closes, the cash machine associated with it often disappears too. To counter this, as well as to save costs, some banks have been exploring ways to share ATMs.

The largest ongoing project involves Société Générale, BNP Paribas, Crédit Mutuel and CIC, a subsidiary of Crédit Mutuel. 

The project, dubbed ‘Cash Services’, will see the installation of ‘brand free’ ATMs (distributeurs automatiques de billets or DAB) across the country.

It initially had a target of 3,000 shared ATMs by the end of 2025, but has now reduced this to 2,500 – partly because so many bank branches have shut.

The intention, rather than simply increasing the number of ATMs, is to distribute them more strategically across the country.

Personal banking advisor 

When opening an account, your bank will assign you a conseiller (or conseillère) clientèle particuliers (personal banking advisor) to offer advice and support in the day-to-day management of your finances, from life events such as buying property, planning retirement, inheritance, and children’s education, to account issues – for example, some may send an email if a direct debit has been rejected due to insufficient funds (solde insuffisant).

Applying for a bank account 

The process of applying for an account is straightforward in theory, though in practice can become complicated in a country renowned for its bureaucracy. 

Knowing that systems can be paperwork-heavy, and researching the correct sequence of steps before taking them, can pre-empt and offset potential pitfalls ahead of time.